Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner’s clash today is, by some distance, the biggest match of these Wimbledon championships so far.
And yet, today, they will have to contend with British intrigue in their last remaining hope, the fairytale story of Arthur Fery.
This wildcard entrant into the event has soared all the way to the semi-finals, against all the odds, and captured the imagination of the entire tennis-watching nation.
Despite this, it was decided by the powers that be at Wimbledon to select him to open Centre Court against Alexander Zverev, rather than in the prime-time slot afterwards.
Tim Henman and John McEnroe have now fielded questions on this topic and the choice to put Jannik Sinner vs Novak Djokovic on second.
Why Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner is second on Wimbledon Centre Court
Chatting on BBC’s 6-Love-6 programme after yesterday’s matches, McEnroe had a question for Henman about the scheduling.
After all, questions have been levelled at the Wimbledon schedulers for opting to put Sinner vs Djokovic on second on Centre Court, with many wondering who had requested this, and who it benefits more.
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The British pundit, seeking to get ahead of the backlash, asked: “I think you were alluding to the match globally, which is the bigger match? Sinner and Djokovic.”
McEnroe replied with a question of his own: “But they played Tuesday, and the other guys were Wednesday?”
Henman then stated: “Yeah, but they still had pretty much 48 hours to recover and looking at the television audience, a pretty strong recommendation from BBC and the US, with ESPN.”
Another odd decision made was the one to close the roof during the Serbian’s recent match against Felix Auger Aliassime, over an hour before the sun was due to set.
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Djokovic made a strong complaint to the tournament officials, but Naomi Broady has defended that move: “Because they were playing an hour a set! They would have had to stop mid-set. They didn’t finish the third set until almost 8:40 pm, so they would have to close the roof [during the set]. They would have had to lose it at 4-4 or 5-4 in the third set.”
Henman then added: “It gets darker on Centre Court earlier because you have the stands around it and the light doesn’t get in.”
Why Jannik Sinner will benefit more than Novak Djokovic from this decision
Given the weather forecast, it is clear that Sinner should benefit more from this decision than Djokovic.
After all, provided Zverev and Fery’s match goes on long enough to miss the blazing midday sun, it should allow the Italian to conduct the bulk of his match free from the fears that the heat can bring to his game.
Not only that, but if it gets late enough where the roof needs closing, that should only boost his chances more given his thunderous groundstrokes and pinpoint serving.
And yet, ironically enough, Djokovic would likely have preferred to play in this slot as well.
Martina Navratilova thinks Sinner will be the happier of the two, but it remains to be seen.
The true impact of this decision will be highlighted when a match point is converted and a winner crowned, with a place in the Wimbledon final on the line.
