Yannick Noah is back for another run as French Davis Cup captain. It will not be dull. It never is where Noah and tennis are concerned.
His back story is hard to top: his talent was discovered at age 11 by the American champion Arthur Ashe, who spotted the young Noah in Yaoundé, Cameroon, during an African good-will tour, handed him a racket and recommended that he move back to France, his mother’s homeland, to train.
Seven years later, Noah and Ashe were playing doubles together at Wimbledon and in 1983, Noah’s uncommon path led him – dreadlocks and first serves flying – to the French Open singles title and a teary embrace with his father Zach in the stands.