Wimbledon make decision on copying other Grand Slams with drastic chan

AELTC board member Tim Henman says Wimbledon won't become a 15-day tournament

Three of the four Grand Slam events will now last 15 days, with the first-round matches held over the first three. Wimbledon - known for its tradition - is now the odd one out. Previously, the grass-court event was held over 13 days with a break in play on what was known as Middle Sunday. This was scrapped in 2022, and the All England Club has no plans to add more to the schedule. Asked whether Wimbledon could ever become an even longer tournament, Henman said: “No. And it’s to do with the courts.” The grass courts are difficult to maintain - and were the main reason it took so long for the break on Middle Sunday to be dropped. “The big issue from when it was a 13-day event, the Middle Sunday was absolutely about really watering the court to make sure that it was still going to be alive for the latter part of the tournament,” Henman explained.

Players' teams sat in courtside pods during the Australian Open

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“And Centre Court is the one that gets played on the most because it's used every day. And to have it in the best possible condition for the final weekend, it was a big decision to go to 14 days. “So all the research and data around that, you're looking at 80 hours of tennis on Centre Court. That's the sort of maximum optimal amount of time. “It was a big decision to go to 14 days and that has worked well. So I think the appetite to go to 15 days is zero. First and foremost because of the courts.” The Australian Open recently trialled a new innovation on the three main showcourts in Melbourne Park - adding coaching pods which allowed players’ teams to give them advice from the side of the court. While coaching from the sidelines is now legal, Henman can’t see Wimbledon bringing the pods onto their bigger arenas anytime soon. “It will always be a little bit different from event to event,” he said. “So on the outside courts at Wimbledon, you can do the same thing. On the show courts, it won't happen because you've got the player box, the family box.”

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