Tennis
WIMBLEDON TO BECOME 14-DAY EVENT FROM 2022
The Wimbledon Championships will become a 14-day tournament from 2022, with matches set to be played on Middle Sunday, traditionally a day off at the grasscourt Grand Slam, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) said on Tuesday (April 27).
The first Sunday of Wimbledon is normally a rest day, on which tournament organisers work to get the courts back into top shape for the latter rounds, resulting in a packed “Manic Monday” schedule.
“From 2022, to coincide with the centenary of centre court, Middle Sunday will become a permanent part of the tournament schedule, turning the Championships into a 14-day event,” AELTC chairman Ian Hewitt said.
“Thanks to improved grass court technology and maintenance over the past five years… we are comfortable that we are able to look after the courts, most particularly centre court, without a full day of rest.”
Middle Sunday is also known as People’s Sunday because, on some occasions in the past, tickets have been made available on general sale on that day when rain delays have resulted in matches being postponed.
In another massive change, Wimbledon village bars and restaurants, which host the world’s best players once a year, will be out-of-pocket as organisers have, in a break with long-held tradition, banned players from renting private houses near the grounds.
“The minimised risk environment we created for the players is a requirement from the government to bring athletes without them going into quarantine upon entry into the UK,” AELTC chief executive Sally Bolton said.
“Players enjoy private housing and we hope to bring it back next year but it’s just not possible this year.”
The rule applies even to British players such as Andy Murray, who lives near the grounds, and instead will have to stay on site this year.
The government has allowed 25 per cent capacity at sports arenas and AELTC hope that will be increased closer to the Championships, before ticket sales and distribution are finalised.
Ticket prices will be the same as last year when the tournament was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic and organisers said they would wait until June before deciding on the prize pot.
Wimbledon was the only Grand Slam cancelled last year and Hewitt said the tournament had collected an insurance payout of £180 million (S$331.8 million), of which £36 million went to the Lawn Tennis Association.
-Reuters
Naomi Osaka has parted ways with coach Wim Fissette after four years together across two stints, the 26-year-old announced late on Friday.
The former world number one won two of her four Grand Slam titles under the guidance of the Belgian, but is currently 75th in the rankings having returned to the tour nine months ago after a lengthy maternity break.
“Four years, two slams and a whole lot of memories,” Osaka wrote in an Instagram post.
“Thanks Wim for being a great coach and an even greater person. Wishing you all the best.”
Of the 16 tournaments Osaka has played this season, she has made the quarter-finals in only two – Doha and ‘s-Hertogenbosch – and the Japanese player has also failed to go past the second round in each of the four Grand Slams
-Reuters
Five players from the United States are ranked in the Women’s Tennis Association’s top 15 for the first time in two decades, the USTA said on Monday.
World number two Coco Gauff led the American charge followed by sixth-ranked Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins, who climbed two spots to ninth on the list amid a remarkable farewell season.
Madison Keys was ranked 14th while Emma Navarro hopped two spots to a career-high 15th after reaching her first major quarter-final at Wimbledon.
The last time five American women featured in the top 15 was May 24, 2004, when Lindsay Davenport was fourth in the world
-Reuters
Seven-times Grand Slam champion Venus Williams and Australian soccer player Mary Fowler are among nine athletes to get a Barbie doll in their likeness as toy maker Mattel seeks to shine a light on women sports role models ahead of the Paris Olympics.
Mattel unveiled the dolls on Wednesday, each with their bespoke accessories. Fowler’s wears gloves and holds a football while Williams’ doll, dressed in an all white tennis dress and visor as well as wearing earrings, comes with a miniature racket.
The former world number one said she hoped to motivate young girls into sports with the doll.
“I literally can’t imagine my life without sports and without the game,” Williams said in a video, in which she held the doll.
“I want other young girls to have that invaluable experience of playing a sport and what it teaches you and what you learn and what you take from it, not just that moment (but) for the rest of your life… I think it’s so important for girls to be in sports.”
Other sports figures to have a doll in their likeness include French boxer Estelle Mossely, Polish sprinter Ewa Swoboda, Spanish doctor and paratriathlon athlete Susana Rodriguez, Italian former swimmer Federica Pellegrini, Canadian soccer player Christine Sinclair as well as Mexican and Brazilian gymnasts, Alexa Moreno and Rebeca Andrade.
The dolls, unveiled as Barbie turns 65 this year, “(recognise) the impact of sport in fostering self-confidence and ambition among the next generation”, Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie and Mattel’s Global Head of Dolls, said.
“By shining a light on these inspirational athletes and their stories, we hope to champion the belief that every young girl deserves the opportunity to pursue her passions and turn her dreams into reality,” she said in a statement.
-Reuters
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