Wimbledon 2018: Kyle Edmund’s coach advises him against watching England vs Sweden ahead of Novak Djokovic clash

It is hard to know what would be better for Kyle Edmund as he prepares for his third-round meeting with Novak Djokovic here on Saturday in the final contest of the day on Centre Court.

With the match likely to start at about 5pm, would it be to the Briton’s advantage if England’s footballers beat Sweden in their World Cup quarter-final starting at 3pm, giving him the chance to ride a wave of national celebration? Or might that all prove too much of a distraction?

Mark Hilton, who shares the task of coaching Edmund with Fredrik Rosengren, admitted on Friday that watching the football might be emotionally draining.

“Obviously he will want to know what’s going on because you can’t stop that,” Hilton said. “He’s been in a great mood these past few weeks. He’s been talking a lot and that’s a pretty good precursor for his level.

“Pre-match we will talk tomorrow morning before practice, keep him as relaxed as possible. It’s a big match for him and one thing he has done really well this year is step up on the big occasion a few times.

“It will be interesting to see what the crowd will be like. I’m sure it will be full, but there’ll be some sort of atmosphere in there which depends on the result. Maybe more so if England win.

“We talk to him before every match about what to expect with the atmosphere, especially when on the big courts. At Queen’s he followed Andy [Murray] when Andy lost to [Nick] Kyrgios.

“Kyle was on next against [Ryan] Harrison and we talked about how a lot of people would have gone out and would be walking about, distractions and stuff, so will talk about that and what to expect. Both matches here we have walked out before on to the court to have a look at what to expect.”

Hilton said that Edmund’s victory over Djokovic in Madrid two months ago – even though it was on clay – should be an encouragement, though he thinks the Serb’s form has taken an upturn subsequently. “Having that belief he can win is going to be so important and I think beating him in Madrid gives him that extra bit of belief,” he said.

Does Hilton believe Edmund can beat Djokovic? “For me, for sure, yes. He can win, because of the way he’s been competing, the way he’s been playing, those improvements he’s made, the win that he had against him in Madrid. He can go on that court with belief that he can win the last point, for sure.

“There’s no doubt that Novak’s going to be a real stubborn test. We all know what his level is, especially on big occasions on this court. He’s got his work cut out, but I’m sure it will come down to some very small things. It’s whether he can execute in the biggest moments, stay calm, which he has been doing so well.”

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Hilton has known Edmund for many years and started working with him last summer. At the end of the year he agreed a deal to share coaching duties with Rosengren, a highly experienced Swede, and believes the team have worked well together

What has pleased Hilton most about the way Edmund has improved in the last year? “Little things have changed,” he said. “In his game, technically, he’s made small adjustments to his serve, which we did in pre-season.

“About a year ago there was quite a bit of talk about him struggling to get over the line in tight matches, losing a lot of three-setters. Even the way he finished the year in Paris there was that feeling as well.

“So pre-season was really important in making him feel like he was making some changes to his game, so that he could go into the year a bit fresher, feeling like it was a new start. And obviously he started the year so well in Australia.”

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Hilton believes there is plenty of scope for the world No 17 to continue to progress. “Kyle is doing very well but we still see massive areas where he can improve,” he said. “It’s also key that not only do we see the areas of improvement that can be better, but he is also buying into some of the changes we are talking about.”

Hilton coached Dan Evans until the Briton was banned for a year after testing positive for cocaine. He was in Evans’ box when he played Roger Federer on Centre Court in the biggest match of his Wimbledon career two years ago.

“There are definitely some areas with Dan which were huge challenges,” Hilton said. “You get the same challenges with Kyle but in a different way. The characters are massively different. They both clearly love playing tennis, they both love competing, but in their own way they prepare so differently.

“They actually compete very differently in the way that they behave, but I admire them both, the way that they can deal with some situations and their ability to fight. In different ways I have really enjoyed spending time with both of them, not only on the court but away from the court. They are very different. I don't have many concerns with Kyle away from the tennis court.

“But I genuinely love spending time with Evo. I love it. And I loved the time that we worked together. It’s a massive plus that he’s back. And hopefully if he stays fit he will be back.”