Wimbledon is one of the most prestigious and revered events on the tennis calendar, but even it is prone to making mistakes.
After all, no event is wholly perfect, and when errors are made that impact the players, they are keen to voice their displeasure.
Before the event, players planned to protest over Wimbledon prize money, before coming to an agreement over the eventual sum.
And whilst peace has been kept throughout The Championships, both Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov have now voiced their joint complaint about the same issue that has affected both of them on separate occasions.
Wimbledon must change Centre Court start times in 2027 to avoid curfew restrictions
This issue arises from a lack of preparation and a stubbornness from the Wimbledon organisers, who insist on keeping the Centre Court and Court 1 start times regimented.
However, at times, this makes it difficult to fit three matches into just one day, with the 11 pm curfew always looming over the third match in the schedule.
What do you make of Wimbledon’s use of the roof during evening matches? 🤔
That explains why the aforementioned duo have both voiced their frustration with the decision to close the roof, with Djokovic complaining to the tournament director last night.
He argued that such a move should be as last-minute as possible, to protect the integrity of this being an outdoor tournament.
Alexander Zverev was another who not only saw the conditions of his match with Jiri Lehecka totally altered because of the roof closure, but also was delayed completely due to the curfew.
What is particularly frustrating is how simple the fix is.
Currently, Centre Court’s play starts at 1:30 pm local time, whilst Court 1 commences at 1 pm.
By pushing these times back by even an hour, these instances would become far less frequent, and allow for Wimbledon, weather permitting, to remain a tournament that stays in outdoor conditions as much as possible.
What did Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov say about the Wimbledon roof?
Realistically, Wimbledon let Djokovic down last night with their decision-making, actually closing the roof an hour earlier than they had in previous matches.
Their eagerness to make this decision prompted valid frustration from the Serbian, who argued: “We could play another set outdoors. We are an outdoor tournament. I don’t care about what happened with Jannik. Remember what happened in the first round? We did not close it until 8:20 or 8:30. Where is the consistency?
“You are so proud of your rules, that you are not sticking to any kind of rules. You have no idea what the rule is.”
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Dimitrov also complained about the roof closure and its timing on two occasions, citing his horrific injury from last year’s Wimbledon match.
Against Jakub Mensik, he told his team: “Just like last year!” Then, against Matteo Berrettini, he also claimed: “I’m struggling to really understand… I don’t understand why can’t we start closing it during the game. Why isn’t it up to the players?”
