It was 25 years ago that David Felgate first coached a main draw player at Wimbledon – a then little known British teenager called Tim Henman.
A quarter of a century on he is applying his wealth of accrued knowledge to another player who is probably the host nation's best hope of a decent run in the men's singles, Dan Evans.
Henman and Evans are contrasting characters – the former an unmistakeable son of Middle England, the other a reformed tearaway who last year completed a ban after being found to have sniffed cocaine.
David Felgate (left) is hoping to coach Dan Evans (right) to success at Wimbledon next month
Felgate is looking to pass on all his knowledge to the in-form Evans as they climb the rankings
Yet for all their difference in background they share a similar style of elegant tennis, to the point where Evans studies video footage of the former GB No 1. And both will testify to the benefits of Felgate's no-nonsense brand of coaching.
The results with Evans have been startling. When they first hooked up 12 months ago he was being denied a wildcard by Wimbledon and was still ranked 362 in the world, a figure that has improved by just shy of 300 places, partly due to the two tournaments he has won in the past month. On Tuesday he made the second round in Eastbourne by beating world No 41 Radu Albot 7-6, 6-2.
The 29-year-old from Birmingham is no more the party animal: 'We've not had an argument or any disagreements, he probably disagrees with some of the stuff I say but that's just normal,' reflects the famously plain-speaking Evans. 'I am way fitter than I was a year ago.
It has not been a straightforward trajectory, however. Evans began the season ranked 192 at a Challenger in the small Australian town of Playford, and was soundly beaten in the first round.
'After that he was devastated, very down having put so much work in over the off season and not got any reward,' recalls Felgate. 'I think that's where you earn your corn as a coach. We flew straight to Melbourne, he had a very good practice with Gael Monfils for a couple of hours and, as it turns out, he was on his way.'
Two weeks later he had fought through qualifying at the Australian Open, and made the second round proper, where he forced Roger Federer to three tight sets. Federer was sufficiently impressed that two months ago he issued a royal summons to the British player to come and practice with him in Switzerland.
Evans finds himself a man in form for the grass court season having won the Surbiton Trophy
He followed this up with another impressive run to take the Nature Valley Open in Nottingham
Player-coach relationships in tennis can be suffocating, with the need to get on both on and off the court.
They clearly enjoy each other's company, and while Evans can polarise opinion due to his turbulent past and outspokenness, Felgate will attest that there is far more to him than any Jack the lad image.
'Dan is a deeper thinker than some might expect, incredibly inquisitive, very smart in many ways and he loves the sport. There's actually quite a lot in common with Andy (Murray).
'He knows all the results, he is very caring and interested in younger players. He will have a practice with someone like Jack Draper and then always give him a few helpful observations at the end.
'There are also similarities with Tim: he was always playing Pool, asking questions, loved the banter, and Dan is like that. They may come from different ends of the street but their styles are a bit the same.'
This is why, during the clay court season, the player delved into YouTube to look at Henman's run to the French Open semi-finals of 2004.
'Without being rude to Tim he didn't have the
