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INTERVIEW: John Lumley Gets a Royal Boost on His Way to the 2025 World Championship

2025 has been an incredible year for John Lumley. He recently won his second Champions Trophy in front of royalty, after having taken home top honours in the 2025 US Open, where he managed to beat Camden Riviere — becoming the first person outside of a World Championship to defeat the American in a singles match since 2013.

He then went on to perform beautifully in the World Championship Eliminators, which secured his place to come face-to-face with Riviere in the 2025 World Championship taking place 23-27 September. The stakes are high for Lumley, who lost to Riviere in 2023, but if the first half of the year is any indication of what’s to come, his future looks bright.

The T&RA was lucky enough to catch up with Lumley as he prepares for the immense challenge ahead, and the British Real Tennis star (who works as a professional at the Racquet Club of Philadelphia) was as kind and composed as ever as he reflected on the wins he’s recently accomplished and the tough battle he faces in just a few weeks’ time.

T&RA: You've had such a spectacular year and everyone in the UK is so excited about all of your achievements and your performances in tournaments like the Champions Trophy and the World Championship Eliminators. How do you feel about everything that’s been happening for you this year?

Lumley: Thank you, that's very kind and I appreciate it. It's been a great year, and I'm happy and excited with how my game is going and progressing. I'm really looking forward to the World Championship, for sure.

T&RA: Before we get into the World Championship, which we definitely will, I wanted to talk about your recent Champions Trophy win. I know it's been awhile, but are you still feeling the high of the win and that moment?

Lumley: It was definitely nice, but I was straight back to Philly after that and straight into training [for the Challenge] so I maybe didn't celebrate that one as I usually would. But it still felt great and it was pretty special playing in front of Prince Edward and really playing well, so that was nice to be out there enjoying it and to put a good performance together.

T&RA: How did that win compare to the first time you won the Champions Trophy?

Lumley: Winning it for the first time was pretty special, but it was pretty wild playing in front of a member of the royal family. That was really cool! I'm not going to forget that one -- ever, really. It was great to have him in the dedans cheering on. He seemed super into it and his whole team was there.

T&RA: He was the one to give you the trophy and posed with you for a photo op, but did the two of you get the chance to exchange any words at all?

Lumley: Yeah, we chatted after the prize giving and speeches. We chatted for about 20 minutes, and he made me feel really special.

T&RA: Can you share what you talked about? I imagine a lot about the game itself?

Lumley: Yeah, a little bit about the match, and we were talking about September and the World Champs coming up. We talked about his trip when he was doing his Duke of Edinburgh stuff, when he played all the courts, so his time in Philly and a little bit about some of his trips there. He hasn't been able to play much really since then, which is a shame, but he still keeps an eye on the tournaments and sort of how things are going, and we talked about his son playing or wanting to play, which was also interesting, to hear something about his family. It was really cool.

T&RA: That is exciting to hear because we do need younger players and it would be great to have another person from the royal family getting into the game – good PR!

Lumley: Yes! That would be amazing if his son played. And I know Prince Edward has got a soft spot for the game and especially for Hampton Court Palace, so I think he really enjoyed being there, as well. Or I hope he enjoyed being there. It seemed like he did.

T&RA: How would you describe your state of mind now as you have a few weeks leading up to the Championship?

Lumley: Great! I'm really pushing hard, training hard. I feel like everything is together and I can't wait. I just got back from playing in the Pell Cup, which is up there in Newport, so I got a few hours on the court there, which was great. It's nice to hang out there, and it's such a lovely time of year to be there. So mentally, I’m feeling really good and I'm looking forward to it! I have a few more weeks to keep pushing and get really ready, and then I'm going to try and give it my best in September.

T&RA: What kind of preparation goes into playing a tournament like the Champions Trophy, and is it any different from the kind of preparation that you would do for something like the World Championship?

Lumley: It's sort of regular prep for any kind of tournament. Obviously I don't think there were any lefties really in the draw of [the Champions Trophy], so it was still geared toward right-handed opponents and stuff, but keeping fit, hitting a lot of balls. Obviously the best of three format is a little bit different because it's maybe less about being as fit really as for the Opens or for the World Championship, but I was pushing hard to sort of use that as a point to see where I was at in my training before the World Championship and it was nice to sort of know that I was doing the right sort of thing and playing well. I’m still keeping up the same gym work and conditioning and hitting a million balls on court, but nothing really different than the normal prep.

T&RA: Being an athlete can be an intense way of life spent with hours and hours in the gym every day and hours and hours of drills and time on court every day -- it's almost exclusively your life. Would you say that's the case in Real Tennis, as well?

Lumley: I think we're in that slightly different combination because almost every professional works at a club, so you've still got to manage that. For example, I hit this morning with Henry Smith – he came down from New York, which was great – and I was like, "I'm going to come off and have a protein shake and stretch out and whatever," but then someone had booked me for a lesson while I was on court that morning, so I was sort of caught off guard by that! It was still great to get on court with a member and give a lesson, but your plans can sometimes go a little awry when you're not completely in control when you are working at a club. But those are the types of challenges that we all face in Real Tennis and Court Tennis. But I love it. I love all the practice and the grind of it and trying to get better and improving every day. And the practice part and the gym part of it is the part that I find the most enjoyable and the most fun and easy to push myself to do.

T&RA: Do you do anything different diet-wise, or do you just in general keep a healthy clean diet all the time?

Lumley: Pretty good. I sort of have a week or maybe 10 days after a big tournament where I can eat pizza and bacon and whatever I want [laughs], but I keep it pretty clean most of the time, and before a tournament, I really dial it in for sure. No drinking and all of that stuff.

T&RA: Do you do any training for the mental aspect of the game? Because while every game has some sort of tactical skill required, it’s especially so for Real Tennis.

Lumley: I think I get most of that when I'm on court practicing. I'll put myself in difficult situations, or if I find myself slipping mentally, I’ll try to catch myself mentally in that moment and try to become more present and basically play better in that moment rather than let it slip away. I do a little bit of prep work off the court, but nothing too crazy off the court.

T&RA: Camden is a formidable opponent. Are there players out there that you are playing or want to play against to help you prepare to play against him?

Lumley: Yeah, definitely. I enjoy going and hitting with Steve [Virgona], a fellow lefty, and [James] Stouty and seeing the difference in, you know, you sort of chuck in a serve and they turn and smoke a forehand past you, and you're like, "Oh yeah, I've got to remember that!" You've got to serve differently to a left-hander. So just little tricks like that that you get from playing a left-hander, which is always good practice. It's tricky to find a left-hander to practice against regularly, but I do enjoy going in and seeing those guys when I can. And then I still do a lot of two-on-one stuff here in Philly, so I have two guys on the court playing against me, and that's good because there's pressure and it gives me less time and they get a lot more balls back, which is great and good practice for playing someone like Camden, who covers the court extremely well and keeps you under a lot of pressure. Steve and Cam have been at the top of the game for such a long time now, so people have had to adjust and get used to playing left-handers maybe more than other generations had to do. So you end up almost guaranteeing that you're going to end up playing a left-hander at some point in the draw, which is always a slightly different strategy and how you're going to try and play them. It's another fun element to try and get better at and get used to.

T&RA: Is there anything else you can think of that you change up depending on who your opponent is going to be?

Lumley: I think we all play quite regularly so we all know each other's game pretty well, and it's rare that somebody tries to reinvent the wheel of their game. And we've all got hours and hours of YouTube footage of each other, so I still watch a lot of that and get used to patterns of play while watching those matches back, which is always a really good tool to try and learn from and use to my advantage.

T&RA: How intense was the eliminator stage for you when you played Nicky Howell?

Lumley: Extremely! They put on a really good show [in Aiken], and they had it all packed out for all three days, especially Night One, which was really good fun. I had a few more Philly members down there for Night One, which was great to have a crowd bounce off each other. Obviously Night One went more my way, so that was fun. Night Two was tough -- really tough. It was a tough day at the office. Nicky played great, the crowd were all over him and cheering him on. But everyone is so nice down there and kind and thoughtful, so it's not like there's any animosity or anything like that. It's just that they want to cheer on their guy and see him succeed, so I completely get that and understand that. It ended up being a really fun trip, but it was tough. I was definitely tested to the max. Nicky was playing really well. It was one of those matches where it felt like no one deserved to lose, really. It was that good of a match in tennis. It was great.

T&RA: How do you feel about Nicky Howell as an opponent?

Lumley: He's tough. His ball striking is some of the best in the world by far. He's so good, and his return of serve is fantastic and… it felt to me that he worked hard on his backhand leading up to our match and the match he had against Ben [Taylor-Matthews], so his game was looking really well-rounded and just the pressure he's able to create off that first ball [was good], so finding a serve to try and limit him was really key, and we sort of found one on Day Three, which was good to not let him pick off as many winners off that first ball and try to get more into some rallies. But it was so close. Even that first set on Day Three, him being 5-3 up and then getting it back to 5-all and then playing a good game, that was huge, that game, that set.

T&RA: There's so much on the line, and now you have this second chance to go up against Camden. Are you pretty good at rising to that challenge and letting the stress go or is it difficult sometimes?

Lumley: Yeah, I think so. After Day Two of the Eliminators I had a few phone calls with different people and I went on court with Robbie [Whitehouse], and he said, "You've got to play free, play your game, and you've just had the toughest day really in your career, losing four sets in a row, being 3-1 up in a good position, and now you're up against it.” That night, it was tough. I didn't sleep really well, and it's stressful because you're replaying every point in your head and everything, but by the time we hit the next day, [I was in] a better mindset and was like, "Hey, you've worked so hard to be here and you know you can do it; you know what you need to do,” and just finding a groove where I felt really comfortable again. And then, by the time that next match came, when Day Three came around, I couldn't wait to get out there and show everyone that I'm ready for it and up for it, and I went out there and played well and performed. So it was good.

T&RA: You mentioned Robbie -- can you talk a bit about who he is and what he means to you?

Lumley: Robbie Whitehouse, he's the athletic director here in Philly. He came out to be my practice partner and he was great. He's obviously seen a million matches and he was in Steve Virgona's corner when he was challenged for the World Championship, so he's sort of been there with Stevie before, so it was great to have him in my corner and to be able to tap into that knowledge and experience that he has. And we're also just great friends. We work in the Pro Shop together, so I see him pretty much more than I see any other human on this planet [laughs]. So it was great to have him down there and be so supportive. And he can sort of tell me how it is. He was like, basically, "You've just had a really tough day and we've got to get you out of this and get you firing again on all cylinders. I've watched you play a million practice matches and you've worked so hard, so let's find it." We got there, but it was definitely a more stressful path than we were looking for, and obviously after such a strong Day One, Day Two was a real shock, but again, Nicky was really playing well that day.

T&RA: As an audience, that is a lot more exciting than a total washout, so although it was tough for you, we thank you for it!

Lumley: Exactly. It was great for the game and for everyone, really. It was such an awesome match.

T&RA: What would you say is different this year from the first year you challenged Camden? I mean you recently beat him at the US Open, which is huge and I can imagine that gave you confidence!

Lumley: Yeah, it’s nice to have that knowledge that I can beat Camden and have beaten him in a match, which is really good. And I think just having been through the whole system and cycle and knowing what to expect, as it's not my first time doing it now, which I think is good. They do say it's very rare that someone ever wins it on their first challenge, so I think it's great to have one under my belt and be going in for a second one. I think Camden knows I'm coming for him and it's going to hopefully be a great match. We'll see!

T&RA: It's a small world as you've said, so what does it feel like to go against Camden in such a big match when I'm sure you're somewhat friendly with each other outside of this?

Lumley: Yeah, we're very good friends and it's funny because I was saying goodbye to him yesterday and he was like, "Are we going to hang out in September?" And I said to him, "You already know the answer to that!" And he was like, "Yeah, I know." So we'll obviously see each other in passing in September because the practice courts are back-to-back with each other, but yeah, we're not going to be grabbing dinner or anything on that front! But we'll always be good friends, and at the end of the day, it's just a tennis match, but also, we're going for a World Challenge and it doesn't get any bigger than this in our sport, so yeah, we're not going to be hanging out next month.

T&RA: You're currently in the US and you've obviously been there awhile, but when you're playing, do you still feel like you're representing England on the court?

Lumley: I did just get my US green card at the end of April, which was great. Having the problems I've had, it's nice to know that I'm not going to have to worry about visas and getting stuck over there, sort of stranded, so it's nice to have that all taken care of. But no, I'm definitely still English and I will always be, really.

T&RA: Both of your parents are legends in the sport. Your father, Colin Lumley, was a Real Tennis professional and two-time Australian Open champion while your mother, Penny Lumley, was a 6-time Ladies Real Tennis World Champion and 28-time Open Champion. They must have had quite an impact on you and the player you've become, but I’m wondering if they still shape and influence you at this point?

Lumley: They obviously come and support me at all these World Eliminators and stuff, and it's amazing to have them there, but I think they've done all the hard work with me already. They made me mentally tough and gave me the tools to do whatever I wanted with Court Tennis. They never restricted me with how much I could play or anything and they were always positive and never forced me to play. But they watch everything, and having been good players themselves, they live every point with me, and I sometimes feel they are even more stressed or tired than I am after a match, so they really care and they love it. They're fantastic. They've given me a great start and a great life by bringing me into this game, and I really can't thank them enough. It's definitely tricky living in mum's shadow though! Unless I start dominating the game for the next twelve years, I'm not going to get anywhere near her achievements. But I've come to grips with that, and it’s fine by me. She'll always be the true legend in the family, no questions asked.

The 2025 Real Tennis World Championship will take place September 23, 25 and 27th at the National Tennis Club at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island. For tickets and more information, click here.