Golding riding a wave at SW19 (From Surrey Comet)

Golding riding a wave at SW19

4:39pm Wednesday 30th June 2010 in Wimbledon By Simon Fitzjohn

Twickenham’s Oliver Golding hopes his eye-catching displays at Wimbledon will have potential sponsors queueing at his door after the teenager announced himself on the tennis stage in style at SW19.

Golding surged into the quarter-finals of the junior competition, a run that included an impressive defeat of world number one Jason Kubler on Wednesday.

And the 16-year-old, who has been bubbling close to the surface for some time, now expects to break through.

Golding said: “I saw how Laura Robson’s profile went through the roof after she won here and I would not mind that one bit.

“It does not change what I have to do on court in any way, as you have to keep winning your matches.

“But it may certainly help in terms of sponsorship.

“Things have been pretty tough financially over the last few years - the first couple of years my mum pretty much funded things, but now I am getting some money from the LTA, and hopefully things may get even better now.”

Golding had a variety of ailments through his first three matches at Wimbledon, and required treatment on his right elbow before his victorious marathon third set with Kubler in his 4-6 6-3 7-5 win.

But the young star reckons that when he is in the zone, injuries are the furthest thing from his mind.

Golding added: “It is amazing how you can block things out when you are in a groove.

“At the Australian Open I rolled my ankle in the first set of one of my matches but still went on to win.

“It was only when I got back to the hotel that I realised my ankle had swollen up to the size of a football.

“I find the adrenaline really kicks in and gets you through it.

“Against Kubler my elbow was bothering me a bit, but you just have to think you are playing the number one in the world and get on with it.”

The teenager, who has been cheered on by his mum and coach throughout the tournament, has drawn increasingly larger crowds as he has progressed.

And, rather than choke under the pressure like so many others, Golding has fed off that air of anticipation.

He added: “I absolutely love it.

“The bigger the crowd the better as far as I am concerned.

“It is great having that level of support, as you know that if things are not going quite right they will still be behind you.

“I think that is a big advantage for British players here and I have certainly used it.”