Lewes sports club welcomes Andy Murray’s former tennis coach

Southdown Club tennis members were treated to court time with Mark who was coached on the same courts in the 1980s by Andy Murray's now father-in-law.

Petchey, former GB tennis player and past coach to Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu, visited as Head Tennis Coach with Brighton-based Neilson Active Holidays. Petchey spent a week at Southdown Club training the Nielson coaches ahead of the company’s summer season of tennis holidays.

As part of the week’s training program, Petchey, who achieved a career-high ATP rank of 80, and the Nielson coaches ran coaching sessions for some of Southdown’s tennis members. These included fast-paced Super Drills, Serve and Volley practice, and Doubles Tactics.

Southdown Sports Club is Lewes’s not-for-profit amateur sports club offering tennis, squash and hockey membership. The Club benefits from a variety of tennis court surfaces, including all-weather clay, grass, and covered hard courts in winter, which meant the Neilson visit could take place despite the high winds of Storm Kathleen.

Petchey’s visit to Southdown Club brought back happy memories of his time there during the 1980s when he was coached by Nigel Sears, father of Kim Sears who is married to Andy Murray. Nigel coached at national level and played tennis at Southdown Sports Club for many years.

Mark was full of praise for the Southdown Club. He said, “With such great facilities, a wonderful setting, and a brilliant café, Southdown must be amongst the top 1% of tennis clubs in the country.”

Sara Riley, Southdown Sports Club Manager, added, "We were so pleased Mark and the Neilson team chose our wonderful facilities for their coaching sessions. Our members were thrilled to be on court with visiting tennis professionals who brought so much fun and expertise to the game, whilst putting them through their paces."