Wimbledon

[Mary Chambers]

What scottycelt might doubtless remind us of is that, win or lose, 'Andy' is "ours'' and not "yours" ... in exactly the same way as 'Timmy' was "yours" and not "ours" ..

I can assure you that neither Andy nor Tim is "mine", though I suppose Tim was rather more so than Andy. I don't care what nationality a player is.

[scottycelt]

Andy is partly mine - I'm related to the McRae's

Saly, I always knew it ... you're really (well, partly) one of us! ... !!

[Mary Chambers]

Saly, I always knew it ... you're really (well, partly) one of us! ... !!

I too have Scottish blood - quite a lot, in fact. The main reason Tim was more "mine" than Andy is that I liked watching Tim, and I don't like watching Andy. I suspect I see it all as ballet, really.

[salymap]

Saly, I always knew it ... you're really (well, partly) one of us! ... !!

Ooh thank you Scotty.

[LHC]

What scottycelt might doubtless remind us of is that, win or lose, 'Andy' is "ours'' and not "yours" ... in exactly the same way as 'Timmy' was "yours" and not "ours" ..even when he (Timmy) apparently failed to heed the multitudinous southern cry 'For England & St George!', and somehow dared to lose ..

I've never understood the BBC's obsession with finding a 'British' winner and their attempts to co-opt Andy 'I support anyone but England' Murray into this annual hype-fest. Players compete as individuals at Wimbledon and are richly rewarded for doing so; they are not representing their countries. The only time they do that is when they play in the Davis cup.

[scottycelt]

I too have Scottish blood - quite a lot, in fact. The main reason Tim was more "mine" than Andy is that I liked watching Tim, and I don't like watching Andy. I suspect I see it all as ballet, really.

Frankly, I (and I suspect most Scots) don't particularly like watching Andy either, Mary ...

Yet his first-rate tennis ability is beyond question ... it's just whether he has the mental discipline to go that one step further to the very summit.

I think this year is probably 'make or break' for him in this regard, but one never really knows ...

[EdgeleyRob]

I think this year is probably 'make or break' for him ...

The English (sic) guy may be getting some help.

http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/903640-ivo-karlovic-blames-wimbledon-line-judges-foot-fault-calls-for-murray-loss

[Northender]

A bonus, for me, when watching tennis on TV is that some ex-players (Becker, McEnroe) make such excellent commentators/summarizers.
Federer is currently engaged in a right old battle with Bennetau - gotta go!

[mangerton]

Sorry to rain on your parade, but here's a copy of a complaint I've just sent to the BBC.

'"Mock the Week" dropped for wimbledon. Again you ride roughshod over published schedules for the Great God Tennis. You've been doing it for years, and I've been complaining about it for years. I look forward to seeing if this year's self-serving, insult-to-the-intelligence reply is the same rubbish that you've given me in years past. Why are you not at least honest, and say that for wimbledon fortnight, you'll show nothing but tennis? Then at least we'd all know where we were. For a Public Service broadcaster, you're a damn disgrace.'

And the olympic games are still to come, God help us!

[Northender]

Although I'm a long way from being a fan of 'Mock The Week', I sympathize with you. There's no reason why the tennis can't continue on the 'red button' (hasn't everybody gone digital now?), and it's also available online.

[amateur51]

Andy is partly mine - I'm related to the McRae's

Didn't they used to be 'big' in kipper fillets

[amateur51]

Yes! Fantastic to be able to get home from work and still watch the thick end of that Nadal v Rosol epic live, on BBC HD, to its dramatic conclusion late on in the evening. Great stuff (tho disappointed how sulky Nadal tended to be, even though he must not have really understood what was happening to him. I thought he was more sportsmanlike than that - perhaps that's because he's usually winning and can afford to be )

The commentator chappie drew attention to Nadal's signing autographs for the poppets on his way back to the (un)dressing rooms so he wasn't that grumpy. I thought that he was furious with himself more than anything else.

[Extended Play]

Of all the sports broadcast on both TV and radio, is tennis the hardest for radio commentators? I'd have thought so, if they aspire to uphold the "Test Match Special" tradition of describing every ball in the match being broadcast. That's probably not really feasible at Wimbledon, but a good attempt can be made -- for example, Ian Carter on Radio 5 live, always very impressive IMV. But I'm a bit concerned about what seems to be the de rigeur presence in the commentary box of players of the recent past. Do they really add all that much to the expertise of the professional broadcasters? Often I feel there's far too much cosy "chit-chat" among those in the commentary team: they're chums talking to one another, rather than guides helping the listeners.

[Nick Armstrong]

The commentator chappie drew attention to Nadal's signing autographs for the poppets on his way back to the (un)dressing rooms so he wasn't that grumpy. I thought that he was furious with himself more than anything else.

Very fair point... indeed he seemed to snap into sportsman mode when he finally lost - including picking up the winner's racquet (flung exuberantly aside) and handing it back to him. I was thinking more during the match, getting mardy about his opponent (apparently barging into him at one point, though I didn't see that).

[Lateralthinking1]

A bonus, for me, when watching tennis on TV is that some ex-players (Becker, McEnroe) make such excellent commentators/summarizers.

I agree with that point, Northender. It is a bit like family. I generally see how Tracy Austin is looking to remind myself of my age. She was born in the same week as me. Generally the 'oldies' aren't doing too badly. Oddly some of the current players seem to have a lot of problems (Fish - Heart, Baltacha - Liver, Venus Williams - Sjögren's Syndrome). Not exactly the traditional hamstrings.

I have been keen on Wimbledon since the 1970s (although the Sampras years were a test of anyone's patience). I haven't quite got into this year's yet. The I-Player pictures have seemed hazy and are occasionally pixilated. The sound when it arrives is a bit tunnel-like but often you sit there for seven minutes listening to the hum of the crowd before the commentators say anything.

Also, the production on Today at Wimbledon seems hammy. The cameos at the start are embarrassing, the Phil Jones round-ups are horribly jazzy and we have had a young celebrity style commentator whispering at the sideline during the course of a match. Even Inverdale is a bit stumbling at times but I've always thought he was ill-at-ease on television and far better on radio.

Another reservation is that this is a transitional period when few seeds are well known. Still, the early departure of Nadal could mean Djokovic gets a second consecutive trophy, Federer is the first 30-something winner since Ashe or Murray is the first British winner in the mens since the 1930s. In the womens, it already looks like Sharapova's for the taking, but nothing is guaranteed.