HEROIC Henry Patten admits his ‘bank robbery’ Wimbledon triumph may have changed his life forever, writes WILL JENNINGS.
The Manningtree star, 28, and flying Finn Harri Heliövaara roared to a remarkable men’s doubles title with a heart-thumping, triple tie-break 6-7 (7) 7-6 (8) 7-6 (9) win against Australian 15th seeds Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson in front of an adoring Centre Court crowd.
Patten, who used to work for IBM inputting courtside data at the All England Club, had never even won a match here before this summer but has now catapulted himself into the stratosphere with a story for the ages.
He is just the third British man to win the men’s doubles title in the Open Era and follows in the footsteps of last year’s champion Neal Skupski and 2012 winner Jonathan Marray.
And in doing so, he and Heliövaara, who only came together in April, racked up a transformative £650,000 in prize money, a moment Patten was emotionally able to share with dozens of members of friends and family in attendance.
Patten’s dad described their nerve-shredding victory as a ‘bank robbery’ and speaking to media late on Saturday night, the big-hitting left-hander said: “It’s harsh but fair. It's all completely surreal.
“I don't know what to do with myself, to be honest. I don't have words for what I'm feeling right now.
“I think that's probably amplified by the way we won that match.
“It's bizarre - because I would have said I probably wasn't prepared to win this tournament. It's only the second time I've played it, which is a crazy stat.
“I idolised Jonny and Neal last year - to join them as Wimbledon champions is phenomenal. That's a nice step to have.
“The most amazing thing about it is being there with family and friends, sharing it with them - those that have supported me for such a long time now.
“It certainly helps having the prize money - in terms of changing my life, we'll see. I think the most important thing for me is to be able to share it with my family.
“It’s massively exciting [the future]. I think hopefully we'll get a spot in Turin [for the ATP Finals] with that win, potentially get a qualifying spot if you win a Slam depending on a few things.
“And I’ll be mega keen to represent my country [Davis Cup] - obviously we have a lot of very strong doubles.”
This was a thriller for the ages as the Saturday night light faded as Patten and experienced Heliövaara, 35, ground out a hat-trick of gruelling tie-breaks to battle over the line.
They were 6-1 down in the first set tie-break and despite reeling off six points on the spin to miraculously turn the tables, it was the higher-ranked Australians who clinched it.
The second was a similarly dramatic affair, with Patten delivering a dazzling display at the net – and on his serve – to somehow save match points and take the game to a deserved decider.
And they did it again when the pressure was on, showing all the ice-cool nerves that saw them dump out both the fourth and fifth seeds – including recently-crowned French Open champions Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic – and trigger emotional scenes on Centre Court.
Patten, who studied at Culford School, UNC Asheville in North Carolina and Durham University during a turbulent tennis upbringing, added: “It seemed like we were always down.
“But yeah, we blew open the doors and ran away with the trophy at the end of it basically.”
Heliövaara, who has endured an injury-ravaged career and used to work at an airport in Helsinki, added: “I feel joy, huge emotions.
“Tears of joy – it’s unbelievable.
“It's been a dream. A dream team, what can you say?”
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