MOST TYPICAL COMMENT ON MIDDLE SUNDAY: “I’ve never been here and it’s like a dream come true.”
STAT OF THE DAY: All the tickets for Wimbledon’s Middle Sunday were sold in 23 minutes. 111,000 applied for tickets.
FANDOM FLYING HIGH: American Alison Creekmore told the Guardian that she got her tickets for Middle Sunday online and then took the red-eye to London. Bottom line: Thank goodness for airline miles.
EPIC OF THE DAY: No stranger to Wimbledon epics, John Isner found himself on the losing end of one this time as Jo-Willie Tsonga – now 6-0 in five-set matches at the All England Club – came back from two sets down to score a 6(3)-7, 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-2, 19-17 victory on Middle Sunday. Ironically, Nicolas Mahut, who lost to Isner in Wimbledon’s longest-ever match in 2010, is through to the fourth round.
ANALYSIS OF THE DAY: Asked what made the difference in his 19-17 fifth-set loss to Jo-Willie Tsonga, John Isner responded, “He played better than I did. That was it. He was the better player.”
CENTRE COURT IS FOR COCO: Coco Vandeweghe made an impression on the Centre Court crowd when she boisterously took Maria Sharapova to three sets in the quarters last year, and she’s been rewarded with two Centre Court appearances already at this year’s Championships. She dispatched Roberta Vinci in straight sets today.
SPORTING GOODS: The top sporting gesture of this year’s Wimbledon so far may have been Svetlana Kuznetsova and Sloane Stephens’ strong embrace after Kuznetsova’s 6(1)-7, 6-2, 8-6 third-round victory over the young American. During the first set Stephens asked Kuznetsova if she wanted to challenge a call, and after the match Kuznetsova gestured for the crowd to give Stephens an ovation.
GOOD LUCK, BAD LUCK: Sloane Stephens’ luck caught up with her at Wimbledon today. She’d fought off a match point in the previous round, but against Svetlana Kuznetsova, she lost a 5-2 lead in the final set.
THE PERILS OF WINNING TOO MUCH: One Serbian writer said that Novak Djokovic told his home country press corps he had never come into Wimbledon so mentally exhausted.
HEADLINE
‘Novak Djokovic Is Human’
UNLIKELY QUARTET: Three players who’ve beaten Novak Djokovic this year are still in the Wimbledon men’s draw: Andy Murray, Sam Querrey and Jiri Vesely.
YOU KNOW YOU ARE IN BRITAIN WHEN… Sarcasm is an art-form…Political debates take oratory, bluster and bull to astounding heights…The term for “warming up” is “knocking up”…The emergence of the sun is like a religious awakening…There are no commercials during changeovers…There are no invasive ads and virtually no corporate signage…There’s no kiss cams to tease and delight when matches become dull….Umbrellas come in endless forms and are an essential part of daily life….Police almost seem refined, exuding a sense of calm and quietude…Volunteers are called Honorary Stewards…A series of brief notes are referred to as “a few other bits and bobs”…Even the weather forecasts are interesting.
NOT OVERLY CLEVER: No one does weather forecasts like the British. Here are some samples: “There are still some clouds up there puffing about”…”I’m afraid the forecast is not overly clever today”…”A bit of an unsettled spell is coming up”…”We continue to be plagued by a band of bad weather”… “A few spots of rain here and there on Court 2” or similarly, “a few little spit spots of rain”…”The weather is quite unavoidable.” And then there were the final words one fan heard on Friday: “Thank you for your patience in what has been a somewhat trying day. Good night.”
TRUE ROMANCE: Asked about his friendship with fourth-round opponent Andy Murray, Nick Kyrgios sarcastically said it was “love at first sight.” Kyrgios also admitted he can be a “pest” towards his box during matches.
FOREVER YOUNG: In what has to be the best comparison of tennis with the discus throw, Pam Shriver said Venus Williams, 36, was “almost the Al Orter of tennis.” Orter, a champion discus thrower, played in one Olympics after another and Venus is talking about playing in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. When asked about her longevity, Venus said, “I don’t think anyone feels older. You have this infinity inside of you that feels like you could go forever.”
MANY HAPPY RETURNS: If Svetlana Kuznetsova continues her recent form and re-enters the top 10 in 1016, it’ll be her first time there in six years.
JUNIOR ROLL CALL: NorCal’s Michaela Gordon won her first-round girls’ match. Sam Riffice fell in the first round of boys’ singles.
CAPTURING THE BEAUTY AND MEANING OF THE HUMBLE QUEUE: The London Times asked, “Is Britain a more divided, harsher nation? Not in Wimbledon’s queue.”
