Conor Niland The Racket

€12.99

Code 9780241998076

When Conor Niland was 16, he got the chance to hit with Serena Williams at Nick Bollettieri's famed tennis academy. Conor, the Irish junior number one, was feeling a bit homesick. Serena, also 16, already owned her own house beside the academ..

Add to Basket
Description

Binding: Paperback

Date Published: 01 May 2025

The Racket is the story of pro tennis's 99%: the players who roam the globe in hope of climbing the rankings and squeaking into the Grand Slam tournaments. It brings us into a world where a few dozen super-rich players - travelling with coaches and physios - share a stage with lonely touring pros whose earnings barely cover their expenses. Painting a vivid picture of the social dynamics on tour, the economics of the game, and the shadows cast by gambling and doping, The Racket is a witty and revealing underdog's memoir and a unique look inside a fascinating hidden world.

About the Author

Conor Niland grew up in Limerick, and was Ireland's top-ranked tennis player for much of his youth and all of his adult career. As a youth player he beat Roger Federer - and he still has his coach's notes on the match.

Delivery Info

We provide FREE delivery in the Republic of Ireland when you spend €49 or more. 

FREE Click & Collect from The Ennis Bookshop. You will not be charged for this service.  We are happy to arrange Delivery outside Ireland. Please e-mail us at enquiries@ennisbookshop.ie for more information. 

Find out more about our Delivery & Collection services

Returns Policy

We want you to be completely satisfied with your order and we would hope to resolve any problems you may have. If you are unhappy with your purchase, we will exchange or refund the item or issue a credit note, providing the goods are not damaged and all packaging is still intact.

Terms and conditions apply.

Please view our full Returns Policy for further information.

Click to view complete product details

More Like This

As elegant and powerful as a Federer backhand ... It's Kitchen Confidential for tennis -- Ed Caesar
A brilliant, unvarnished look at a brutal sporting life. -- Michael Foley * Sunday Times *
An entertaining behind-the-scenes glimpse at life on the global tour * Telegraph Best 50 Books of the Year *
Conor Niland may only have managed a career-high ranking of 129 - only? that is some achievement in itself! - but The Racket, his account of how he managed this, is up there with the best half-dozen books on tennis ever written. -- Geoff Dyer
A thoughtfully constructed memoir ... plenty of self-deprecating humour, poignancy and insight to make this a page-turner * The Times *
A visceral, melancholy and often self-lacerating book ... History is usually written by the winners, but this intelligent, unvarnished, emotionally draining memoir shows why an also-ran's perspective can be just as valuable -- Andrew Lynch * Business Post *
A crushing reminder of the grist from which sporting greatness emerges * The Economist *
One of the best Irish sports books of the last decade -- Kieran Shannon * Irish Examiner *
A fascinating, self-deprecating insight into the life of a tennis professional who isn't one of the prize-grabbing elite * The Telegraph *
A stone-cold classic. The story of Conor Niland's life in professional tennis ... recently became the third Irish book ever win the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award. And deservedly so. -- Malachy Clerkin * Irish Times *

Close

POP-IN HTML goes here

Close

Your Basket

Your basket is currently empty