Maidstone tennis player Zane Cheeseman has followed in the footsteps of Emma Raducanu by being named Kent LTA player of the year.

But that’s not the 40-year-old’s only big reason to celebrate - he’s also been selected to captain the Great Britain over-40s team at the World Team Championships in Turkey in March.

And to make it a potential triple whammy, he’s been shortlisted for Kent development coach of the year, too.

Raducanu was named Kent player of the year after winning the US Open as an 18-year-old in 2021.

Cheeseman is the latest winner after a 2022 to remember, which included British Senior Championship singles and doubles titles at Wimbledon.

“I’ve won pretty much everything this year - five senior titles if you include doubles - but it still came as a surprise,” said Cheeseman.

“When they called to let me know I’d won I said do you mean Kent coach and they said no, Kent player.

“It was a nice surprise because you don’t expect it when you get older but on paper they decided I was the outstanding candidate.

“Emma Raducanu’s won it, so it’s not bad company to keep, is it? I’m not going to complain, being in that company.”

Cheeseman is looking forward to making his World Championship debut, with the added bonus of being offered the captaincy.

He’s previously skippered England in the Four Nations but this is another level.

“It was my big goal of the summer, to try and get into the GB fold,” said Cheeseman.

“I’m staying out in Turkey the week after to play in the World Individual Championships as well.

“I thought I might as well because I’ll possibly never get the chance again. I’m really looking forward to it.

“There’s four of us going for the team event. It’s an honour to get the captaincy.

"They base it on who’s going to be best at organising things. You’ve got to choose the team each day and go to captains’ meetings and things.

“And where I’ve won the events I have and I’m ranked highly in the over-40s age group in the world, they asked me if I wanted to do it. There’s no way I could say no to that.

“It’ll be my first World Championships.

“I played for England at the Four Nations in Wrexham, which was a great experience, but not for GB before.

“There’ll be a few nerves because you’re not just playing for yourself, you’re representing your country, but hopefully I’ll thrive on it.

"I love team events because tennis can be quite lonely when you’re out there on your own.

"The atmosphere gives you a real buzz. It’s like a Davis Cup atmosphere.”

Cheeseman will discover if he’s won the Kent development coach of the year title at a ceremony in Maidstone next month.

For a man who runs his own coaching school, Hotshotz, it would be the perfect recognition of his work.

“I’d like to think I’ve got a good chance,” he said.

“I won it quite a few years ago when I was a coach at Horsmonden but obviously now I run my own business and I’ve been nominated based on than rather than coaching at one club.

"It would be great to win it.”