Guha makes early running in race to succeed ‘our Sue’
Barker’s retirement is bad enough, but if Mcenroe were to have any thoughts of hanging up his mic...
A good percentage of those who were longing for the start of the BBC’S television coverage of Wimbledon would have been shocked to find that the smiling face of Sue Barker was missing from the opening credits on Monday. They need not have worried, as our Sue duly turned up for the start of the BBC One transmission later in the afternoon.
The task of welcoming the audience to that green and pleasant area of south-west London for the first time this week – and every morning throughout the two-week tournament – was given to Isa Guha. If you are a cricket fan, you will know that Guha was an international player of some repute and is an able commentator and presenter of that sport.
On day one, what she did not need was rain, but she got it. It meant rather more “filling” to cope with and she did it competently with the help of old hands Tracy Austin, Tim Henman and others. Could Isa be Sue’s successor? Too early to say, but I
bet she has been told she is in the running.
I am not alone, of course, in being a huge fan of the delightful Emma Raducanu. She moves like a young gazelle, all loose-limbed athleticism. But she seems to have acquired that speciality seen so often when we watch British players at Wimbledon, in that she makes you suffer. She beat the Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck on Monday, but not before dragging us through the wringer. There were several times when I thought
she was going to lose but her smile at the end as she was interviewed by Lee Mckenzie was an absolute tonic.
Wimbledon seems to have followed the other grand slams in interviewing the winners on the court. At least they do not try to talk to the players as they walk out on court. It was tried for a while but, think about it, they were hardly likely to say: “I’m going to murder the bum.” It is not boxing.
It is bad enough losing the much-admired Sue next season, but I do not think I could take it if John Mcenroe were to quit too. His pre-match banter with Sue that she “had to be kidding” about retiring was hilarious. I watched him as a player, loved his skill, even enjoyed his bad-boy temperament, and in recent years have admired his broadcasting.
It is always worth hearing his opinions on players. He is nearly always right. (And I can imagine him reading this and saying: “What does he mean, nearly?”).
With two covered courts, play can continue into the evening, as did Andy Murray’s four-set victory over James Duckworth of Australia. Murray walks like a man who has had a hip operation, but then he always did. However, he retains that will to win and who is to say he cannot at least get into week two of the Championships? With play going on late and Sue still there at the end, there was no place for Today at Wimbledon. Perhaps we will see less of it. I did hear Clare Balding’s voice just once on Monday when she linked from one match to another. Presumably Sue was taking a well-deserved break.
Anyone who thinks the job of presenting Wimbledon must be easy simply does not know enough about it. Sue just makes it look easy. Clare remains favourite to take over from her next year but Isa Guha and others will stake their claims.