While three of the four Grand Slam tennis events are operating with the belief that bigger is better in terms of scheduling, Wimbledon won’t be adding a 15th day.
All England Lawn Tennis Club board member Tim Henman, a four-time Wimbledon semifinalist, said the grass-court major has “zero appetite” to begin on a Sunday ahead of the standard fortnight.
The U.S. Open is adding a 15th day this year, following the lead of the French Open and the Australian Open.
The grass at Wimbledon is the key to AELTC’s position. Wimbledon typically didn’t play on the middle Sunday of the event until it began utilizing that date annually in 2022.
“It’s to do with the courts,” Henman said Thursday. “The middle Sunday was about watering the courts to make sure they were still alive for the latter part of the tournament.
“All the data and research shows 80 hours of tennis on Centre Court. It was a big decision to go to 14 days. That has worked well — the appetite to go to 15 days is zero.
“It’s safe to say that 14 days for the Championships is enough.”
Wimbledon is scheduled for June 30-July 13 this year. Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz is the two-time defending men’s singles champion, and the Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejcikova is the reigning women’s singles champion.
–Field Level Media
