\n<\/p>\n
Willis almost left the sport a few months before he played 20-time major champion Federer. He did quit in 2018 due to injuries and the toll they were taking on his mental health.<\/p>\n
In 2020, he worked for his cousin’s bricklaying business to earn money during the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n
“That was nice, it was freeing. Some of the conversations are interesting,” Willis recalled.<\/p>\n
“What I loved about it was how whenever the clock hits 12pm or 12:30pm, you’re stopping for a tea and your lunch. It’s religious. They stop on the dot.<\/p>\n
“It was an incredible experience. But you wouldn’t want me trying to build your house, let’s put it that way. I was just trying to earn some money and spend time with my cousin.”<\/p>\n
A couple of years later, Willis was back on the court. He was playing exhibition events when a family friend offered to finance a professional comeback.<\/p>\n
“People say ‘you’re still good’, but you know the reality of becoming a player,” Willis said.<\/p>\n
“It’s not just being good. It’s having the money, it’s staying injury-free, it’s travelling the world, not seeing your kids grow up properly. That’s what people don’t understand sometimes.<\/p>\n
“I hadn’t thought about it. I went home and saw my wife [Jenny] \u2013 she was more keen than I was at the time. <\/p>\n
“She said go and do it, you get one chance. And now here I am.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n