Marcus Willis ‘earns himself a beer’, and plenty of fans for fairytale Wimbledon 2016 run

All that changed last year when he changed his diet and started working out in preparation for this year. So much so, he had considered leaving the tour and moving to the US to teach amateurs. But that mindset changed when he met his girlfriend reportedly at an Ellie Goulding concert.

On Monday, he already became a giant killer – in a way. Willis beat highest ranked Lithuanian of all time – Ricardas Berankis 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round at Wimbledon. The difference in ranking between the two? 718. But Willis’ second round opponent was a certain Roger Federer. And despite the loud support on his side on Centre Court, the Swiss champion came out on top 6-0, 6-3, 6-4.

And everything since has been fascinating for the lowest ranked player in the draw. To start with, he received a standing ovation post the match.

Classy.

Roger Federer hangs back to let Marcus Willis soak up the crowd’s applause.#Wimbledonhttps://t.co/Wby6YU4bIz

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 29, 2016

With his parents in attendance along with friends and his sister, Willis had plenty of support on his side. Not to forget these guys who had three epic chants ready – “Shoes off, if you love Willis”, “Willbomb’s on fire, Federer is terrified” and “Don’t you want me Willis? Don’t you want me woah?”

“Willbomb’s on fire, Federer is terrified!”

Brilliant.#wimbledon live: https://t.co/EeMdRlXOeJhttps://t.co/qObAlkWVx6

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 29, 2016

Roger Federer who normally gets more support than Andy Murray at Wimbledon or even the year ending ATP World Tour finals finally received less support from the London crowd. The seven time Wimbledon winner reckons this is the least support he’s got since he was a wildcard on Court 8 in 1999!

But in all seriousness, “I thought Marcus brought some unbelievable energy to the court, with his fans and his play and his personality,” said a classy Federer.

For Marcus? He was disappointed because he thought he could have done better than he did.

“Just how did it feel to play Roger Federer on Centre Court, Marcus?” #Wimbledonhttps://t.co/i8nPcUzD33

— BBC Tennis (@bbctennis) June 29, 2016

The reaction when Willis finally got on board was pretty amazing – both from him and from the capacity crowd at SW19.

0/6 1/1 pic.twitter.com/OrqeFQE3d9

— philippe (@philousports) June 29, 2016

Something to make this whole thing even more comic? Willis wore a “RF” shirt in the match – you know the ones which are Roger Federer merchandise.

dead at Marcus Willis playing with a RF tshirt pic.twitter.com/PCXJhdilKN

— Giulio Fedele (@fedele_giulio) June 29, 2016

In fact, one ESPN graphic compared their homes! (For the record, Federer has 3 homes while Willis stays with his parents!)

lol at espn comparing homes #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/N0ifvjDWK9

— Jordan Heck (@JordanHeckFF) June 29, 2016

And at the end, when all was done and dusted, Willis said, “I’ve earned myself a beer now” and walked off. Not bad for a debut!