British's No1 junior Willis keen to take his second chance in Paris

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Willis, Britain’s No1 junior and world No18, defeated Finland’s Henri Kontinen 6-2, 7-6 in the first round in Paris to start the process of proving he can bring his obvious talent to the Grand Slam stage again.

The 17-year-old, who lives in Wokingham and reached the third round of junior Wimbledon in 2007, was seeded 16 at the Australian Open.

Ace: Marcus Willis of Great Britain serves against Juan Vasquez-Valenzuela of Argentina at the French Open.

However, Lawn Tennis Association coaches Martin Bohm and Martin Lee decided to send him home from Melbourne for being late for practice, despite repeated warnings.

He finally agreed to sign a series of pledges about his behaviour and LTA chiefs have been impressed with the way he has stuck to those promises.

Willis said: “I had to put my neck on the line after Australia and got down to some really hard work.

“I know what happened out there wasn’t acceptable and I have put a lot of effort in practice and at tournaments leading into this Grand Slam.

“Now I’ve got my first win it does feel good but I want to make the most of my potential.

"It’s about growing up and understanding what’s needed to make that move from juniors to the seniors.

“I know that’s something that has been a problem for other players in the past and I have been thinking a lot about what I need to do to make that transition.

"People stood by me after Australia and now it’s up to me to work as hard as I can to realise my potential.”