Czech veteran Radek Stepanek revealed his shock victory over Wimbledon champion Andy Murray at Queen's Club on Thursday was inspired by the presence of Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech.
Stepanek became friends with compatriot Cech when the pair met during his ATP Tour victory in Los Angeles in 2007 while the Blues star was on a pre-season tour with Chelsea.
They have remained in touch since and Cech took the opportunity to catch up with his old pal when Stepanek took on world number five Murray in the third round of the Wimbledon warm-up event at Queen's.
He was rewarded with a brilliant display from Stepanek, who eliminated the reigning Queen's champion 7-6 (12-10) 6-2 to move into the quarter-finals and end Murray's 19-match winning run on grass.
"I've known him for seven years and we have become very close," said Stepanek, who hopes Cech's recovery from shoulder surgery will not stop him attending Friday's quarter-final against Kevin Anderson.
"He's a great friend of mine and a very important person for me, because of the way he's dealing with his sport, the way he's preparing, thinking about his sport.
"It motivates me: he shows that the little details are making the big differences.
"Seeing him now recovering from his injury, it's amazing.
"I hope so, he's definitely looking after himself, in his recovery, but I'm really pleased and honoured that he finds the time to come and support me."
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