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Andrew Castle is a former British tennis player turned broadcaster
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Castle has become a prominent media figure since his retirement, even having his own LBC show
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Read below for more on Castle’s life, past and present
Andrew Castle’s time as an active figure in tennis betting odds was pretty limited.
Turning pro in 1986, Castle retired from the sport only six years later with just 22 singles wins to his name. A media career beckoned, with the Epsom native becoming a presenter on GMTV and for numerous sports on Sky.
His voice has been heard during major live betting events. His opinions have often provoked debate or proven controversial.
After a tennis career that was never going to live long in the memory, though, he has crafted a second act in media that has maintained a celebrity status for three decades.
Followers of tennis predictions will be familiar with Castle the commentator and pundit. Some will have tuned into his radio work or presenting elsewhere. There’s still plenty to learn about Andrew Castle’s career so far – so let’s take a look.
Net Worth
Andrew Castle net worth is reported to be somewhere between £2 million and £3 million.
Castle will have collected plenty of cash through his decades in media, though the second career was a necessity after collecting just $344,000 in prize money through his years as a professional tennis player.
While tennis is a sport often associated with privilege, Castle’s upbringing wasn’t cosy financially.
Speaking in an interview in 2015, he explained what he learned about money from his parents.
“When you’ve got it, don’t squander it. My parents ran a fish and chip shop and they had five children. The overall feeling in our house was one of constantly trying to earn enough money to get by.”
With only 10 pence per week in pocket money as a child, Castle was used to making the most of what he had. This was particularly useful during his time in Kansas.
“When I was a student on an athletics scholarship at Wichita State University in Kansas. I lived on potatoes for a month and gave blood to pay my rent. They took plasma and gave me ten bucks.”
Castle might not be the wealthiest of former tennis players, but he’s been able to afford a comfortable lifestyle, including treating himself to a TVR after winning the Dunlop Masters in Japan.
He’s got a couple of properties, one of which has soared in value.
“I’ve got a five-bedroom house in Balham, South-West London, and a place in Spain. I am also a partner in a Spanish property development company, TM Real Estate.
"We bought our house in Balham 15 years ago for £606,000. We’ve invested quite a lot in it so it’s now worth more than £2 million.”
He might have never possessed the fastest tennis serve, yet Castle has accumulated wealth throughout his life in media and tennis.
Playing Career
A talented tennis player from a young age, Castle landed a scholarship at Millfield School as a teenager.
His parents separated when he was 15, however, forcing him to leave the school. A scholarship in Kansas was the next step, sending him on his way to professionalism in 1986.
While his singles career perhaps underwhelmed, Castle spent a lot of time as the British number one.
His singles performances didn’t inspire the fervour of Tim Henman or Andy Murray, but Castle was competitive on occasion, reaching the third round of Queen’s and enjoying his best Grand Slam performance at the 1987 US Open.
He won two matches before falling to Boris Becker in four sets.
Doubles was where Castle enjoyed most of his success. He never got above 80th in the world in singles, but he reached the Australian Open final in mixed doubles with Anne Hobbs and was ranked as high as 45th.
He reached five other doubles finals, winning three of them. Representing Britain and two Olympics, Castle was also a prominent member of the Davis Cup team.
Broadcasting
Following his retirement from playing in 1992, Andrew Castle signed up with Sky to commentate and present tennis, basketball, motor racing and golf.
Eight years later, he had made a name for himself as a presenter, attracting the attention of GMTV. He was a regular on the programme for a decade, which slotted in alongside his other work presenting shows and commentating.
Castle is a stalwart of the BBC tennis team. He has led the commentary on every men’s singles final since 2003, and while he missed out on the longest tennis match to Ronald McIntosh, Castle has provided play-by-play for many historic moments.
Over the years, Castle has also been involved in a lot of non-sport shows.
Perseverance, Divided and 71 Degrees North are just a few of the programmes to feature the former British number one, and he has featured extensively on the radio, including with The Great American Songbook.
Recently, he has been awarded his own talk show on LBC.
Strictly Come Dancing
Andrew Castle was partnered with Ola Jordan for the sixth series of Strictly Come Dancing.
Despite some underwhelming scores, he was safe through the first few weeks, but slumped into the bottom two by Week Four. Castle and Jordan survived, though it was short-lived as they were eliminated in Week Seven.
The judges weren’t impressed with Castle’s Samba, the dance which was ultimately his downfall.
Bruno Tonioli said, “The samba should have the excitement of the Brazilian Grand Prix and this was a Brazilian grand flop: no bounce, poor hip action...”
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
