Wimbledon star branded 'pig' in horror abuse

Daily Mirror

8 hours ago

Rising tennis star Jodie Burrage talks about having to 'know yourself' to deal with online trolls, her sporting dreams and why she 'wouldn't be where she is today' without rugby star boyfriend Ben White
When British tennis star Jodie Burrage moved into her London apartment just two streets behind Wimbledon' s iconic All England club, she was buying more than a home. 'I can see Court One from my balcony,' says Jodie, who is currently the British No.7 ranked female player. 'When I moved in, I hadn't yet played the main draw Wimbledon. Maybe subconsciously I was trying to manifest it.'
Within two years, that hope became a reality. In 2021, Jodie made her Grand Slam singles debut in the Wimbledon championships with a wildcard entry. She returned a year later and by 2023 cracked the WTA Top 100 after winning first-round matches at both Wimbledon and the US Open — moments she now calls 'career defining'.
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But last summer, sidelined by a foot injury, the 26-year-old found herself watching the sport she loves from that same balcony. 'It was bittersweet,' reflects Jodie, who was on crutches with her foot in a protective boot for 10 weeks after rupturing an ankle ligament during a practice session with British No.2 Katie Boulter, shortly after recovering from wrist surgery.
'It was a dream to play there. But missing it last year because of injury was really tough. I was so close to where I wanted to be, but in a strange way, seeing Wimbledon from that vantage point gave me so much motivation to fight my way back.' And fight she did. Now, with the start of this year's tournament on 30 June, Jodie is playing both women's singles and doubles after earning another wildcard spot.
'Walking back onto those courts again this year means everything. It will be a full circle moment and a real reward for all the hard work I put in to get back from the injury last year,' she smiles, referring to the fitness regime that got her back in top shape – a gruelling six-days-a-week training programme, complete with one-hour warm-up, one-hour gym workout, a 30-minute cardio conditioning session, plus rehab and physiotherapy.
'I've been working hard to get my body ready and I believe I can get back to my career-best ranking of 85,' she says. 'Then the dream is to be in the top 10 in the world. That's where I want to be for the rest of my career!'
Behind her own resilience is a stellar support system, namely her retired accountant mum Yvonne, computer software specialist dad Chris, and her rugby player boyfriend, Ben White, 27, who she met on Instagram six years ago. 'I wouldn't be where I am now without Ben,' Jodie says of the scrum-half, who plays for French side Toulon. 'A year into our relationship, after my third ankle operation, I said I was done and I was contemplating retirement.
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'At the time, he was going through shoulder surgery, so we were dealing with similar emotions and bonded over that. If it wasn't for him — as well as my family — I wouldn't have set foot back on the court. He kept me believing I could get back to the level I was before injury, and he was there for me and kept me as happy as I could be in that time. I was very lucky for that.'
Yet with elite sport highs come crashing lows and last month, when Ben wasn't selected for the British Lions' summer tour of Australia, Jodie says the emotional impact seeped into her own performance at the French Open, where she lost in round one.
'Two sportspeople, living a life together, can be chaotic and quite hard to manage and when those emotions come into it, you just have to be there for one another,' she explains. 'I wasn't having the results I wanted — I won one or two matches — and I was dealing with other stuff off court as well as trying to help Ben. It was a difficult time.'
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Juggling their long-distance romance — while Jodie lives in London, Ben is in the south of France — isn't always easy, but they make it work. 'When I go to France and Ben is training for six hours, I understand it. A lot of people wouldn't,' says Jodie. The couple share a black Labrador, Otto, but have no immediate plans for marriage and children.
'We've spoken about it before, but we're just enjoying where we are now and there's no rush for us. With my career, I'm not having kids for another five, six years, so there's literally no [point] in rushing it. We're just happy focusing on our careers.'
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Growing up in Hindhead, Surrey, Jodie was four when her tennis-obsessed mum put a racket into her hand. A promising gymnast too, she trained up to 14 hours a week until a county tennis coach spotted her potential at 11 and tennis became her priority. Now known for her grit and fighting spirit after bouncing back from setbacks, Jodie is hungry to inspire the next generation.
'It feels wonderful to be encouraging visibility and engagement in female sport and to be part of that momentum,' she says, before expressing concern over research showing 45% of teenage girls globally drop out of sport — double the rate of boys — largely because of body confidence issues.
'You need good nutrition, strength and stamina. in sport, but every sport has different needs, so everyone's going to look different. In tennis, there is possibly every single body type you could imagine.'
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Jodie is herself no stranger to scrutiny. 'There's no hiding from the abuse that you get after matches. It's pretty much after every single game,' she sighs, noting that many culprits are gamblers who strike whenever she loses a game. 'Right now, people are loving the pig emoji on my Instagram. I'm a bigger girl than a lot of others in professional tennis and it's a conversation I've had to deal with throughout my whole career. That's the downside of social media. It's tough.'
Although Jodie — who developed a 'thick skin' growing up in a household with three brothers, Zach, Ben and Seb — says she can 'deal' with the abuse, she worries about the potential effect on younger players. I can push that to one side, but I know some people struggle with [that kind of criticism],' she says. 'You just have to know yourself and be strong within yourself.'
To stay grounded, Jodie embraces normal life. 'In our downtime, Ben and I play a fair bit of golf, we go for dinners, we have barbecues and do fun stuff. I let my hair down sometimes,' she says.
'Some deem it bad if athletes relax with a drink or a cheat meal, but you don't have to get blind drunk. To help get me in a better place to perform mentally on court, sometimes I need to relax in a beer garden, have a few drinks and chat about what every other person chats about!'