10 Things You Didn’t Know About the Wimbledon

The Wimbledon Championships needs no introduction. The oldest and most coveted tennis tournament in the world takes place in London. Tennis here is not just a game but rather a grand old British institution. Behind all the pomp and pageantry that makes this English sporting event so wonderful, there are also some lesser known but fascinating points of interest.

 

Here are 10 things you probably never knew about the Championships:

1. Tim Henman, alongside Jeremy Bates, were the first players to be disqualified from the Wimbledon in 1995. The former British number one player hit a ball girl in the face with a tennis ball in a fit of anger during a doubles match. The outburst was quite uncharacteristic for this English gentleman and he was mortified by his actions. However, that didn’t save him and partner Jeremy Bates from being banished from the competition for that year.

2. Nothing is more English than Strawberries and Cream, and it is an old Wimbledon tradition to eat strawberries with cream at the Championships. In fact it is estimated that over 28,000 kilograms of strawberries and 7,000 litres of cream are eaten court side each year! The strawberries are sourced especially from Kent and picked just a day before they are served at the Wimbledon.

 

3. Wimbledon was bombed during World War II resulting in significant damage. Five bombs hit Centre Court and destroyed over 1,000 seats, taking almost nine years to repair.

4. All players are required to wear white. In today’s day and age, where on-court fashion is almost as important as the game, this is a price they must pay to play at the Wimbledon. Andre Agassi disagreed with the rule so much he refused to play the Wimbledon for three years. Anna Kournikova was caught practicing in black shorts once and was ordered to change her attire. She had no choice but to comply with the dress code else it could have resulted in her disqualification from the tournament.

5. The longest match ever played at the Wimbledon was between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut in 2010 and lasted for 11 hours and 5 minutes, over three days.

6. The last British woman to win the Championship at the Wimbledon was Virginia Wade in 1977. She made 16 attempts before finally winning.

7. Rufus, the resident hawk at the Wimbledon visits the club every week and dissuades pigeons from the courts. He has also been known to patrol the gates during each day of the tournament.

8. The Wimbledon is the only Tennis Grand Slam tournament where fans can queue for seats without having tickets. As a result hundreds of tennis fans queue up overnight to get entry to the Championships.

 

9. Royalty once played at the Wimbledon with the then Duke of York, later to become King George VI, in 1926 in the doubles championship. He was beaten in the first round of the tournament.

10. Over 60,000 tennis balls are produced specifically for the championship. However, only about 15,000 of these balls are used in the actual games, with the rest being sold as souvenirs.

So, if you are heading to the Wimbledon, there is something to think about when you are sitting at Centre Court, eating Strawberries and Cream and watching your favourite players battle it out for this legendary Tennis Grand Slam championship.

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