What a debut senior season it’s turning out to be for Emily Appleton.
After being unveiled as a Sky Sports Scholar in October, the 18-year-old jetted off to the United States and Colombia and won a fourth pro doubles title in six events and made her first ever pro singles final.
Time for a rest and some Christmas shopping? Not a chance when the ATP’s season-ending big show is in town….
Only 24 hours after landing home in the UK from touring I was on my way to London’s O2 Arena for the day to shadow some of the broadcasting unit from Sky!
I was super excited to watch the masters do their work and to see just how much detail and attention goes into showing the public the tennis on the TV.
It was amazing how much one takes for granted the ease with which we can access the programmes without realising just how much time and effort has to go into making each little aspect of the programme being showed.
As soon as I arrived I was taken to the area just outside of the O2 where Sky was running the behind-the-scenes network.
I watched loads of mini TV screens on one single screen showing all the things going on like the commentators getting ready for the matches and the pundits making their predictions on who might win the title.
I headed down to meet the Sky pundits Marcus Buckland, Greg Rusedski and Annabel Croft. I had met Greg and Annabel before so it was nice to see them again. I also went inside the commentary box to see what happens during matches.
Due to a quick first doubles match, Sky had some time to fill in before the start of the next game and so they kindly gave me the opportunity to go live on air and be interviewed by the team!
Although slightly nervous before going on, I absolutely loved it. They asked me all about my experiences on the tennis tour and how I have managed the transition from the junior to the professional game.
Greg even asked me the controversial question – did I agree on the bonus points he was receiving in the sweepstake?!
The interview lasted around 15 minutes and it was so cool. It really inspired me to get better so that I can do more things like that in the future.
After the interview I was taken to the competitors walkway and I saw each player’s individual locker room and I even managed to watch both David Goffin and Grigor Dimitrov being interviewed before their match.
It was really interesting to be so close to them and hear what they had to say.
I went courtside and was lucky enough to watch the two players battle it out and I didn’t think that they would be playing each other again in Sunday’s final! The standard was superb and the atmosphere was really enjoyable.
This concluded a fabulous day at the O2 where I learnt so much and had the chance to meet some really interesting and knowledgeable people from Sky.
I would like to thank them and everyone else so much for the opportunity.
