Move over Wimbledon! Paul Hampson has raised more than £3,000 for the charity Young Lives vs Cancer with a remarkable 35-hour “Tennis-A-Thon”.

Paul, 70, took up the challenge to play 24 hours of tennis during August. To do this, he encouraged players from his club, Pirbright Tennis Club, to play tennis with him wearing a silly hat and to donate to the charity. His efforts have put him at the top of the leaderboard for raising the most money.

He also took photographs of all the players in every one of his matches and posted them on WhatsApp for all members to see.

Arranging such a large number of matches was hard enough, but then playing in them was testimony to his determination and endurance.

The schedule meant arranging at least six hours of tennis every week but he was still able to beat his original 24-hour target, in the end achieving 35 hours of tennis.

Before this challenge Paul had hardly played at all for several months because of illness.

Although understandably tired, Paul said: “I felt great after all those hours of tennis. I’ve got fitter, stronger and faster and I’ve lost weight.

“And it was a lot of fun for me and the players.”

Paul was also quick to pay tribute to his wife, Rosie, who helped him to complete his goal.

On 31 August, Pirbright Tennis Club held a social to celebrate his outstanding achievement with more tennis, a raffle and a barbecue.

An emotional Paul added: “Young Lives vs Cancer is a wonderful charity. They help children and young people (0-25) and their families find the strength to face whatever cancer throws at them.”

To donate to Paul’s Tennis-A-Thon for Young Lives vs Cancer please visit: https://fundraise.younglivesvscancer.org.uk/fundraisers/paulhampson/tennis-a-thon