'Have we anyone coming up?' The odds stacked against Irish tennis players

If the Irish can’t resist an underdog then our professional tennis players should feel the love far more than most

Rare ray of light: Ireland's Conor Niland during a Davis Cup match in 2011. Pic: ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Conor Niland knows what’s coming as he walks to the tee box and shakes hands with someone for the first time. Chances are that his new companion for the next four or so hours has already spotted his name on the time sheet and squared it away with that tennis player who made it to Wimbledon or the US Open back in the day.

A round of golf brings with it an ocean of time to shoot the breeze but so it’s usually in and around the fifth hole when the same words are uttered in his direction. Niland, like some music afficionado who needs only the opening bar to put a name to any tune, hears the first two syllables and can pre-empts the rest.