Tennis stars stopped by rain
Zverev's opening match at Wimbledon canceled
Roger Federer can celebrate in the dry, but away from the Center Court at Wimbledon it is one thing above all: wet. The English weather is causing numerous cancellations on the uncovered courts of the tennis classic. In addition to Alexander Zverev, four other Germans are affected.
Second day, and rain again at Wimbledon. Earlier than on the first day, and more permanently at that. That's why all the Germans who were scheduled had to wait, with little chance of being able to play, because: Alexander Zverev, Tatjana Maria, Jule Niemeier, Tamara Korpatsch and Yannick Hanfmann were all scheduled for pitches that don't have a roof – there are only the rainproof variety two at the All England Club facility.
As the afternoon progressed, the cancellations started trickling in. First Tatjana Maria found out that her first round match on Court 18 would not take place, a little later it was also clear to Zverev and Niemeier: they will not be able to play their opening duels until Wednesday at the earliest, rain is not forecast. The same applies to the continuation of Hanfmann's fifth set against Taylor Fritz. The match was interrupted on Monday due to darkness.
Roger Federer was first celebrated under the roof of the Center Court – he was invited on the occasion of his first of eight singles titles at Wimbledon 20 years ago. And so, after a 100-second video, he sat down next to Princess Kate in a cream-colored suit, both of them spoke very animatedly at times, while down on the lawn Jelena Rybakina began her title defense.
Alcaraz solves the first round task confidently
Rybakina, who withdrew from the French Open due to a viral illness, prevailed after initial struggles 4:6, 6:1, 6:2 against Shelby Rogers from the USA. During her match, ten matches were already canceled shortly before 3 p.m. local time, including Maria's.
Carlos Alcaraz was one of the lucky players because he played on one of the two covered courts. The 20-year-old world number one defeated Jeremy Chardy from France, 16 years his senior, 6:0, 6:2, 7:5 on Court 1 in 1:53 hours. The Spaniard would be a possible opponent for Zverev in the round of 16. Its match was scheduled to be the fourth on Court 3, with little chance of being played anyway.
However, they have been tried and tested at the All England Club when it comes to dealing with the rain. The first relief was the introduction of tarpaulins on the pitches in 1971. In 2009, the Center Court was initially roofed, and in 2019, Court 1. Since then, there has never been a day without matches, as was the case in 2004. Back then, the first Wednesday and the first Saturday were completely canceled as match days.
However, even a roof doesn't always help when things get tough. In 2016, for example, the so-called “Middle Sunday” without games had to be sacrificed in order to be able to carry out the program. Since last year, games have generally been played on this day in order to straighten out the schedule. In the first week of the tournament, 365 matches are usually played without rain.
