Wimbledon Takeaway #10: Scheduling pains

A peculiarly scorching sun had its way with the Wimbledon grass over this fortnight. But the sun also sets. Here, our ongoing roundup of passing shots from SW19, a curated much-ado-about-everything – if a bit less manicured than the Wimble-lawns themselves.

See No. 11

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“Casual sexism” become one of the go-to phrases of this Wimbledon, for worse and, well, worse. Players–and not just WTA pros–spoke out about scheduling that favored male stars on Centre Court. It wasn’t until her quarterfinal against 2017 French Open champ Jelena Ostapenko that five-time Wimbledon singles winner Venus Williams saw the light of day on Centre Court, and the likes of hometown boy Andy Murray termed the schedule “sexist.” (If ever women’s tennis suffers a slight, it surely has Andy Murray in its corner.)

In an instantly famous moment, advocate in chief Murray nonchalantly corrected a media member who fed him a question perhaps missing a few key words:

Let it be known, though, that Murray is hardly alone in his support of women’s tennis. Case in point: Dominic Thiem.

Notably, not just WTA players and their advocates were concerned over the scheduling. Novak Djokovic and his wife, Jelena, also opined on the scheduling that had the three-time Wimble-champ “in the dark” for two-and-a-half hours as to whether he would go on Court 1 after Rafael Nadal fell to Gilles Muller in a five-set thriller.

Answer: He did not, had to return the next day to play ballboy-bumper Adrian Mannarino, but enjoyed his wedding anniversary all the same.

Not one of the All England Club’s shinier moments over two weeks’ time, but also not something that can’t be improved for 2018. In ways, this bastion of tennis so steeped in tradition can surely still find ways to innovate.

Follow Jon on Twitter @jonscott9.