This thoughtful documentary about Arthur Ashe, the first African American man to win Wimbledon in 1975, understands that representation is only one step towards equality. Born and raised in the segregated south, Ashe infiltrated the “lilywhite institute of top-tier tennis” just as the civil rights movement was gaining momentum. Yet for years he kept his head down, and felt guilty for it. The film charts his fraught political awakening, from protesting against apartheid to becoming an Aids activist, before his death from the disease in 1993.

With his giant serve, sharp intellect and famously cool head, Ashe was pitted against more outspoken black athletes, such as Muhammad Ali. “We’re thought of as all brawn and no brains – I like to challenge that myth,” the young tennis player once said. Archive film is juxtaposed with contemporary footage of today’s sports star activists, including Naomi Osaka and Colin Kaepernick – a potent reminder of how expectations have since shifted.