At the age of 66, tennis legend Roy Emerson shows few signs of slowing down.

In Bermuda this week as a guest of the XL Capital Bermuda Open, the veteran Australian who captured a record 28 Grand Slam singles ands doubles titles in a glittering career, has been on court almost as much as the players.

On Wednesday he took the chair for the Patrick Rafter v Mikael Pernfors exhibition match and before that had been holding a clinic for 20 of the Island's most promising juniors at nearby Elbow Beach.

He's also been seen giving tips to corporate guests.

Emerson captured an astonishing 12 major singles titles comprised of six Australian Open, two French Open, two Wimbledon and two US Open championships from 1961 to 1967. Only American and former world number one Pete Sampras has won more Grand Slam singles, having passed Emerson's mark at last year's US Open.

Equally impressive, the amiable Aussie was a member of eight Davis Cup-winning teams - a record that still stands.

Renowned for his powerful backhand, `Emmo' was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 1982. He now resides in both Newport Beach, California and Gstaad in Switzerland.

Asked by Open tournament director Alec Anderson to spend time with some of the Island's top young talent on Wednesday, Emerson jumped at the opportunity, joining forces with former ATP star Ross Case, inaugural Bermuda Open champion Mikael Pernfors, former England Davis Cup captain John Lloyd and another past Bermuda Open champion MaliVai Washington.

"We are excited to work with some of the Island's promising juniors because they are the future champions," said the legendary Aussie, who also finished runner-up in the 1962 Australian, French and Wimbledon championships.

"There's always room for improvement and that's why we are happy to be here today.

"Hopefully we might be able to point out a few things that they can try and work on. And really it's nice for them to be out here hitting the ball with the likes of MaliVai, Mikael, Ross, John and myself.

"Not only is it good for them to see how we hit the ball, but it may also give them a bit of excitement and push them along a little bit more."

Asked whether he was surprised to see Sampras overhaul his Grand Slam singles record, Emerson simply shook his head.

"When I was at that age I didn't know whether or not I was going to get any better," he said. "But I worked hard and fortunately I was surrounded by some pretty nice people who gave me a lot of good support and some coaching early in my career. So it's really hard work that gets you there and Pete has certainly worked hard over the years."

Watching from the sidelines, Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association president David Lambert expressed his gratitude for the time taken out by some of the sport's biggest names to help the local programme.

"Every so often opportunities like this present themselves where our top young players have an opportunity to listen, play, take tips and ask questions from players who have played at the highest level," said Lambert.

"These gentlemen are what we call players that you can measure yourself against. They have all won a lot and have reinforced a lot of the lessons and advice that has been offered to our top juniors. And it will surely assist in the continued development of our young players.

"Thanks to Alec Anderson, the tournament director of XL, this was made possible because this wasn't originally planned," added Lambert, who now hopes the clinic will become a permanent fixture whenever the big names in world tennis arrive in Bermuda.