Twenty-five years ago Pat Cash celebrated his Wimbledon victory by climbing into the player's box.
Roger Federer staged a remarkable fightback on Friday to reach the last 16 at Wimbledon and avoid following great rival Rafael Nadal in exiting the grass-court grand slam before the end of its first week.
US Open champion Sam Stosur suffered another early Wimbledon exit as she crashed out to unseeded Dutch player Arantxa Rus.
Defending champion Petra Kvitova recovered from an early wobble to win 6-4 6-4 in her Wimbledon first-round match against Uzbekistan's Akgul Amanmuradova.
Top seed Novak Djokovic began the defense of his Wimbledon title with an emphatic Centre Court victory over Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero on day one of the championships.
Five-time champion Venus Williams went out in the opening round of Wimbledon for the first time as she slumped to a 6-1 6-3 loss to Russia's Elena Vesnina.
They've earned admiration around the world for their on-court prowess, not to mention the enviable sum of more than $160 million in prize money between them.
NEW YORK -- Irene came and left. So did Maria Sharapova, as well as the reigning female champs at Wimbledon and the French Open. Novak Djokovic has been dispensing bagels like a New York street vendor. And American tennis lives after all. After six full days of play at the 2011 U.S. Open, herewith, our midterm grades, all based on the University of Miami curve, endowed by Nevin Shapiro ...
Bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ... bounce ...
A small vacation-based, post-Wimbledon bag ...
WIMBLEDON, England -- The rain is coming and going. Kate and William have yet to arrive. But the contenders remain, as does drama for week two. Herewith our Week One Wimbledon grades.
WIMBLEDON, England -- In the match of the day, if not the match of the year, Venus Williams advanced with a gripping Centre Court win over Japan's Kimiko Date Krumm, 6-7 (6), 6-3, 8-6. Take away the grunting and this was divine tennis. Nifty shotmaking from all coordinates of the court. Successful networking opportunties. Angles. Fluctuating momentum. Just a thoroughly entertaining affair. Credit Venus for prevailing and, as usual, elevating her game when the circumstances required as much.
WIMBLEDON, England -- We've had an early casualty on Centre Court this year, a longtime fixture put to pasture on the grass. The seeds have survived -- some more easily than others. But you'll note that as players walk onto the court, they no longer bow and curtsy before the Royal Box. This tradition has been dying slowly over the past few years. It's now officially dead. The Duke of Kent, patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, requested an end to the practice, claiming it no longer fits in with the modern game. (This comes months after Buckingham Palace explicitly asserted that those meeting royalty should only bow or curtsey if they want to.) The Club relented. Bowing before Royalty is now voluntary.
A quick Mailbag while you watch Day 1:
CNN's Erin McLaughlin reports from Wimbledon where thousands of tennis fans are waiting to get there hands on Wimbledon tickets.
SI.com's Jon Wertheim breaks down the men's and women's seeds at Wimbledon. Read on for the top first-round matchups, dark horses and predictions.
We'll be back Friday with our seed report ...
1. Leaves of grass: Grass-court season is a term that verges on oxymoronic, so short is the interregnum between the French Open and Wimbledon. After their runs in Paris, both Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer pulled out of their scheduled tuneups and will enter Wimbledon cold. Rafael Nadal kept his commitment to the Aegon Queen's Club event but, understandably exhausted, fell on Friday to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. (As we write this, Andy Murray -- who demolished Andy Roddick in the semis -- will face Tsonga in a rain-delayed Monday final.) While it would be nice if there were more time to acclimate to a new surface, the problem is largely one of venue. If more complexes could accommodate a week-long grass-court tournament, you could make a better case for padding the schedule.
Shortly after he won his second Wimbledon title in June, Rafael Nadal met with a small group of reporters from international publications, including Sports Illustrated. Some outtakes from that Q&A session:
We were considering expanding our random ruminations to 68-70 items. But fatigue has set in, so herewith, 50 thoughts on a strange Wimbledon ...
A few years ago at Wimbledon, during the peak of his reign, Roger Federer admitted that he liked to read the newspapers. He'd get up nice and early in London and buy a stack, just to see what was being written about him.
Wimbledon stories from the SI Vault
Three quick thoughts from the women's final at Wimbledon on Saturday:
The off season excitement of one of the best NBA free agent classes in recent memory as well as big names trying to win at Wimbledon are just some of the fireworks that this holiday weekend has in store.
WIMBLEDON, England -- Three thoughts from Roger Federer's stunning quarterfinal loss to Tomas Berdych at Wimbledon on Wednesday:
Ten thoughts on Wimbledon's second Monday, for sheer quantity the sport's greatest show on earth:
WIMBLEDON, England -- Three thoughts from the opening day of Week 2 at Wimbledon:
Six-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker tells CNN why Wimbledon is such a special tournament in the tennis calendar.
In tennis, every round is a knock-out round. But after a week of tennis at the vuvuzela-free All England Club, most of the contenders remain. Here five plotlines to follow over the next seven days at Wimbledon.
We've had a match that ended 70-68 in the fifth set, a near upset of Roger Federer, a visit by the Queen, and a spitting incident. Otherwise it was a slow first week at the All England Club. Herewith, our midterm marks, graded on the USC Athletic Department curve.
Martina Navratilova talks about this year's Wimbledon and the longest tennis match in history.
Legendary tennis coach Nick Bollettieri talks about the epic Wimbledon match between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut.
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II attended Wimbledon for the first time in 33 years.
Six-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker looks at the favorites for Wimbledon 2010 and Germany's World Cup chances.
SI.com's Jon Wertheim breaks down the men's and women's seeds at Wimbledon. Read on for the top first-round matchups, dark horses to watch and his predicted winners.
Just a housekeeping note: We'll post Wimbledon seed reports shortly after the draw comes out on later this week.
I had the pleasure of covering 17 Wimbledons for the San Francisco Chronicle, and it's the most satisfying collective experience of my career. Money's a bit tight these years, but you never know, I might get back someday. If you love tennis and have the means to make an adventurous summer trip, I can't recommend it highly enough.
British tennis ace Andy Murray talks to CNN about the increased pressure and attention he get at Wimbledon.
"How can I miss you if you won't go away?" --Dan Hicks
So it has come to this in the world of big-time tennis: You're 28 years old, absolutely in your prime, cherishing the game -- and you're some kind of mythical superhero, a miracle of longevity and commitment.
Were you surprised at the Elena Dementieva-Justine Henin result? Henin has dominated Dementieva in past meetings (nine wins in 11 matches), but they last played in 2007 and Dementieva has been performing pretty well of late. What does this say about Henin's chances moving forward? --Stephen Males, Devonshire, Bermuda
You can lament the length of the season. You can mourn a confusing ranking system, greedy administrators and tape-delayed broadcasts. You can mourn the corruption of the word "retirement." But say this about tennis: It's never boring. This year's episodes included cocaine kisses, crystal meth cover-ups, unraveling hairpieces, no-fault foot faults, and $9 million payoffs.
NEW YORK -- The U.S. Open felt like two separate tournaments. The first was an exciting, spirited 10-day party, played amid ideal conditions. The second was a soggy circus. But in the end, the sun came back out and we were treated to some compelling finals. Herewith, some scattered observations and opinions:
SI.com's Jon Wertheim breaks down the men's and women's seeds at the U.S. Open. Read on for the top first-round matchups, dark horses to watch and his predicted winners.
The grassroots renaissance of tennis in the United States was the subject of an Associated Press feature that appeared online and in many newspaper sports sections over the weekend. The story argues, among other things, that "today's dearth of top American professionals" hasn't curtailed the sport's post-2000 growth:
It's always struck me as shabby when a commentator or columnist ignites controversy and then slips away like Laura Dern in the last scene of Citizen Ruth. Last week, I took issue with Roger Federer's Wimbledon attire -- and, more specifically, the Nike taste-makers who determined Federer's dignity and humility required more edge. The responses, pro and con, were as intense as they were numerous.
While mourning Mathieu Montcourt and thinking how downright creepy it is that two players penalized recently by the ATP for petty gambling infractions --Federico Luzzi is the other -- have died ...
The Wimbledon grass has always been a bit of a yoga mat for Roger Federer, who routinely moves around Centre Court at mental and physical ease while his more bruiser-like counterparts clip-clop on its blades.
Some scattered thoughts on a historic Wimbledon ...
Four things we learned while watching the all-American women's final at the All England Club on Independence Day ...
ITN's Damon Green reports on fake tickets for Wimbledon matches being sold on internet for big bucks.
This is our last "crumpet" for Wimbledon 2009. Time to do magazine work (though I'll continue periodic tweeting and podcasting). If you'd like, you could read this tomorrow; think of it as tape-delay. Thanks to everyone who wrote in. We'll be back Sunday with a Wimbledon wrap-up!
WIMBLEDON, England -- While marveling at Venus Williams's play on grass....
A total of 28 staff at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships have been asked to stay at home with suspected swine flu.
Two years are tattooed on the English sports consciousness like scarlet letters of anguish and self-pity. One is 1966, the first and only time the Three Lions hoisted the World Cup. The other is 1937, the last time a British player won at Wimbledon.
WIMBLEDON, England -- Here's a Monday baguette, or, as reader Art Wong suggests we call it during Wimbledon, "a crumpet." While wondering what Roger Federer is making of the prospect of facing Ivo Karlovic...
London homeowners are preparing to rent their flats and homes during Wimbledon. CNN's Ayesha Durgahee reports.
Rafael Nadal, the defending champion, stayed away from Wimbledon. Which gives him something in common with the rain. You remember, the Wimbledon rain, right? Wet stuff ... fell from the sky ... constantly disrupted play. The only umbrellas unfurled last week were used to repel the sun. And that may have been the biggest upset of Week 1. Herewith, our midterm grades:
Federer or Nadal, who's your pick at the U.S. Open? -- Chas, New York
That was unquestionably one of the greatest tennis matches I have ever witnessed. But let's digest it a little bit and let the heat of the moment pass before we dub it "the greatest of all time." This one had a lot at stake, with a lot of underlying stories attached to it on the most prestigious stage in all of the sport. But I'm not ready to dismiss Agassi-Blake in the 2005 Open quarters just because we saw a match of its equal. -- Steve, New York, NY
Cleaning out the Wimbledon notebook while still in awe of that final.
Five things we learned from women's final Saturday at Wimbledon:
After six days of play, here are our midterm grades from the 2008 version of Wimbledon:
Wimbledon 101updated: Fri Jun 20 2008 13:26:00
The world's oldest tennis tournament retains many of the same customs and quirks 131 years after it was first staged. It's the only Grand Slam event still played on grass, despite perennial moans from the clay- and hard-court specialists who struggle to adjust. Players--who are always referred to as "gentlemen" and "ladies"--must wear predominantly white, and the courts are unsullied by conspicuous corporate logos.
Hi everyone, check back in a few days for a Wimbledon seed report.
It's been nearly two weeks, but the sports world is still buzzing over the Giants' last-minute victory over the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Eli Manning's third-down conversion to David Tyree has become the latest play talked about around the water cooler. How did Manning get away from those massive Patriot linemen, pass the ball to a tightly covered Tyree, who then somehow leaped into the air, grabbed the football with his fingertips, and managed to come down with it, all while juggling it off his helmet? Was it just phenomenal athleticism or just luck? Or maybe, in that enclosed stadium on a rainy afternoon in Arizona, it was their destiny.
Tennis star Martina Hingis says she has been accused of testing positive for cocaine at Wimbledon, an accusation she calls "horrendous," the Associated Press reports.
NEW YORK -- He is the British number one, a designation that carries little weight in New York but the weight of the world at Wimbledon.
Once upon a time there was a surface called "grass." It rewarded aggressive play, and people who served and volleyed and returned and came in did very well. People who sliced and came to the net, like Martina Navratilova, were almost unstoppable when they got on a roll. Since the grass at Wimbledon is so slow, wouldn't it be "fair" to speed up the kitty litter-like surface called "clay" that the rest of the world is so enamored with?
WIMBLEDON, England -- Cleaning out the notebook from a wild and wet Wimbledon. Some random notes and thoughts, trying to incorporate as many of your questions as possible.
WIMBLEDON, England -- Five things we learned during a memorable day of tennis on Friday:
WIMBLEDON, England -- In the sheltered world of professional athletes, sometimes we need a reality check. Outside of the locker rooms, practice courts and VIP lounges we inhabit on a daily basis, there's a world that exists that we seem to be protected from and even ignore from time to time. Until it becomes personal.
And it was written: As long as there are rain delays, there will be baguettes:
A quick Baguette, while waiting out still another rain delay ...
In this hyper-commercialized age, let's acknowledge just how aberrational it is for a sporting event to forego play on a Sunday. As rain continued Saturday, it looks as though play won't resume here until Monday. Herewith, our marks from the first week at Wimbledon.
So I arrived on the grounds Friday morning and, in the wake of last night's car bomb scare in downtown London, the security was tighter than Tim Henman in a fifth set. (Cheap shot. Sorry.)
WIMBLEDON, England -- I can tell you from first-hand experience on Monday that life doesn't always imitate art.
A quick preliminary note to clear up some confusion: While Wimbledon doesn't follow the rankings to seed players, the seedings are not "subjective" or based on the whims of crusty committee members. There is a formula, and it is explained here:
LONDON -- Wimbledon means Roger Federer time. The world's No. 1 player has won the last four and is undeniably the favorite for a fifth. Beyond him is a small, elite group of players who are capable of hoisting the trophy at the end of the fortnight.
LONDON -- Grass-court season has arrived, and I couldn't be happier. Once June arrives, the clay-court shoes of spring are tossed aside in exchange for the pimpled-bottomed soles for the grass court of England.
SI.com: Wimbledon drawupdated: Thu Jun 14 2007 02:07:00
Check back Friday, June 22, for the official Wimbledon draw and schedule.
It happens every year. That smug bastard in the next office scores amazing seats to some exotic sporting event, then spends months regaling everyone with tales from his adrenaline-fueled travels.
When it comes to corporate hospitality, companies are constantly trying to outmaneuver each other.
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