Louis Cayer provides Canadian influence for Britain's Davis Cup team in Ottawa

03 February 2017 10:09

If Great Britain beat Canada in the Davis Cup this weekend then they will have reason once again to thank their Canadian secret weapon.

Louis Cayer may not be a household name but he is, in his own way, as important to British tennis as the likes of Leon Smith.

Cayer is renowned as one of the world's best technical coaches and was a long-time coach and then captain of the Canadian Davis Cup team.

He played a key role in the career of Daniel Nestor, now 44 and about to play in his 50th Davis Cup tie for Canada.

But Cayer moved to London to be with his now wife and was brought into the Lawn Tennis Association fold after Judy Murray recruited him to coach Jamie.

Cayer's niche in the British game has become doubles, although his influence extends much wider than that and he helped Andy Murray tweak his service action last year.

But it is Jamie who has most to thank Cayer for, with the Scot winning two grand slam titles last year and becoming world number one in doubles.

"I owe almost all my success in my career to Louis," said the 30-year-old.

"We've worked together since 2006, we were fortunate that he fell in love with an English lady and decided to come and live in London.

"My mum had seen him work in Monte Carlo with a couple of Israeli guys he was working with and she was amazed by what he was doing. She went to speak to him and by chance he was coming to London and we started to work from there.

"I was trying to start getting more serious about my doubles and a year later I was ranked like 30 in the world. I have been on and off with him since and certainly a lot more full-time with him the last three years.

"It's been great for me, it's been great for the other British doubles guys that have been playing, we're always learning from him, there's so much knowledge in that head of his.

"It's amazing, we're so fortunate to have him in our team and working for the LTA and I hope that I continue to be able to spend a lot of time with him for the rest of my career."

Judy, meanwhile, is so close to Cayer that she stepped in as a replacement 'best man' at his wedding.

Source: PA