It’s Wimbledon Time!

family, Fitness, rankings, sports 1 Minute

It’s one of my favorite sporting events and over the past decades, it’s produced numerous memorable moments.

I can remember watching all of the following win the gentlemen’s singles at Wimbledon, in my mind the premier tennis championship each year. And I loved how NBC marketed the finals – Breakfast at Wimbledon; it was the perfect way to spend Sunday morning.

  • Rod Laver
  • Stan Smith
  • Jimmy Connors (a personal favorite)
  • Arthur Ashe
  • Bjorn Borg
  • John McEnroe
  • Andre Agassi
  • Pete Sampras
  • Roger Federer (another personal favorite)
  • Rafael Nadal
  • Novak Djokovic
  • Andy Murray

And then there were the ladies:

  • Billie Jean King
  • Margaret Court
  • Chris Evert
  • Martina Navratilova
  • Steffi Graf
  • Venus Williams
  • Serena Williams

Of course, those lists don’t include all the winners in the so-called modern era (1968 to the present), but those are the names that are easily recognizable to me.

Last year, unfortunately, the Championships at Wimbledon were canceled because of the pandemic, but they are back in operation this year.

And to get people in the mood, Wimbledon has put together this short video:

Like many people, I am rooting for Roger Federer this year, as it may be his last realistic opportunity at winning. Roger already owns a record eight singles titles and has done so with grace and determination.

The tournament begins tomorrow, June 28, and concludes the weekend of July 10.

The ladies’ championship will be broadcast on Saturday, July 10, at 9 a.m. on ESPN, while the gentlemen’s championship will be broadcast at 9 a.m. on Sunday, July 11.

It’s time for me to start planning my breakfast for July 11…

 

 

Published by Jim Borden

A 60-something guy trying to figure out the world, and his place in it. Happily married for 40-plus years, three wonderful sons. Accounting teacher, fitness enthusiast, blogger, reader.

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55 thoughts on “It’s Wimbledon Time!”

  2. Wimbledon is a good sign that we’re getting past Covid. I’ll watch some this year but won’t be glued to the tube as back in the day. I called lines in the US Open Clay Courts in Indy in the 70s. Chris Evert, Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors and Stan Smith were some of the big names I worked matches for. These days the rallies at Wimbledon are at lot longer and can be entertaining but I miss the kill-or-be-killed action of serve and volley.

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    1. I’ll watch bits and pieces here and there until the finals. How cool that you got to work the lines at such big matches. I’m sure the game looks even better being so up close…

      and yes, the serve and volley has gone out of favor. I wonder why that is…

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      1. Good question. Even though players are hitting serves harder now returns have improved even more making coming to net behind a good serve a lot riskier than it used to be. I think equipment has a lot to do with it but haven’t kept up with things enough to understand all of the factors involved.

        In the 70s Roscoe Tanner was recognized as being the hardest server in the game and he occasionally hit them at 130 mph. Those serves were pretty much unreturnable. Today top women serve at 120 mph and even they generally stay back on serves.

        Unfortunately, linespeople must watch the ball more than watching the players. The easy part is linespeople don’t have to make judgment calls – its in or out.

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  4. My biggest tennis thrill was attending the Seafirst Greater Pro in Seattle on June 6, 1965 and seeing Pancho Gonzalez beat Rod Laver 6-3, 6-4 for the title. Ken Rosewall and Andres Gimeno were the other semi finalists.

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      1. Yeah, Gimeno was a Spaniard who was overshadowed by the other semi finalists in that tournament. I remember Gonzales crouched getting ready to receive serve, flicked his wrist apparently in annoyance over his last shot, and shattered his racquet against the ground. I do not know if he did it on purpose but the match turned in his favor after that.

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  5. I’m a big tennis geek. What an era to have three men garnering so many majors for so long between Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic. I don’t really have a favorite between them as I enjoy watching them all play. As hard as it is to believe, I read that Federer had a bad temper when playing junior tennis. The women’s game is interesting to me, too, as it is wide open these days. I know Osaka and Halep aren’t playing. I’d like to see Serena win one more, but at 39, her time is running out.

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    1. it has beena great era for men’s tennis with these three superstars, and they all seem like good guys as well. Federer just seems to play with such ease that it is wonderful to watch. And I will be rooting for Serena as well…

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  8. One of my favourite tournaments, I’ve been there many times over the years. Just watched Djokovic win his opening match against the lad playing the role of the plucky British loser. Dropped the first set, though, but I still expect him to win it overall. I just hope the final doesn’t go on too long: it’s the final of the deferred Euro 2020 football tournament that evening! Btw I’d add Evonne Dinnergong to that list of great former players…

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      1. He played well yesterday, which is ominous for the others. He gave a good interview afterwards, saying all the right things about his British opponent, who is 19 and was briefly in his first Wimbledon. Dinnergong = Goolagong 😉

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  9. Do you remember John McEnroe’s epic spazz-tantrums? Man, that boy could smash a racquet down on the court with the best of them. The line judges were always pleased to see Mac turn up. It was holiday time, with champagne, when tennis’s biggest bad boy showed up, dontcha know.

    — Catxman

    http://www.catxman.wordpress.com

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  13. Unfortunately I’ve never played tennis so I’m not hyped for wimbeldon the same way you are, but I am a cricket and football fan and I sure do understand how excited you must be, that’s exactly how I am when the football or cricket World cups come around

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