Dustin Brown: Nine things you didn't know

Dustin Brown is hot property.

He shocked Wimbledon after beating Rafael Nadal and is now breaking hundreds of hearts, if the declarations of love on social media are anything to go by.

He's just a bit different from other tennis players. When did you last see dreadlocks, tattoos or a vest on centre court?

He's called Dustin 'Dreddy' Brown (no prizes for guessing why that is) but here's a few things you may not know.

1. He has a tattoo of a man with dreadlocks and some people thought it was Bob Marley

Image captionDustin has his dad by his side

It's not Bob Marley even though there was some confusion amongst commentators on Thursday as to whether it was Marley or Jamaican reggae star Dennis Brown It's actually his father, Leroy. He patted the tattoo during various points of the match, perhaps for good luck?

2. He hasn't cut his hair for 19 years

Brown last cut his dreadlocked hair almost 19 years ago in August 1996, according to the Telegraph.

3. He is "Ger-maican"

Image captionDustin and Nadal show each other respect after the match

Dustin Brown was born in Celle, West Germany in 1984 (he's 30). His mother Inge is German and father Leroy is Jamaican.

4. Dustin had to move back to Jamaica to train for tournaments

Image captionDustin celebrating his big win against Nadal

It was too expensive to train in Germany even though Dustin was showing considerable tennis talent, so he moved back to Jamaica to train.

5. He used to travel to tournaments in a camper van to save money

Image captionDustin lived in a mobile home like this one

Brown travelled humbly when he first began touring lower-level tournaments.

The events have little prize-money and can involve a lot of mileage. To cut down on both his accommodation and travel expenses,

Dustin's parents (Leroy and Inge) bought him a camper van which he would go on to drive, sleep and cook in while he travelled on the tours between 2004 and 2007. His personalised number plate which he chose reads CE DI 100 which was a message to himself, according to the New York Times.

CE for his birthplace, Celle in Germany, D for Dustin, I for Inge and 100 for his goal of breaking the top 100.

He is now number 78. He described beating Nadal as the best day of his life.

6. This isn't his first big win

In 2013 he defeated Guillermo García-López and then went on to beat Lleyton Hewitt 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-2. He was interviewed after, where he stated "I cried like a little girl," he then added. "It's going to take this a while to sink in. I'm not normally the kind of guy to cry. I'm playing Lleyton Hewitt, a guy you grow up watching."

Image captionBrown beats Guillermo Garcia-Lopez

7. He has a tongue piercing

Image captionDustin's tongue bar

8. He is a part time model

Image captionModelling is relatively easy...

Brown told German website Spox that he once appeared in a photo shoot for Vogue. He said: "It's a welcome change to everyday work on the court. Above all, it is in comparison relatively easy, you just have to stand up and smile easily."

9. He's not available

Image captionDustin & Dione: "Bae" watch

Lots of tennis fans have been expressing their appreciation of Dustin on social media, and not just for his tennis prowess.

However he's dating model Dione Ganzales and judging from their Twitter conversations, they are very much in love.

Source BBC