Nine-year-old Scottish tennis champ wants to be world number one in future

He’s the nine-year-old Scottish tennis champion with ambitions to play at Wimbledon and be world number one.

Milne’s Primary pupil Aonghus Archibald may only have been playing the sport competitively for three years, but he’s already racking up the titles.

The pinnacle came at the end of last year when he won the nine-and-under national championships in Edinburgh.

His dad Henry, himself a club champion at the Elgin and Rothes Tennis Clubs where both father and son play, revealed how the sky is the limit when it comes to Aonghus’ sporting targets.

“He’s long said that he wants to be the number one player in the world when he gets older,” said Henry.

“Yesterday I asked him as part of a little year-end interview we did, what he hoped to be doing in 10 years, when he’s 19, and he said ‘competing at Wimbledon!’.

Who knows, the next Andy Murray could come from Moray, as Aonghus has enjoyed a spectacular 2024 on the competitive tennis circuit.

Not only is he the new Scottish champ at nine-and-under, but in the same age group he’s won two North of Scotland titles in Elgin and Cults, as well as the Tayside Open in Broughty Ferry.

At his home club of Elgin, he won the club championship not on;ly at his age group but two older age categories as well.

Henry spoke about his son’s blossoming career so far, and how he managed to win the national title in the capital.

“He has been a keen competitor in tennis for the past three years. He entered the tournament as the third seed, and went undefeated over his six matches, winning the semi-final in three sets over the second seed and the final in straight sets over the number one seed.

“He closed out the final match by winning a remarkable ten straights points.”

Aonghus spoke about how he felt when he played the winning point to secure the Scottish title.

“Inside my head, I was a bit like,’wow, I’ve done it!’ On the outside, I did a fist pump and a happy smile.” he said.

Dad Henry admitted he had a different view of Aonghus’ victory, saying his celebration was more under-stated and subdue, (Observing from the side, he was a bit understated and subdued perhaps because due to the fact that in the final he was playing a friend of his, and was aware that the other lad would be disappointed.

The Fochabers boy plays in the Highland Leagues for Elgin but also strikes out at Rothes Tennis Club.

Henry added: “He first picked up a racquet at age two and was interested and keen in me tossing balls for him to hit right from that age.

“I have fond memories of us playing ‘racquet and ball’ as he called it from that very early age. His interest never really waned from then onwards.”

A major influence in Aonghus’ competitive progression has been Elgin Tennis Club head coach Derek Brown, who has taken him under his wing.

The youngster said: “Derek has taught me how to hit proper forehands and backhands and the footwork to get to every ball. Also Joe Hargreaves (Forres-based tennis coach) because he has boosted my confidence in matchplay.

“John Walker (former Highland district coach) helped me work tactically when I was starting to compete a lot.”

While Andy Murray battled with legends like Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal in a golden era for Grand Slam tennis, it’s the younger, emerging talents who inspire young Aonghus.

When asked who his heroes are, he replied: “Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune because they are quite young and they are doing awesome things in the tennis world.”

Moray’s young tennis prospect’s stunning year also included two appearances for Highland District, most recently in Stirling just before Christmas when the north team finished second out of six districts in action.

“Next year he hopes to play many more competitions in Scotland, and is planning on going to at least one tournament in England,” Henry added.

“Beyond that he’s keen to travel far and wide and compete in as many tournaments as possible.”

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