A_Skywalker
06-27-2010, 09:05 AM
What to expect next from a tournament that's already had everything.
For the second week of Wimbledon to top the first — well, we'll need miracles. Maybe a tiebreaker that lasts 100 points. Or a game with 1,500 deuces. It's unlikely, to say the least. But there will be plenty to see.
At the 2010 championships, we've already witnessed a near first-round upset of Roger Federer, the six-time champion. We've seen Rafael Nadal, who won this title in 2008, struggle to survive the second and third rounds. In the first two rounds, 23 matches needed five sets before a winner was declared. Queen Elizabeth II stopped by for lunch, something she hadn't done in 33 years. Another casual Wimbledon fan showed up every day: The sun. Even so, the All England Club had to close the roof over Centre Court because of darkness, a first. The tennis had to go on. Wimbledon's very own poet recorded all the action in verse.
Oh, and two guys played a pretty long match, too. It took 11 hours and five minutes over three days. And included 215 aces, 112 for the winner, John Isner, and 103 for the loser, Nicolas Mahut. The final score? 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(7), 7-6(3), 70-68. The fifth set alone lasted longer than any other match in the history of the sport.
The victory left Mr. Isner with toes that "looked like deli meat," in the words of Andy Roddick. But it also gave him what everyone agreed would be a permanent place in the record books.
"That will never be broken, ever, ever, not even close," Mr. Roddick said. "There's no logical explanation for 70-68."
For all the tennis, and all the mayhem, there's still a week to go. After the traditional day of rest on middle Sunday, every player who remains in the men's and women's singles draws will return to action Monday for the fourth round. No other Grand Slam tournament takes a day off, and no other puts all its contestants on display in a single day.
http://tenniscomment.com/tennis-news/wimbledon-2010-can-second-week-top-the-first-1/
For the second week of Wimbledon to top the first — well, we'll need miracles. Maybe a tiebreaker that lasts 100 points. Or a game with 1,500 deuces. It's unlikely, to say the least. But there will be plenty to see.
At the 2010 championships, we've already witnessed a near first-round upset of Roger Federer, the six-time champion. We've seen Rafael Nadal, who won this title in 2008, struggle to survive the second and third rounds. In the first two rounds, 23 matches needed five sets before a winner was declared. Queen Elizabeth II stopped by for lunch, something she hadn't done in 33 years. Another casual Wimbledon fan showed up every day: The sun. Even so, the All England Club had to close the roof over Centre Court because of darkness, a first. The tennis had to go on. Wimbledon's very own poet recorded all the action in verse.
Oh, and two guys played a pretty long match, too. It took 11 hours and five minutes over three days. And included 215 aces, 112 for the winner, John Isner, and 103 for the loser, Nicolas Mahut. The final score? 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(7), 7-6(3), 70-68. The fifth set alone lasted longer than any other match in the history of the sport.
The victory left Mr. Isner with toes that "looked like deli meat," in the words of Andy Roddick. But it also gave him what everyone agreed would be a permanent place in the record books.
"That will never be broken, ever, ever, not even close," Mr. Roddick said. "There's no logical explanation for 70-68."
For all the tennis, and all the mayhem, there's still a week to go. After the traditional day of rest on middle Sunday, every player who remains in the men's and women's singles draws will return to action Monday for the fourth round. No other Grand Slam tournament takes a day off, and no other puts all its contestants on display in a single day.
http://tenniscomment.com/tennis-news/wimbledon-2010-can-second-week-top-the-first-1/