Wimbledon 2006 – A Viewer Anticlimax?

Let's be frank. The World Cup is the planet's biggest sporting event, and so the mighty 2006 juggernaut might have quite an impact on the Wimbledon tennis this year, especially in terms of television audiences.

Wimbledon's fortnight runs parallel with the business end of the World Cup, including half of the round of 16, the quarters and semis, the play off for third, and the final.

Certainly, by the latter stages, the football games will be having sizeable breaks between them, therefore allowing more time to watch the tennis. But, after a month of watching top-line soccer at all hours of the day and night, I reckon the viewing public will be getting very tired.

Tellingly, both the World Cup Final and the Wimbledon Men's Final are on the same day, Sunday July 9. So, I am just wondering, why they did they not re-schedule the tennis?

I appreciate that members of The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club will be sputtering into their pink gin on reading this outrageous proposal. But to me, it makes sense. There are plenty of instances of major sporting events working with each other to maximize television audiences for both. The most recent involved the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. The Games clashed with the Formula 1 Grand Prix. Now, motor sport is a business high on octane, cash and ego, and not known for giving ground, but even the petrol-heads dutifully agreed to re-schedule the 2006 Grand Prix season and run Melbourne later in the year, to keep the focus on the Games. Come the second week of Wimbledon, and could it be the Club might pay the price for their steadfastness?

While we are at it, just who will still be in the running by that second week?

The key to the Men's will be the ability of Spain's Rafael Nadal to translate his stunning clay court ability onto the smooth rye grass of Wimbledon. The kid has carried all before him on the en-tout-cas he was raised on, in hometown Manacor on the Spanish island of Mallorca. He not only set a record of consecutive clay court victories, taking it from Argentina's 70s hero, Guillermo Vilas, but in doing so, defended his title against World Number One Roger Federer in a French Open showdown last month.

But that was Paris, this is London, and although Nadal says he has his sights on Wimbledon 2006, Federer has shown in the last three years that on the faster courts he is simply sublime – rapidly establishing a track record that may take him past the exploits of Slam greats such as Laver, Sampras, Borg and Emerson.

Nadal might struggle to make the final, up against the likes of two-time runner-up Andy Roddick, former finalist David Nalbandian or Croatian Mario Ancic. Not forgetting Australia's Lleyton Hewitt, who says he is coming into form that might capture a second title to match his 2002 win.

But if the death-or-glory Nadal is there on that last Sunday, dirtying the famous three-quarter leg pants with grass stains rather than clay marks, it will be a gem, especially with Federer on the other side of the net.

Meanwhile, Kim Clijsters and Amelie Mauresmo will be looking for a Wimbledon breakthrough, now that they have both won a Slam event and reached Number One. Wimbledon has not been kind to Clijsters, her best being a semi-final in 2003, while Mauresmo has reached that stage of proceedings three times.

With Lindsay Davenport in the twilight of her career and Serena Williams out with a knee injury, this could be the opportunity for both. But Justine Henin-Hardenne is hitting the ball as hard as ever, Martina Hingis knows how to win it, and marginal favourite Maria Sharapova heads a host of Russians waiting to pounce. Not forgetting Venus Williams, who last year became the lowest seeded player to win the Women's and who followed it up with this year's Australian Open.
Venus was 14th seed when she won in 2005. No unseeded player has captured the Women's title and only two players have won the Men's - Boris Becker in 1985 and Goran Ivanisevic in 2001, so the better chances appear to be up in the seedings.

The Wimbledon Most Winners Honour Board reads:
Most Men's Singles - Pete Sampras, William Renshaw, 7
Most Women's Singles - Martina Navratilova, 9
Most Men's Doubles - Todd Woodbridge, 9
Most Women's Doubles - Elizabeth Ryan, 12
Most Mixed Doubles Championships - Elizabeth Ryan, 7
Most Championships - Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, 20

The Championships were first played in 1877 at a ground near Worple Road, Wimbledon, the only event being the Gentlemen's Singles. In 1884, the Club added Ladies' Singles and Gentlemen's Doubles, and Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles in 1913. The Championships moved to their present location, at a ground near Church Road, in 1922.
As with the other three Grand Slam events, Wimbledon was contested by amateurs only until open tennis began in 1968. Britons are very proud of the tournament but it is a source of national anguish and typical good humour that no local has won since Fred Perry in 1936 and Virginia Wade in 1977.

But it's all worth it, with winners receiving:
Men's Singles: £650,000 (AU$1.62m.)
Women's Singles: £625,000 (AU$1.56m.)
Men's Doubles: £218,500 (AU$1.62m.)
Women's Doubles: £203,250 (AU$507,000)
Mixed Doubles: £90,000 (AU225,000)

Finally, the World Cup notwithstanding, just how does the August All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club decide when Wimbledon is held?
The formula goes that the tournament must begin exactly six weeks before the first Monday in August.

I'll have to think about that…

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