Wimbledon returns after COVID-induced hiatus
June 28, 2021
The new balls already bear the correct label. "Wimbledon 2021" is written in all-caps below the logo of British manufacture Slazenger, whose smelly felt balls do not appeal to every player outside the United Kingdom. But they do here.
The "Wimbledon 2021" label is on the one hand self-evident, but on the other hand it is not. That's because, just as the European Championship in football and the Olympic Games, the grass-court Grand Slam went on hiatus. A year ago, England was one of several crisis regions grappling with the coronavirus pandemic. "Wimbledon 2020" simply fell flat and was not made up for. Period.
As is commonly known, the tournament, which takes place in London's SW19 district, includes many things that do not exist at other Grand Slams. Its grass and its groundskeepers and its expensive strawberries and cream, sure. But then there's Rufus ...
Rufus the Hawk is supposed to keep pigeons and similar bird species away from the grounds. He has become such an integral part of the noble event that his followers even made him his own Twitter account. There, you can watch a video to see how dull the past year has been for tennis fans in England, Rufus included.
This year, the tradition of queuing overnight for tickets will probably be less eventful with the country dealing with the delta variant of the coronavirus. The mutation has raised concerns at Wimbledon as it has at Wembley Stadium. The current plan is to allow 50% of the usual visitors to the grounds and for Centre Court to be completely filled with 15,000 spectators on the final two days. But the almost daily updates from the organizers frequently reference the obligatory close coordination with authorities.
End for the old guard?
Despite the concerns, qualifying has begun as planned, and all eyes are on Monday's tournament start. With it comes the question of who can succeed the two title holders — Simona Halep on the women's side and Novak Djokovic on the men's side.
Barbora Krejcikova's unexpected victory at the French Open earlier this month there shows that anything is possible. The old guard of Serena Williams, striving for her 24th Grand Slam, and Germany's Angelique Kerber, trying to build on her previous success at Wimbledon, have fallen behind the times.
Kerber goes into London with renewed confidence after winning the new grass-court warmup in Bad Homburg. Meanwhile, defending champion Halep had to cancel her participation at the All England Club due to a calf injury.
In the men's bracket, things look clearer. Like Rufus the Hawk, Novak "the Joker" will be on the prowl. The world number one from Serbia showed in Paris earlier this month that he is once again in terrific shape and, even at 34, can fend off challenges from younger players such as Stefanos Tsitsipas. It will be exciting to see if Tsitsipas and his peers Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev can make a run on the grass.
And then there's Wimbedon's grand master: Roger Federer. Shortly after his 40th birthday and multiple knee operations, he retired from the fourth round of the French Open at his own request. The grass of Wimbledon has always been his favorite place to play — he has won 10 titles there (2003-2007, 2009, 2012 and 2017). And he intends to do all he can to capture this year's crown.
However, the Swiss star is only seeded seventh at Wimbledon and could meet Djokovic in the quarterfinals — not an uplifting prospect. Federer's early elimination at a warmup event in Halle against Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime also made it clear that the crowd favorite is in the autumn of his career — while everything is in summer bloom in London.
This article was adapted by Davis VanOpdorp