As the Wimbledon fortnight draws to a close, we can justifiably say it has been a little different this year.
For a start there was the weather. Wimbledon is usually the butt of jokes about rain, plastic macs and soggy cucumber sandwiches. It was American Pat DuPre who commented some years ago: “It’s always the same. It’s either rainy with sunny intervals, or sunny with rainy intervals.”
This time around it was a heatwave — in the first week anyway — with players complaining about dehydration rather than getting their rackets wet, while spectators’ ice-creams melted at record speeds. We even had ballboys fainting in the heat, making it sound more like Melbourne.
The 35.7C early in the first week was the highest-ever temperature recorded at the Wimbledon championships. It was almost reassuring when the first rain of the tournament eventually arrived on the Thursday morning, delaying play on the outside courts, but not for long.
One of the early highlights was the defeat of two-time Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal by the little-known German, of Jamaican heritage, Dustin Brown.
It wasn’t just the win but the manner of his victory which won the player ranked 102nd in the world great crowd support. The dreadlocked journeyman put on a hugely entertaining display with his serve and volley backed up by fierce returns and truly amazing drop shots.
Commentators, including John McEnroe, agreed it was one of the most entertaining matches ever seen at Wimbledon.
It was an occasion when everything Brown tried came off and it was little wonder the 30-year-old told the media “This is the best day of my life.”
He came down to earth quickly in the next round, however, with a straightforward defeat to Viktor Troicki of Serbia. Brown lamented his own inconsistency: “I can beat a lot of good guys on a given day if I put my game together,” he explained.
Another player catching the eye, if not always for the right reasons, was Australian youngster Nick Kyrgios who is either a superbrat or super entertainer, depending on who you talk to.
Early on, the dark side of the 20 year-old was all too apparent as he lived up to his “Wild Thing” nickname following confrontations with umpires, linespeople and officialdom in general. On one occasion after an argument with the umpire he basically stopped playing for a game, tapping the ball into the net in some kind of protest, prompting a number of boos.
There were also assorted vocal outbursts. However, the powers-that-be diplomatically agreed that his shout of “dirty scum” was self-admonishment and not directed at an umpire.
But the Aussie fans, at least those in the stadium, loved it as they chanted “We’re here to see the wonderkid.” And at times he was brilliant with his fierce serve and creative attacking ground shots. One Guardian reader was not impressed however, calling him a “grade A knob.”
He got his comeuppance early in the second week and there were mixed feelings about his departure. One thing for sure, he’ll be back because he’s got the talent.
There’s nothing the Wimbledon crowd love more than a British victory, but as they are rather rare, a heroic defeat will do. Enter Heather Watson.
Watson (23), had already achieved a major feat simply by reaching the third round — that doesn’t happen to many British female players. She had even received death threats from big-time gamblers upset at her unexpected success in the earlier rounds.
In the third round she faced the minor matter of taking on her childhood idol, Serena Williams.
Everyone thought she was going to get hammered, but Watson had other ideas. At 3-0 up in the final set, she had just won six consecutive games against the best player in the world. Possibly for the first time, the often raucous spectators dared think she had the chance of toppling her idol.
Of course, that’s when the wheels started to come off, but nonetheless the Brits were proud of their girl who eventually lost to Serena 6-2, 4-6, 7-5. It was the sort of match Wimbledon thrives on.
Serena contributed her bit to the feel-good factor by admitting: “That was the toughest match I‘ve ever had on Centre Court.”
As happens each year, Wimbledon’s strict all white dress code came under fire. Even undergarments are supposed to be white but eagled-eyed spectators spotted the occasional black bra, most notably worn by Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard.
Surprisingly, leading the dress code complaints this year was Roger Federer who said the all white rule was “too strict”, although he still accepted the main clothing should be white.
There was considerable anticipation at what outfit 30 year-old American Bethanie Mattek-Sands, “the Lady Gaga of tennis’’, would wear on court. Disappointingly there were no colours on her outfit, but she still made her mark with eye-catching white knee socks and purple hair.
Caroline Wozniacki, on the other hand, had no complaints about the dress code. “You go by the rules. If they say it’s all white, then it’s all-white”, she said, suggesting players be more “creative” with their white outfits.
There were also the traditional complaints about the level of grunting in the female game. It was the usual suspects who came under scrutiny — Maria Sharapova, Victoria Arazenka and Serena. At one stage during the Azarenka-Williams encounter, spectators were laughing loudly over some of Azarenka’s more anguished shrieks.
The player herself was not amused. “I think they might have had a little too many Pimm’s or whatever,” she remarked.