James Harbridge, Author of the Tennis Novel "The Smash"

By Ronald Agénor

James, you are the author of the tennis novel “The Smash”, can you tell us about how this idea came out?
The Smash! reflects my view on the glamour and excitement of tennis, and its globe-trotting nature.  I decided to combine my passion for tennis with my passion for murder mystery crime fiction.  It seemed to me too long since the last novels of this type, which I think were in the mid-1990s when there was a trilogy by Martina Navratilova and Liz Nickles.  I strongly feel tennis should have far more mass support than it does.  In England, you see tons of magazines about golf, whereas tennis hardly figures.  That makes no sense to me.  The game deserves far more promotional endeavors. 

You were born in Hertfordshire, England in 1969, when did you discover the game of tennis?
My parents were keen on the game.  I can recollect my mum patiently throwing tennis balls over the net to me as she was certain that was the best way for a beginner to learn.  She emphasised shoulder turn and getting the racket back early. I inherited my love of tennis from my parents.  My mum grew up with Maureen Connolly as the women's No 1, and my dad can tell you all about the time when Jaroslav Drobny reigned supreme!  Sadly, Drobny died in 2001, but he won Wimbledon in '54 – the first left-hander to do so. 

Your first book was published in 2001 and was entitled “Please Play On”
Yes, "Please Play On" was a true labour of love.  In my early teens, John McEnroe was world No 1.  In 1984, he could hardly put a foot wrong.  I used to buy the Sun tabloid paper daily during Wimbledon '84, because their journalist Hugh Jamieson had signed McEnroe up (for USD 70,000, I believe) for a series of world exclusive interviews.  The Sun even ran a competition so that you could win the racket McEnroe used when he demolished Jimmy Connors in the '84 Wimbledon final.  My friends at school helped me send in multiple entries, but alas, I didn't win!  Years later, Hugh Jamieson told me that he had gone to dinner after the final, proudly brandishing John's racket!  And in 1986 I did school work experience at Wimbledon, shadowing Hugh…by then I was determined to write my own book on McEnroe.  And I was equally determined that John would write the book's introduction.  Little did I know then the time and energy it would take to pen a book that covered, in diary format, every singles match John had ever played in the British Isles.  And for publishing purposes, it then had to be halved in length – which was like a physical pain!  But John did write the introduction.  And tournament director John Beddington then kindly arranged for John to sign a copy of Please Play On for me.  I treasure that, as John wrote "It was a fine effort.  Well done and best wishes."   

How long did it take for you to write “The Smash”?
I started sk etching out the characters and some of the plot when I returned to Oman, having been inspired after spending a couple of days at that year's Wimbledon.  But I started writing the book proper on August 1 that year and finished on about October 7.  All along I had in mind that my favorite books by Agatha Christie were about 65,000 words' long.  I figured that if I could write  1,000 words a day, then I should have a fully-fledged novel on my hands within two months.  And I found that on some days the words would just flow and I'd create over 1,000 words in a couple of hours.  And the plot took its own course over the days, which made it very exciting, especially when typing the final chapters…I had always been fascinated by writing to tight deadlines.  It all stemmed back to Wimbledon '82.  My mother brought home the Evening Standard newspaper from London on the first Monday and there was a blow-by-blow match report of part of John McEnroe's first round contest versus Van Winitsky. Clearly it had been written as the encounter went on, and the filing deadline was before the match had actually ended!  But during that tournament I got out my mum's electronic typewriter and starting trying to write like the Evening Standard, whilst watching on TV matches involving players like Briton Buster Mottram and American Victor Amaya… 

Is it all about fiction, or this could be reality?
I think the history of tennis shows that almost anything is possible.  Who would ever have thought that such a tragic thing could have occurred as Monica Seles being stabbed on court during a changeover?  It could not have been contemplated.  I think one year when the US Open was held at Forest Hills – perhaps in 1977? - a spectator got hurt by a stray bullet.  McEnroe and Borg both faced death threats during their careers, which made McEnroe's achievement of reaching the semis at Wimbledon '89 all the more incredible.  Someone was 'phoning the club almost daily, saying he would be shot on court. I also know that at a minor professional tennis event in London in 1983, gunfire from a nearby apartment block stopped play.  And then I recall reading Michael Mewshaw's expose of men's tennis, when he reported that one doctor told him that some players had sweat bands sprinkled with cocaine!  So, against that backdrop, I think the plot of The Smash! is not a flight of fancy.

Can you tell us about the main characters of “The Smash” and give us a brief synopsis?
Sure, the main character is a tabloid tennis journalist named Terry Proudley, who falls in love with a policewoman investigating the murder (by poison, on Wimbledon's first day) of the men's No 1 and defending Champion, a feisty young British teenager named Javea Jackson.  Jackson may (or may not) have been cheating on his fiancee, the American ladies world No 1, Holly Fleming.  The men's event is abandoned as a mark of respect, and the women take centre stage.  As well as Holly, all the female stars have reasons to want to kill Jackson.  And then there are other suspects, such as a corrupt umpire who is having a secret affair with the women's world No 2, Angela de Jong.  Other suspects include a maverick sports agent and a bad boy Bollywood film star.  The action unfolds during the span of a Wimbledon fortnight, albeit with flashbacks to past events all over the world. 

Have you thought about making a movie out of “The Smash”?
It's certainly a burning ambition of mine which I am determined to see become a reality.  I honestly feel the story has a lot to offer to both tennis lovers and non-tennis lovers, because the feedback from all types of people has been really glowing.  When a very respected journalist tells you: "I do believe your book would make an excellent movie…your plot is far better than [the 2004 film] Wimbledon,"  you shouldn't be too modest!  You have to listen and believe in yourself and what you've created.   Tennis deserves to have a wonderful film; I think The Smash! is the raw material that can be moulded into a cinematic treat.  I'm happy to work tirelessly with anyone to achieve that goal.   

The novel takes the reader to the South of France, India, West Africa, and Dubai. Did you travel to those places to get inspiration?
Yes, I have traveled to these places over the years, but not with the book in mind.  Dubai is about 40 minutes' flight from where I live and work in Muscat, Oman, so I often go to the Dubai tennis in February/March each year.  It's an excellent event with an intimate main stadium, and you get sunlight play during the day, then matches under floodlight, and I think that always aids the atmosphere…  My wife Sonia is Indian so naturally I have traveled there, and I love the country, and the current films which are being made by the Bollywood industry in Mumbai.  In 2006 we went to Kolkata to watch the indoors WTA event, which was a great experience.  As for West Africa, I have holidayed in the Gambia about ten years ago, and the people were very warm and friendly.  Plus I've watched tennis in Nice and Monte Carlo, so I have a natural interest in the south of France.  I also love Cannes which was the setting for the 1950s Cary Grant film, "To Catch A Thief".  I believe Cannes was also a tennis hot spot back in the 1920s.

You have also been inspired by Agatha Christie’s style of writing?
It's true: Agatha Christie managed to write about 81 novels and they are still selling today and the books are now the subject of modernized TV adaptations, and so on.  They are simple to read which I think reflects her great skill as an author.  You can read her mysteries for pure enjoyment, and without feeling troubled by a surfeit of intellectual rigour.  And I believe her books are a perfect length – about 220 pages, i.e 65,000 words.  People are so busy and that's one of the reasons why I admire books that are not overly long!  It's also interesting that Agatha Christie watched Wimbledon on at least one occasion from Centre Court's Royal Box, and she played tennis well into middle age.  So it struck me as surprising that she never set one of her mysteries at the All England Club.  The Smash! was my attempt to pay tribute to her achievements and the enjoyment I've garnered from her works.

The afterword of “The Smash” is written by Pilar Vasquez, a player that competed in Wimbledon in 1980?
In fact, Pilar was not playing main draw Wimbledon in 1980 – she was in the junior event, and was 17 at the time.  And I was a 10 year-old, simply seeking player autographs on the main concourse of Wimbledon's All England Club on 30 June 1980.  In those days, children didn't have those big yellow tennis balls for signing purposes; it was a conventional autograph book back then…and I was finding it hard to get any player to sign for me.  They all seemed so tall in comparison with me!  So it was with heartfelt gratitude that I got the signature of 5 ft 6 in Pilar Vasquez – my first autograph at Wimbledon!  Later, I found out she was born in Lima, Peru, and had moved to the United States in 1979.  She turned pro in '81, and reached the fourth round of the US Open in '83, only losing to Martina Navratilova.  And in an early round of the 1981 French Open, she nearly beat eventual Champion Hana Mandlikova in a three setter.  Anyway, whenever I went back to my parents' home over the years, I would see my old autograph book in a drawer, and notice that signature of Pilar Vasquez…so when I wrote a novel set primarily at Wimbledon, it seemed to make perfect sense to try to get back in contact with her.  Luckily, I tracked her down via the internet, and all thanks to Christian Orellana, the son of one of her former coaches.  She lives in Miami and was happy to pen the Afterword of my book for me.  It seemed such symmetry to be back in touch with someone after a chance encounter 27 years earlier; I am very grateful to Pilar for such kindness.       

You had a lot of passion for the game, did you ever consider following a professional tennis career?
I would have loved to have been a professional tennis player.  I am aware of all the potential downsides: the traveling, the rivalry, the stress of competition, injuries, loneliness on tour, the bitterness of losing…and yet, somehow, I would still have loved to live that life, playing in a different location every week.  But I probably peaked as a junior player by the age of ten and went downhill ever since that tender age.  First, I didn't have the right mentality and maturity.  I got overly anxious when the opposition was tough and I never realized at that age that you win at tennis by scrapping and fighting for every ball: winning does not come easy.  You need to be extremely patient to craft a tennis victory; it must be akin to steadily painting a masterpiece.  The other problem I had was that I loved imitating the playing styles of the tennis greats of my time.  I had too much interest in McEnroe's inside-out fade-away backhand approach shot, his quirky forehand and idiosyncratic service technique: I overlooked the fact he had great mobility as well!  I also spent more time thinking how on court I would celebrate winning  a match-point in a final than concentrating on all the shots you need to hit in a tournament to reach that point.  Plus, I loved the game so much that I wanted to be out there practicing six or eight hours a day, preferably in extreme heat.  I thought that would be the ultimate.  But my idealism was of course shattered by the little matter of England's dodgy weather patterns, combined with the need to go to school each day!   So my tennis career remained a fantasy.  My brother Philip was a far better player than me, anyway.  He has a wonderful temperament – and not only because he's nearly four years older than me!

What do you think about the game today?
The way I feel about tennis today is a bit complicated.  I love the game and always want to watch it.  But does it match up to what I remember of what it was in my teen years?  I'm thinking of that whole Borg, McEnroe, Connors, Vilas, Gerulaitis era…it was a time when those top players all seemed to have cutting-edge, vibrant characters.  Gerulaitis was "Broadway Vitas", wasn't he?  The playboy star, may God bless his soul.  Vilas was a moody, introverted poet – but still found time to win innumerable matches and co-star in the 1979 tennis movie, Players (playing himself!).  To be honest, I don't think men's tennis now matches up to what it was back then.  Or is it just that I'm becoming more cynical as I get older?  I was 39 this month!  And I agree Federer and Nadal served up high drama in this year's Wimbledon final, but Federer was surely way below his best.  He made so many unforced errors and seemed to be fighting for five hours with almost no consistent backhand at all.   For me, nowadays, I prefer women's tennis.  They have transcended tennis and gone beyond the sport: their celebrity reaches beyond the baseline.

The serve and volley game has totally disappeared, do you think it will come back one day?
That's a good and difficult question.  As I understand it, the grass at Wimbledon has been made far slower over the years, and the balls were changed, too, to further slow the pace of the game.  I think it was all triggered by the mid-1990s when rallies were few and far between at Wimbledon and there was a real debate as to whether the grass would have to be replaced.  And I remember reading quite recently that Tim Henman felt the slowing of the grass negated his chances over the years of triumphing on his home turf.  So I suppose that type of change in tennis has blunted the serve-volley style, and made it more risky.  But, really, I take the view that champions are true individuals technique-wise, so I wouldn't rule out future serve-volley champions.  It was good back in 1984 when John McEnroe nearly won the French Open by serve-volleying on clay.  Incidentally, would his career graph have been different if he had beaten Ivan Lendl that day, rather than bizarrely folding over five sets, after having been two sets up?  We'll never know.  But I remember McEnroe once commented poignantly that he feels part of his soul is buried under the clay of Roland Garros.

Who to your eyes are the greatest male and female players of all time?
For me, it is Maureen Connolly in the women's game, and John McEnroe in the men's.  And I pick the former without any connection to the fact that Maureen's elder daughter so kindly wrote the introduction for The Smash!  I just take the view that Maureen's story is phenomenal.  Here was a girl who won three Wimbledons in row (1952-54) before having to retire from the sport after a horse-riding accident.  She won those titles playing right-handed, even though she was a natural left-hander!!  Apparently, her first coach told her that there had never been any left-handed tennis champions, so she promptly switched!  So the real question is: how much better would she have been if she had played tennis as a natural left-hander?  Surely, she would have been ever further out in front of her peers.  As for McEnroe, he wasn't giving his undivided attention to tennis in his teens – he was academically doing very well and he played other sports, too – and yet he qualified for Wimbledon as a 17 year-old and reached the semis.  Obviously, he should have won the Grand Slam in his stellar year of 1984.  I was privileged to watch first-hand two of his Wimbledon singles matches that year – he just blew Wally Masur and John Sadri away, both in straight sets.  As Rex Bellamy said in The Times of London the day after the Sadri win, McEnroe hadn't played tennis – he had composed it like a musical genius.

Out of the four Grand Slams, do you think Wimbledon is the most prestigious one? If so tell us why.
Well, I'm not sure my viewpoint is important on this.  Wimbledon is the Grand Slam I have attended the most and I've grown up with it as a reference point in my life.  Each Wimbledon, on a personal basis, remains as a milestone for me, by which I can recollect what was going on in my life.  So I have a personal bias for it and affection towards it.  My parents took me there for the first time in 1979 when I was 10, along with my elder brother Philip.  It was the first Friday, and in those days you could queue up in the afternoon, gain entrance, and then get a standing spot on Centre Court.  I also recall watching Fleming and McEnroe play doubles versus Ray Moore and Roscoe Tanner on Court Six.  But it's the players and the multitude of fans who decide which Grand Slam is the most prestigious.  I think Wimbledon's position may be under threat in the long-term unless there can be a proper, longer grass-court season to support it. 

Can we expect more novels from you in the future?
Certainly I'd like to write more tennis novels in the future, perhaps with the same main protagonist, the tabloid writer I've created called Terry Proudley.  Tennis is aesthetically beautiful and has drama and is totally international – all these ingredients mean it deserves to feature more often than it has to date in fiction.

Many thanks, Ronald.  I appreciate yours and International Tennis Magazine's interest and enthusiasm for The Smash!  And it's an honor to be interviewed by someone who so clearly loves tennis (and who has a 3-0 win record over Andre Agassi!) 
James, I would like to thank you for this interview and wish you a lot of success!