AIDAN McHugh has skipped the chance to share a court with the legends of world tennis this weekend after gaining acceptance into a top junior tournament in Berlin. The 15-year-old from Glasgow, a pupil at St Aloysius' College, is making strides through the junior ranks and has spent time this week at the BTT Academy in Barcelona in the company of ATP tour World No 30 Joao Sousa.
Along with his fellow Scottish teenage tennis prodigy, Ewen Lumsden, McHugh had been invited to play a mixed doubles exhibition match with Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski, Thomas Enqvist or Cédric Pioline at the Brodies tournament at Gleneagles today but instead will prepare to take on the world's best junior players at a Grade One event in the German capital which starts on Monday.
"He was initially meant to be doing the Brodies event but because he got into the tournament in Berlin it was decided it would be better for us to go and do that instead so unfortunately he isn't going to make it now," said Tennis Scotland coach Toby Smith, the brother of Great Britain Davis Cup captain Leon, who works with the best national youth players. "But I know the Lumsdens [Ewen and Maia] will be there and Ewan Moore will be there as well
"It is not very often these kids get a chance to play in front of a big crowd so that exposure is going to be great for them," he added. "They are at the beginning of their international careers but the chance to play and chat with guys who have been there and done it is great."
While McHugh, who has been winning ITF events at Grade 4 and Grade 5 level and has risen to a junior ranking of 216, is hopeful of appearing at Junior Wimbledon for the first time this summer on a wild card, 16-year-old Ewen Lumsden who won a silver medal for Scotland in the singles at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Scotland last summer, is pursuing an alternative career plan.
As soon as his appearance at the Brodies tournament is out the way, Lumsden - who racked up his first senior ranking points at a tournament in Turkey recently - has declined the opportunity of a wild card into Junior Wimbledon and taken it upon himself to travel independently out to a tournament in Denmark. Maia, who is also eligible for a spot at Junior Wimbledon this summer, Ewen and their younger sister Eve are still dealing with the sudden tragic loss of their father David.
"Ewen may have had an opportunity for a wild card into Junior Wimbledon but is hoping to get there under his own hard work rather than a wild card," said Smith. "He is adamant he wants to do his journey this way and it is really quite a mature decision. After his experience in Turkey, when he was out mixing with all the senior players, he decided to go out to Denmark by himself. So these are very exciting times for Scottish tennis. Obviously at the top end we have Andy, Colin Fleming and Jamie, but underneath we now have quite a lot of interesting projects."
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