Liam Broady keeps banter going after breakthrough Wimbledon win over Diego Schwartzman

The British invasion on Day 4 of Wimbledon continued on No. 3 Court when wild card Liam Broady avenged a 2021 defeat to Diego Schwartzman, rallying from two sets to one down to earn his best Grand Slam result, 6-2, 4-6, 0-6, 7-6 (6), 6-1.

At one point, Broady lost 11 straight games to the speedy Argentine, who’d beaten the Brit in this very round 12 months ago, but it was clear from the on-court interview and subsequent press conference that success won’t take away the fan favorite’s sense of humor.

“It was easy, wasn’t it?” he said to laughter from the No. 3 Court crowd. “I had everyone fooled at two sets to one down and a break in the fourth…”

Broady, who keeps his wit sharp thanks to some often brutal exchanges with buddy Andy Murray, somehow found a second gear after falling behind 0-3 in the fourth set. Having already played two long matches in singles and doubles earlier this week, the 28-year-old credited a change of tactics with helping him edge over the finish line after a nearly four-hour clash.

“I started to try and play really heavily into his forehand a little bit more,” he explained on court. “He was dominating with his backhand and he’s done that against Rafa on the clay, so he can do that against Liam Broady!”

As more laughter echoed across the packed stadium, he added with more sincerity:

“Sometimes I struggle a bit to put the ball in court, but my heart’s always there, and with everyone out here today, it was incredible, so there was no way I was giving up.”

The younger brother of former WTA No. 76 Naomi Broady, Liam is in the midst of a career-best stretch—having won his first ATP Challenger title last fall and making his main-draw debut Down Under in Melbourne earlier this season—and has used his time in the spotlight to advocate for social issues like LGBTQ+ acceptance, endearing himself to a slew of new supporters.

“I had the driver on the way here say, ‘Is it scary practicing when you have so many people watching?’ I said, ‘It’s a lot scarier playing a match when there’s even more people watching!’ But once you get stuck into the match, that’s the only thing that matters, and it probably helped a bit to be a little tired. It kind of took the nerves away.”

Broady kept the good vibes going in press, jokingly ruing the result’s lack of ranking points, the likes of which may have earned him an overdue Top 100 debut, but is nonetheless guaranteed a hefty payday of £120,000—and counting.

“I might just withdraw it all and just like lie on it,” he said to more laughter.

“I'm getting a bit older now so I need to start looking for somewhere to live other than my parents' house. That could go towards that a little bit, as well.

“But, I mean, at the end of the day, as nice as the prize money is, I'm not playing those matches, I'm not serving at 5-1 and thinking, ‘Fuck, I've got 120 grand here on the line.’ I'm serving and thinking, ‘I'm about to beat Diego Schwartzman.’ It is a nice bonus, but we'll have to see.”

Broady’s next opponent is No. 19 seed Alex de Minaur, who is dating his good friend Katie Boulter. Boulter is similarly fresh off a signature Slam win, defeating 2021 finalist Karolina Pliskova on Centre Court.

“Would she sit in his box? I'd hope not,” he teased as his press conference came to a jovial close. “I won't judge her if she sits in Demon's box. She kind of has to, doesn't she?”