COURT REPORT
30-LOVE IN THE SEMIS
iT’s the first time in the half-century of professional tennis that all four male semi-finalists at a Grand slam are in their 30s. Wimbledon has turned into something of an old boys’ club. John isner is 33, rafa nadal and Kevin anderson are 32, novak Djokovic is 31. There were 43 men aged 30 or over in the main draw at the start of the tournament, including roger Federer, 36.
RAFA CAN BOUNCE BACK
EACH morning, Wimbledon workers check the bounce of every court. The tedious test involves placing a ball on top of a 9ft pole, triggering a mechanism so it drops, then measuring the height of the bounce. No doubt Rafa Nadal — the perennial pre-serve ball bouncer — will test Centre Court’s turf enough today.
DRAPER EQUALS EDMUND
JaCK Draper became the first Brit to reach the boys’ singles semi-finals since Kyle edmund in 2013. The son of former lTa chief roger beat lorenzo musetti 6-7, 6-3, 6-1. ‘i don’t know why they want my autograph,’ Draper, 16, (right) said. ‘it’s not something i’m used to.’ He was at John mcenroe’s academy in new York two years ago and mcenroe said: ‘We need more 14-year-olds like him.’
ALL WHITE ON THE NIGHT
WIMBLEDON’S strict dress code says there should be ‘no solid mass or panel of colouring’, though organisers say they have no problem with finalist Angelique Kerber’s get-up for this tournament. On the front of the world No 10’s shirt is a rather large rectangular red logo for Italian insurance company Generali.
A REAL BRIGHT SPARK
ANTON MATuSEVICH, who lost in the boys’ singles quarter-finals yesterday, is a bright lad. The 17-year-old Briton is studying for A-levels in economics, maths and further maths at Judd School in Kent. The son of a former Russian basketball player, he got eight A stars, three As and a B in his GCSEs. Asked this week who his idol was growing up, he said: ‘Me.’
ISNER? MUST BE DJOKING
NOVAK DJOKOVIC was practising his serve when a 6ft 10in American caught his eye. ‘Like Johnny boy,’ Djokovic shouted in his direction, ‘No mistakes.’ The man mountain walking by was John Isner (right), who has hit 161 aces so far — the most at Wimbledon. ‘I wish,’ Isner replied. Djokovic later also had a hit with his son, Stefan.