THE 2026 Wimbledon Championships are due to get started on Monday 29th June, as thousands flock to London for the major. Tennis fans in Redditch might also be tempted to make the journey to SW19 and voice their support for local star Lloyd Glasspool.
Last year proved to be a historic run for the 32-year-old and his doubles partner, Julian Cash. The pair became Grand Slam champions for the first time after they defeated Australia’s Rinky Hijikata and the Netherlands’ David Pel, making them the first all-British partnership to lift the title at the All England Club since 1936.
Both Glasspool and Cash are gearing up for their return to Wimbledon, with the men’s doubles first round scheduled to get underway on Wednesday 1st July. Ten days of tennis are all that separates the start of the tournament from the final, as the reigning champions bid to defend their crown – but how have Glasspool and Cash fared through the 2026 season as they return for Britain’s premier competition?
Close calls lead to triumph in Barcelona
Entering 2026 as the number-one-ranked doubles partnership in the world, Glasspool and Cash made a promising start to the year as they reached the Brisbane International final. After comfortably beating Czech duo Tomas Machac and Matej Vocel in straight sets in the penultimate round, they unfortunately came up short against Lucas Miedler and Francisco Cabral.
That led to further disappointment Down Under, as a round of 16 defeat in Adelaide was followed by a round of 32 exit at the Australian Open to James McCabe and Li Tu. Seeking to bounce back, Glasspool and Cash came close to winning in Doha, ultimately losing the final to Harri Heliovaara and fellow Brit Henry Patten. The same duo would eliminate the 2025 Wimbledon champions in the semi-finals in Dubai, too.
Glasspool did finish as a runner-up at the mixed doubles invitational at Indian Wells in March, as he and Gabriela Dabrowski lost in a tiebreak to Flavio Cobolli and Belinda Bencic. But he would collect his first title of the season shortly afterwards in Barcelona, as he and Cash dominated their route to the final before eventually beating Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Andrea Vavassori to secure silverware.
Performances like that served as a reminder of why Glasspool and Cash are top contenders for Wimbledon. They will once again be among the favourites for the doubles championship, and bettors looking to back the Redditch local during the Slam can check out the best free bets in the UK recommended by GOAL.
Disappointment at Roland Garros
However, Barcelona has proven to be the duo’s best performance on clay this season. At consecutive ATP 1000 events in Madrid and Rome, Glasspool and Cash suffered back-to-back round of 32 exits, as they failed to capitalise on their success in April.
But even after a quarter-final elimination at Hamburg, the pair likely would have been optimistic heading into the French Open. Unfortunately, their aspirations for Roland Garros once again ended early.
After overcoming Gonzalo Escobar and Jean-Julien Rojer in the first round, the British duo faced Adam Pavlásek and Patrik Rikl. They ultimately fell to defeat in straight sets, as a fourteenth title of Glasspool’s career went begging.
Mixed confidence heading into Wimbledon
With Wimbledon on the horizon, Glasspool and Cash have not matched the form they demonstrated heading into the Championships in 2025. In the same year he won their first Slam, the Redditch star also won in Brisbane, Doha, Queen’s and Eastbourne, before taking to the SW19 grass.
Nevertheless, bumps in the round are inevitable in the life of a sports star. Glasspool and Cash weren’t flawless at Roland Garros last year either, exiting the competition in the round of 16. Clay and grass tennis cater to very different styles of play – and on the basis of last year’s results, the British duo are more comfortable on the latter.
With several events on grass lined up before Wimbledon, including Queen’s and Eastbourne, a strong run of results prior to the tournament will give the world-number-six pairing all the confidence they need heading back to the All England Club. Redditch locals will be firmly behind Glasspool, as everyone backs the local hero to win back-to-back titles in the English capital.
Article written by Michael Cage
