WHILE the likes of Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz have us glued to the action at Wimbledon, an army of unsung heroes are keeping the tournament ticking over.
The ball boys and girls (known as BBGs) are on hand at every match to retrieve balls from the court and supply new ones to serving players.
Alex Crockford was 15 when he first served as a ball boy
The personal trainer now runs his own fitness app
But, as former ball boy Alex Crockford reveals, before they get to stand on the hallowed turf of the All England Club, the elite 250-strong squad go through a rigorous selection process and a gruelling training programme to ensure they’re at the top of their game.
Speaking to SE, Alex explains how during Wimbledon fortnight the BBGs are constantly assessed, often being “demoted” to lesser courts if they’re not up to scratch.
Sometimes the job requires standing still for hours in the blazing sun. Back in 2019, four collapsed and needed medical attention.
For 33-year-old Alex, who served in 2005 and 2006, that feeling is all too familiar.
“Standing still for hours is one of the toughest parts of being a ball boy,” he says.
“It’s quite strict and you don’t want to let your team down or feel like you’re doing a bad job.
“I remember one really hot day, I clearly hadn’t fuelled or hydrated myself appropriately.
“I did have a very faint moment, and started seeing blurry stars.
Alex (centre, back row) with his fellow BBGs in 2006
A ball boy had to be helped off court after collapsing in the heat in 2019
“There are six BBGs on the court and a captain, which was me, so I was standing to the left of the umpire chair and I was away from my water.
“I had to go outside of my position, get some water and re-balance myself before I could continue.”
Tough selection
The prestigious role of a BBG is only open to pupils at around 30 schools in south west London and Surrey. Thousands enter, with the pool of hopefuls whittled down over weeks of tough tests.
Although Alex’s school, Sunbury Manor in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, was outside of the usual catchment area, pupils were allowed to apply because a teacher there had a connection to the tournament.
Alex, then 15, was one of around 50 in his year group who tried out for the 2005 season.
“The process whittles down over 1,000 children through standard fitness tests and ball skills,” he recalls.
“Then we had some more training at school and continue to be auditioned, fitness tested and put through our paces, rolling balls and so on, for many, many weeks.
“About four months before the tournament they finally take you to Wimbledon – but even then we didn’t go to the All England Club immediately. We trained in a big tennis club opposite.”
In the past few years training has begun in February once a fortnight at the Raynes Park Community Sports Ground.
After Easter the programme moves to the covered courts at Wimbledon with weekly training sessions lasting up to two-and-a-half hours, with 50-60 children per session.
“We had to do bleep tests, where you’re running back and forth against all the other kids to see who has the best stamina and cardiovascular fitness,” says Alex.
“We also practised at standing still for long periods of time, which we had to do during the competition, sometimes for two hours at a time. It took a lot of mental stamina and it’s a challenge to stay alert.”
Ball skills
Alex kept a cutting from the newspaper when he was present during the Guard of Honour for 2006 winner Roger Federer
Ball boys get ready to spring into action at this year’s Wimbledon
The physical training, while rigorous, is only part of the testing process.
“There’s a lot of theory behind it and you have to really know the game of tennis extremely well, so we had multiple choice exams at the end,” Alex adds.
“But two of the hardest things were the ball skills. We had to roll the the ball completely flat, so any bounce as it leaves your hand is not a perfect roll, and that was a really tough skill to learn.
“Also when you’re throwing the ball to the server, you have to put your hand straight up above your head and it can only bounce once before it lands easily in the player’s hand, so you have to gauge exactly how far away he or she is.”
Demotion
Personal trainer Alex, who now runs his own fitness app, CrockFit, says there’s a surprising amount of maths involved in the job.
“I’m not a mathematical person but you need to know when the players are switching sides, so you know where the balls need to be at the end of each game,” he explains.
“On an odd game, the players switch, and on even games the players stay at the same side, so you need to keep count.
“The BBGs also need to know exactly how many games it is until the umpire says ‘new balls please’.
“I was the captain so I ran that scenario and I was probably most challenged by keeping up with the numbers and the maths of counting the games.”
BBGs work long hours throughout the Wimbledon fortnight, although they now only do one hour on, one hour off, and each team’s performance is kept under strict scrutiny.
“The Centre Court and Court One are the top jobs, because they are the big stadiums where the top matches take place, but there are 18 courts in total,” says Alex.
“Throughout the two weeks the managers go around the teams and promote or demote them through the courts. So if your team is working the stadium and is not doing very well, you’ll gradually work your way down to the lesser courts.
“If you are doing well, your team will start to work up to the bigger courts, so you’re continuously being assessed.
“On some of the courts I worked on the energy is totally different. I was nervous going onto one of the stadium courts because, as soon as you went out, you saw hundreds of people and all the TV cameras, so I thought ‘Wow. This is huge, Time to step up’.”
Player behaviour
Alex still likes to practise his backhand
Under strict instructions not to talk to the players unless spoken too, the BBGs have borne the brunt of some players’ anger in the past.
Aussie bad boy Nick Kyrgios yelled: “You just put me off. Run properly, please,” at one hapless teen in Germany last year.
In contrast, Jodie Burrage came to the aid of an ailing ball boy after he collapsed during her first round match against Lesia Tsurenko last year, handing him sweets for energy.
“I didn’t have any fierce, shouting moments but every tennis player has a different personality,” says Alex.
“Some would throw their sweat towels back at you in a particular manner, or people might get a bit annoyed or frustrated with how you deliver the ball.
“But usually they’re so focused on what they need to do and in that moment they are in their own head and in the game.
“Most of the players I encountered were nice and polite but I don’t think they went out of their way to say ‘Thank you’. I don’t remember anything like that.”
Despite being beamed out to an audience of millions, Alex says the best BBGs are almost invisible.
“Part of the skill is making the audience and everyone watching tennis completely forget about them and not see them so that the focus is just on the tennis.
“They need to get the job done and get the balls across the court so that we almost don’t see it happen.”
Proudest moment
During his two years at the tournament, Alex was ball boy for such names as Martina Navratilova and David Ferrer, but his highlight came at the 2006 Wimbledon final.
“I had this amazing moment as a part of the Guard of Honour, which is the the line-up of boys and girls in the final on Centre Court,” he says.
“The Duke of Kent was there and Federer had beaten Nadal in the final, so we were the Guard of Honour for him. It was a very special moment.”
Although the position is essentially unpaid, the BBGs receive £200 to cover travel and expenses and also get to keep their trainers, uniforms and a pack of Wimbledon balls.
“In my first year I was wearing the old green uniform, but in my second year they introduced the Ralph Lauren outfit with the dark blue tops, so we were the first to get that,” says Alex.
“I still have the outfit in my Wimbledon bag somewhere in my house.”
The Princess of Wales get a lesson in the BBG bounce, with arm straight up
Alex was part of the Guard of Honour for Wimbledon winner Roger Federer after he beat Nadal
