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The Hindu
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Wimbledon diary: Between familiar rituals and unfamiliar calls
The Diary likes certainty and repeatability. Ever since its first Wimbledon in 2019, it has always filled its stomach in the afternoon with a bowl of pasta and vegetables. It keeps the Diary going for a good six hours — the typical duration of work — considering the deadlines back home in India. Whenever it enters the media cafeteria, it sees nothing but the pasta counter and the chefs, who have remained unchanged for the past six years. So, when an 'avocado controversy' hit Wimbledon, the Diary was at first oblivious, but then turned curious. News agency Reuters reported that there were multiple claims suggesting the All England Club had culled avocados from the menu as a sustainability-driven move — given that growing vast amounts of avocados is considered environmentally unsustainable. The World Avocado Organisation (WAO) sprang to the defence of the beleaguered fruit, stating that such 'misconceptions can have non-desired impacts and affect small farmers who rely on growing avocados to make a living.' Wimbledon clarified that avocados were very much alive and cooking in their kitchens. The Diary, like a true journalist, heard both sides of the story — and then diligently stood in the queue at the pasta counter for one more bowl. Djokovic, Alcaraz and the full house that wasn't Not done yet: Despite his loss to Jannik Sinner in the semifinal, Novak Djokovic confirmed that he would return to Wimbledon next year. | Photo Credit: AFP In the three times the Diary has been to Wimbledon, it has seen the best, the worst, and the middling of Novak Djokovic. The best: His epic 2019 final win over Roger Federer. The worst: The straight-sets demolition Jannik Sinner handed him this year in the semifinals. The middling: His loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the summit clash last year. Each time, the Diary has looked forward to the Serb's press conference to better understand the genius' mind. Generally, players turn up for media duties a good hour after a match. So when it was announced that Djokovic would arrive barely 10 minutes after the loss to Sinner, scribes sensed something big. Rumour mills buzzed: was the 24-time Slam winner — without a Major since 2023 Flushing Meadows — about to call it quits? Or was he going to announce that this was his last Wimbledon? The Diary rushed to the already-packed press room, only to be told midway that Alcaraz would be coming in first. The Spaniard walked in and, seeing the overflowing media presence, grinned: 'Haven't seen it this full, ya.' Little did he know why we had all assembled. Djokovic eventually turned up, and gladdened everyone's hearts by saying he would return to SW19 next year. The Diary was doubly relieved because it was in no mood to write a retirement tribute. AI — Yay or nay? Since landing at Wimbledon Park, the Diary has witnessed more than just tennis. Controversies have swirled around the electronic line-calling system, introduced for the first time in the tournament's 148-year history. There were claims of malfunctions. In one match between Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Sonay Kartal, the system was even switched off inadvertently. But more than the accuracy of the calls, the Diary was heartened by the players' yearning for a return to human touch. 'I'm more for line umpires, to be honest,' said Russia's Karen Khachanov. 'You feel the court is a little bit too big, too alone, without them.' Marin Cilic, the 2014 US Open champion, offered an even stronger take. 'I don't like it (that the line judges have been removed),' he told Carole Bouchard of The Tennis Sweet Spot. 'The line judges are a part of the tennis family. Maybe they were, at some stage in their life, trying to be a tennis player. Or they love sport, and it's so difficult to become a chair umpire, as you have to go through so many tournaments — juniors, national-level tournaments, Futures, Challengers, first-line referee, then the chair umpire — to get this experience to be at Wimbledon. You just get rid of this huge family of people who love tennis and were doing their job incredibly well. You erase this, which is, for me, very, very, very, very bad.' Sport is supposed to be the theatre of human expression. Who wants a sanitised environment? The Diary always liked Cilic — and its respect for the big man from Croatia has now gone up a notch.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Courting grass: On Wimbledon 2025
Feats on grass have a special allure. When they come at Wimbledon, the most prestigious grass court on the planet, they acquire a richer tone of lustre. Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, who won their maiden titles at the All England Club over the weekend, stand testament to this. Both were past Major champions, with Sinner having won three and Swiatek five trophies. Yet, by their own admission, very few achievements rank alongside their runs on the pristine lawns of southwest London. The wins also come at a critical juncture in their tennis lives as both players served doping-related bans in recent months and had their sporting ethics questioned. For Sinner, the success against two-time defending and five-time Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz snapped a streak of five straight losses to the Spaniard. This sequence contained the most painful of all defeats, at Roland-Garros last month where the Italian lost despite being three championship points up. The victory at SW19 showed the 23-year-old's remarkable powers of recovery and mental resilience. For Swiatek, Wimbledon was her first trophy of any kind since the French Open 2024. The Pole, who had spent a combined 125 weeks as No. 1 — seventh best in history — had slid down the rankings and had lost her aura. But by winning on her least-favoured surface, she has resurrected her career emphatically. Sinner's and Swiatek's triumphs will also have wide-ranging effects on their respective Tours. Sinner and Alcaraz have now split the last seven Majors between them, and Wimbledon was the second straight Slam final they were sparring in. In fact, starting from the Rome Masters in early May where Sinner made his comeback from doping suspension, they have clashed in the final in all three competitions they have both been part of, reinforcing the view that theirs is now men's tennis' pre-eminent rivalry. They have met 13 times — 10 of them in semifinal or better — and appear to have fully satiated fans' desire to see a worthy follow-up to the famed Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal duel. Ranked No. 1 and No. 2, they are also head and shoulders above the rest of the field. The gulf is best explained by Sinner's ATP points-tally of 12,030, which is nearly double that of third-ranked Alexander Zverev. Swiatek, meanwhile, has re-established the triumvirate atop the women's game. The 24-year-old may be the ninth different Wimbledon winner in as many editions, but she, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have won 10 of the past 14 Majors. Swiatek's six Slams make her the leading light among active women, a position she seems primed to hold on to.
NBC Sports
3 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Rory McIlroy returns to Royal Portrush for first time since 2019, better prepared for what lies ahead
Rory McIlroy discusses his 2019 experience at The Open and how he's learned over the years to be in better control oh his game in critical moments. PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – He thought he was prepared. Rory McIlroy had played before as a pro back home in Northern Ireland, and so he thought he knew what to expect. The reception was warm and pleasant and grateful. But he quickly came to understand that those were regular tour events, not majors. And so when he walked to the first tee back in 2019, for the first Open at Royal Portrush in 68 years, long before Rory became Rory, he was smacked in the face by the magnitude of the moment. 'I was a little taken aback,' he said, 'like, Geez, these people really want me to win.' Moments later, infamously, McIlroy sniped his opening tee shot out of bounds on his way to a quadruple bogey, a first-round 79 and an early exit that left him in tears and with a new appreciation for what 'playing at home' really means. 'I learned pretty quickly,' he said, 'that one of the challenges, especially in a week like this, is controlling myself and controlling that battle.' It was like that Augusta National, too. Every year he arrived at the Masters knowing he could win, that he should win, and it was a never-ending process of how to get himself to the first tee in the best frame of mind. Rarely did it pan out; only once, in 2018, did he actually have a realistic shot to win once it became for him the last leg of the Slam. He tried everything. Walled himself off. Letting everyone in. Nothing really worked. Until this year, when even after a series of costly mistakes, he still found a way. Sometimes in spite of himself. 'Whenever you get put in environments like that,' he said, 'it's you trying to overcome your mind and trying to give yourself that clarity to give yourself the best chance to put together a really good performance.' And it figures to be like that again this week at Royal Portrush, in what will be the 36-year-old's final chance to win a home Open in his prime. Monday's early-morning practice round – he teed off before 7 a.m., 90 minutes ahead of any other player in this 156-man field – was the first time he'd been back at Portrush since that second round in 2019. Operating on just four hours' rest, he wanted to get in a full day's work before the pace of play slowed, before the crowd swelled, before the demands for his time and attention grew. By 11 a.m., he'd completed his 18-hole practice round and satisfied the autograph-seeking mob off 18. Brentley Romine, There are a few things that McIlroy took from that homecoming six years ago. He learned to gird himself, emotionally, for the 200,000-plus who will be streaming in the gates here this week and largely cheering for him. He learned that he can't treat this like any other tournament, and that's perfectly fine. He learned that the healthiest thing he can do is to embrace the atmosphere, not isolate himself from it. 'He did put a lot of pressure on himself, talking about it being the biggest tournament he's ever going to play,' said 2019 Open champion Shane Lowry, one of McIlroy's closest friends. 'You live and you learn, and I'm sure he's not going to do that this week.' In the weeks immediately following the Masters, McIlroy found himself adrift. Without a clear focus. Uncertain of his next goal or priority. His play showed it. And his mood underscored it. It's clear McIlroy is no longer mired in that lull. His game is sharper, and he has that familiar bounce. He's enthusiastic and hopeful. He's confident he has plenty more to achieve. He told one local reporter, who asked how it felt to be considered the greatest sportsman ever from Northern Ireland, that his 'story certainly isn't over.' Part of that shift in mood, obviously, is being back home, back to something different and yet also familiar. He's away from the 'hamster wheel' of PGA Tour life. It's allowed him to feel rejuvenated and reinvigorated. But he's also more emotionally aware because he's physically sound. He knows the parts of his game are there. He drove it better than anyone at Oakmont. He has putted well his last two starts. He knocked off some competitive rust last week at the Scottish Open, where he led the field in proximity to the hole and tied for second. McIlroy boarded his flight Sunday night 'really happy with where my game is.' And so now it's time to dive back in, fully. As he adjusts to his new normal as a living legend in the sport, McIlroy admitted that he needs big targets and big goals. Amid the grind of a relentless season, that's what can heighten his focus and light his fuse. Maybe it's an away Ryder Cup. Or it could be future majors at St. Andrews and Pebble Beach. But few experiences, if any, will have the personal significance of this: An Open an hour from home, and at this point in his life and career. This time, he vows to be ready.
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
At Wimbledon, the Swiatek era begins
Just 57 minutes after the women's final began, Wimbledon had a new champion. Iga Swiatek beat Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 — the first double bagel in a major final since Steffi Graf crushed Natasha Zvereva at the French Open in 1988. It isn't perhaps what you expect when you turn up for a final, but it is what it is. Swiatek, a five-time Slam champion, against Anisimova, the underdog, was always a mismatch, but the American admitted to being 'a bit frozen there with my nerves'. Swiatek is known for handing out bagels and breadsticks, and the Polish star caught on to her opponent's nervousness and sped through the match in the shortest time possible. Swiatek, never a favourite on grass, will look back at this as a moment where she got back on track after a one-month suspension last year due to doping. Before her ban, Swiatek looked well on course to dominate the WTA circuit; now, she can perhaps step into that role again. As good as Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff are, their game is far from perfect, and there are areas of weakness that even lower-ranked players readily exploit. At her best, Swiatek can be invincible, and a player like that can inspire everyone on the circuit to newer heights. The Wimbledon win secures her status as the best player in the sport since Serena Williams won 23 Grand Slam titles. At 24, Swiatek is the youngest since Serena to win major titles on all three surfaces. Consistency is the buzzword that the sport needs to draw in fans. Swiatek may well be the star women's tennis has been missing for some time now.
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Swiatek chuffed with ‘unexpected' breakthrough at Wimbledon
Iga Swiatek's 125 combined weeks as World No. 1 is the seventh best in the history of the women's game. No player above her in the list is still playing and the next best active star below the Pole is Victoria Azarenka at 51, followed by Aryna Sabalenka at 46. Yet, for a good part of the last year, she looked far from the player who was once on the path towards dominance. She had no trophy to show since winning the 2024 French Open, and since then until Wimbledon 2025, she had a 9-8 record against fellow top-10 players, a middling metric. But her victory on Saturday at the All England Club, which came with a chastening 6-0, 6-0 defeat of Amanda Anisimova, has brought her firmly back into the conversation. 'It's just surreal,' Swiatek said after the triumph which will help her return to the WTA top-three on Monday. 'I feel like tennis keeps surprising me, and I keep surprising myself. It means a lot, especially after a season with a lot of ups and downs, and a lot of expectations from the outside.' Asked to compare her grass breakthrough with her other Slam successes, the four-time Roland-Garros winner chose not to rank it but said it was 'special' and 'unexpected'. 'Roland-Garros, I know I can play well, and show it every year. Here [at SW19], I wasn't sure of that. I also needed to prove that to myself. So this one and the US Open for sure feel like just 'better' because no one expected.' Swiatek was the eighth seed at Wimbledon but the 24-year-old said that it was neither an advantage nor a disadvantage. 'It didn't really matter because I focused so much on just developing as a player on grass. For sure, I was surprised with the consistency. I don't think I [have] ever served so well. 'I know in my mind that I can be focused and not waste points. My level of tennis helped keep that at a constant level.'
