Kyle Edmund is Great Britain's "last man standing" at the elite level of men's singles tennis this year, and his "continued promise has brought him a bumper, multi-million pound sponsorship deal with Nike," according to Mick Dickson of the London DAILY MAIL. The 22-year-old signed a four-year agreement with the apparel manufacturer that is the "biggest of its kind for a British player not called Andy Murray since the days of Tim Henman." It is "partly recognition" of the fact that he is expected to end the year as one of only six men aged 22 or under inside the world's top 50, and "comes on the back of a global ambassadorship with Jaguar cars." The deal represents a "considerable declaration of faith in the potential of someone who has had a solid if unspectacular year." The overall market for tennis endorsements is "not especially buoyant" and, according to the Wall Street Journal, Under Armour is undergoing a review of the sports and activities it is "involved with." Edmund "measures success by his ranking rather than his increasingly ample bank balance," and considers this a season of "frustrating near-misses" that he plans to address by working with two coaches in '18. It has seen him change management companies, from IMG to London-based Starwing Sports, and hire a combination of veteran Swede Frederik Rosengren and former British player Mark Hilton (DAILY MAIL, 10/31).
