EXCLUSIVE: Charlie Robertson aiming high as the 17-year-old looks to use New York and a summer with the Murrays as the springboard to success

Life comes at you fast. Charlie Robertson is only 17, but he has already traveled far and fast and has no intention of slowing down or limiting his horizons.

At three, he was hitting tennis balls against a wall at Arbroath Tennis Club. This summer, he was hitting balls with World No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov and helping Andy Murray prepare for his Olympic swansong.

If the summer of 2024 is the most spectacular moment in the young Scot’s highlights, there is the promise of more to come. Robertson, whose pace across the pitch is clear, is a young man in a hurry.

“It all happened quite quickly,” he says of his relationship with the Murray brothers. “It’s a bit strange to be so close to players who were and still are your idols, but it’s also absolutely fantastic.”

It is also an extraordinary boost at a time when Robertson needs it, as he moves from the stability of funding to the wider, less certain world of trying to find his way in a sport that demands much of its aspirants.

A move abroad to coach may be the best option as Robertson prepares for his trip to Flushing Meadows and the US Junior Championship, which begins on September 1. His hero, Andy Murray, won the tournament in 2004 and Robertson has similar ambitions.

“I really want to go deep into this tournament,” he says, having reached the last 16 at Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year and seeing New York as the promise of something better. “I’m competitive and I want to succeed. I see New York as a great opportunity.”

Born and raised in Forfar, he moved to near Stirling to gain access to indoor courts at Stirling University, as there were none where he lived. At 15 he was selected for the LTA GB Academy and spent two years receiving bespoke training under renowned Dutch coach Noell van Lottum and Serbian Marko Strilic.

Prior to that he worked with coach Mark Walker and played on the Cromlix courts, owned by Andy and Kim Murray, during the Covid years.

He must find his own way forward and is determined to do so through his own efforts on and off the field, but with the help of others financially.

“I believe in myself and what I do,” he says. This belief needs to be backed up with hard cash, and he has set up a gofundme page.

Robertson’s journey to this pivotal moment in his career has been a tough one, but he has never looked back. At 5ft 8ins, he has made his relative small stature a laughing stock in the world of tennis giants with powerful shots and remarkable speed on court.

A coach in Scotland told Mail Sport: ‘Charlie is a real prospect. Some people look at him and comment on his size. Then they watch him play. He is a talent. After all, Diego Schwartzman earned $14 million on tour and he is smaller than Charlie.’

His physical fitness is beyond question and that has brought him into the Murray camp.

“My conditioning coach is Matt Little, who has worked with Andy his whole career,” says Robertson. But his ties to the Murray family also stem from simply being a fan.

Robertson remembers attending Davis Cup matches, where the brothers played doubles and Andy dominated the singles, and seeing his heroes on television. There is another link, because as a boy Charlie was coached by David O’Mara, Johnny’s father, who later travelled the world with Andy as his coach and hitting partner.

This summer, the Murrays’ world suddenly opened up to the youngster in a way he could never have imagined.

“I was asked to be a hitting partner at Queen’s,” says Robertson. Jamie is tournament director at the prestigious grass-court event in south London and Charlie was mixing with the elite. Jamie Delgado, Andy’s former coach, asked Robertson to hit with Dimitrov. As Wimbledon approached, Andy asked his Scottish compatriot to hit at Aorangi, the practice courts in SW19.

“I always had a little connection with Andy through Matt,” Robertson says. “I’d met him briefly and spoken to him a few times. He was always helpful, but hitting with him was something else.”

Robertson has been involved in tennis his whole life. His older siblings, Harry, 21, and Kirsty, 23, were heavily involved in the sport. Harry is now at university and his sporting life is on the golf course, but Kirsty is a tennis coach.

“I remember as a family we all watched Andy, but to have him on the field playing is a powerful experience,” he says. “I wanted to take everything from him, everything that was there.

‘Andy is great at giving advice off the court. But you can learn so much just by watching him.’

He was impressed with how Murray handled preparation and recovery, adding: ‘I knew he had to do all that and how he committed to it. But to see how he approached a batting session in terms of preparation and how he went straight into recovery mode afterwards was a lesson.’

On the track, the upbringing was strict and unforgiving.

“The focus on the court was total,” he says. “Andy is very friendly off the court. You always feel like you can talk to him. But when he’s on the court, he’s all business. He tells me that practice is about setting goals and what you think you can get out of a session, and then doing that.”

Robertson impressed. He won’t say it himself, but it’s clear Murray saw something in the youngster. Robertson spent a lot of time with Jamie and Andy at Queen’s, batted at Wimbledon, but then a great offer came along.

“Andy was on his way to Greece to prepare for the Olympics,” Robertson said, “and I got a message asking if I wanted to go with him.”

The answer was clear. “We spent the morning hitting and then went our separate ways,” Roberston says. “I went to do conditioning with Matt and to reflect on what I had done on the court with Andy.”

This experience strengthened his resolve to follow in the footsteps of his inspiration and enter the American junior league. He then tried his hand at professional tennis.

“It’s what I’ve wanted for a long time,” Robertson says. “I’ve dedicated a lot of my life to it and I want to see how far I can go.”

As a player he has already visited 22 countries and now New York is waiting for a boy who has reached 25th place in the world junior rankings.

“This summer has been a bonus,” he says. “It’s really special to know that someone like Andy cares about you. I know I have to perform myself.”

He says of his recent tournament efforts: ‘I’m known as someone who doesn’t go away. I keep going, I keep fighting.’

He may not be the next big Scottish player yet, but it seems the country knows him well by now.