Monday July 7, 01:36 PM
Tennis Star Laura 'Could Earn £50m'
By Sky News
Britain's new tennis sensation, 14-year-old Laura Robson, could become the richest player ever in this country, experts have said. Laura was the youngest winner of the girls' singles at Wimbledon since Martina Hingis in 1994 after beating
Noppawan Lertcheewakarn of Thailand.
The Briton, who was born in Australia but came to the UK aged six, currently has a racket deal with Wilson and one with adidas for clothing.
Her agents will now be looking at other potential deals after her newly-found fame at SW19.
The head of women's tennis at the Lawn Tennis Association, Carl Maes, told The Sun if she performs well on court she could earn a reported £5m a year by the age of 25.
This would mean a total of around £50m in her career, dwarfing the £16m Tim Henman is thought to have made.
But Mr Maes also pointed out: "We do need to manage the expectations.
"Although we are desperate for a new star and this player is exceptional, there are no guarantees that in two years' time she will still be exceptional."
Laura said: "It's nice that I'm being seen as the optimistic future but I try not to think about that, instead just concentrate on getting good results."
The teenager plans to step back from the limelight to concentrate on her training regime and school work in the coming months.
Her agent Abigail Tordoff said the teenager's family was keen to avoid the limelight.
She is planning no interviews or media appearances until her next Grand Slam event, the Australian Open, next January.
Tordoff said: "She's had an incredible week but at the end of the day she is just a 14-year-old girl. She needs to take it steady."
There is also a word of caution when it comes to past winners of Laura's trophy.
Of the girls' singles victors at Wimbledon in the past 10 years, none has gone on to win a grand-slam tournament.
The last player to achieve that feat was AmÃ(c)lie Mauresmo. She took the girls' title in 1996 and the senior title 10 years later.
Those who were runner-up in the junior event seemed to do better later in their careers.
They include Dinara Safina (2001), Kim Clijsters (1998), Ana Ivanovic (2004) and Maria Sharapova (2002).
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