Bunny Austin once said: "All I got for reaching the Wimbledon finals in the 1930s was a £5 voucher from Mappin and Webb."

There was no question in Austin's heyday of him being paid to use a manufacturer's racket.

While Austin was the last Briton to reach the Wimbledon men's singles final in 1938, his would-be successor, Tim Henman, was paid around £1.7m in 2000 just to use Slazenger products.

While Sampras became the first player to pass the $40m mark in prize money in 2000, he topped it up with a similar sum to Henman for using Wilson rackets.

But why do sports companies pay such vast sums to top tennis stars for using their equipment?

The answer is hard cash. They believe their investment will be returned with handsome interest, courtesy of worldwide sales, publicity and promotion generated by celebrity clients.

"The endorser is one half added value and one half an emotional bond," said Erin Patton, marketing manager with Nike.

With such a deadly combination, how can the companies lose when the consumer is snared?