By Roger Childs

The most prestigious of the grand slams

 Inside the grounds, it’s heaven: you’re hit by the sophisticated, well-groomed Britishness that the All England Club does so well. –Veteran Wimbledon watcher, Pippa Middleton

It may lack the flamboyance of Roland Garros or the colour of the Australian Open, however Wimbledon has its unique English character, rituals and prestige. In the words of coach, Dan Bloxham, it reminds everyone of the heritage of the game. Many players regard it as the top grand slam and the competition is always fierce. But you must wear white and that includes everything you’ve got on!

The strange and wonderful world of Wimbledon

Wimbledon is the oldest of the four tennis grand slams. The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club held its first tournament in 1877 and prior to World War One, New Zealand’s greatest tennis player, Anthony Wilding, won the gentlemen’s singles title four times. 

It is the only grand slam to be played on grass and inevitably the surface deteriorates as the tournament progresses. The first 2025 centre court match between defending champion Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz and Fabio Fognini from Italy was played on a beautifully groomed, blemish-free green lawn. Alcaraz, winner of the last grand slam in Paris, was unexpectedly taken to five sets. In fourteen days’ time, the finalists will have to contend with worn and dusty baselines which will be very slippery.

Tradition is a key part of the Wimbledon fortnight. In the seats at one end, fashionable dresses and suits, collars and ties are de rigeur for the rich and famous who attend, and strawberries and ice cream is the favoured lunch time snack. (Usually in excess of 27,000kg of Kentish strawberries are consumed during the two weeks of play.)  

The Ralph Lauren fashion house dresses the ball girls and boys in conservative navy blue, and the umpires and other officials in stylish clothes to provide the right Wimbledon look.  As a spectator you can get the Ultimate Wimbledon Fan Pack which includes towels, caps, tennis balls, umbrella, water-bottle, shopper bag and an official history. There are in fact 59 Wimbledon products you can buy as souvenirs.

Not easy getting through the first round

There are 64 matches in each of the ladies and gentlemen’s first rounds and it takes two days to get through them. Out of the 128 players who compete 32 are seeded. Extraordinarily, four top ten seeds have been eliminated in each of the gentlemen’s and ladies’ first rounds including Coco Gauff the winner of the recent Roland Garros grand slam. 

The men’s casualties have been:

  • Third seed Sasha Zverev (Germany)
  • Seventh seed Daniil Medvedev (Russia)
  • Lorenzo Musetti (Italy)
  • Holger Rune (Denmark)

American Taylor Fritz seeded 5 narrowly missed joining this quartet but recovered from two sets down to scrape into the second round.

As well as Gauff, fellow American, third seed Jessica Pegula, has been dumped along with Qinwen Zheng the fifth seed from China, and ninth seed Spaniard Paula Bardosa. Unfortunately Kiwi Lulu Sun who made the quarter finals in her first Wimbledon last year was also beaten in the first round.

Losing ten top seeds in round one has never happened before at Wimbledon since the game became professional in 1968.

The game goes on …

The spectators are certain to get plenty of entertainment and strawberries as the tournament proceeds. On the men’s side Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, local hero Jack Draper, and Novak Djokovic, looking for a record 25th grand slam, will be competitive. Among the women, top seed Artna Sabalena, Jasmine Paolini, Iga Świątek and Madison Keys are likely quarter finalists.

There is plenty of top tennis to come.