Wimbledon, July 4: Wimbledon’s traditional Middle Sunday of rest will disappear in 2022, as will the Manic Monday that follows it.
For one last time, the oldest Grand Slam tournament was quiet as Week 1 of this year’s edition ended. And for one last time, Week 2 will begin with a bevy of action, the only major to schedule all 16 women’s and men’s fourth-round singles matches on the same day.
“I think I will miss it, to be honest,” 2018 champion Angelique Kerber said.
Get ready for a packed scheduled Monday that includes teenagers Coco Gauff and Emma Raducanu, No. 1 Ash Barty and Kerber in women’s matches, along with Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, a total of eight of the top 10 seeds and 20-year-old American Sebastian Korda in men’s matches.
It won’t be the same moving forward, and Federer understands why the All England Club is changing its ways in this regard.
“Everybody wants more days. Look, more days means more revenue, more options, more this and that. I get it,” he said. I don’t think they did it only because of revenue. I think they just think it’s going with the times, as well.
It’s quite possible that the rest of the fortnight could end up being viewed as its own sort of referendum on the present and future of tennis.
That’s because while there are representatives of the old guard who have multiple Grand Slam titles, including at the All England Club Federer (20), Djokovic (19) and Kerber (three) there truly are so many fresh faces.
Of the 32 singles players still in the brackets, 26 never have been to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon and 20 are participating in the fourth round for the first time.
Korda, who faces No. 25 seed Karen Khachanov, is making his debut at Wimbledon, as is Ilya Ivashka, a 27-year-old from Belarus who takes on No. 7 Matteo Berrettini, a 2019 U.S. Open semifinalist who leads all remaining players with 60 aces. Only three of the top 12 women in the WTA rankings will play Monday. (AP)
