It was 1,200 or so years in the past {that a} righthander from Baghdad made his means via seven adventures, navigating all method of opponents and meteorological challenges. In the long run, Sinbad the Sailor accomplished this cycle triumphantly and made it again residence. Right here we’re at Wimbledon 2024, and—on grass, not sea—the purpose is to finish seven standalone voyages, slaloming round all obstruction and managing distraction, prevailing with power, ways and survival instincts.
With three rounds of journey left to go, right here’s a recap of the primary week …
Males’s favorites: For all of the rain and rescheduling, there have been scant few upsets … on the boys’s facet anyway. The defending champ (Carlos Alcaraz), the seven-time champ (Novak Djokovic) and the highest seed (Jannik Sinner) stay.
Emma Navarro: In solely her second Wimbledon, the previous College of Virginia star cruises to Week 2, beating each Naomi Osaka after which Coco Gauff with totally environment friendly tennis.
Sir Andy Murray: After pulling out of singles, the British icon tearfully performed his closing Wimbledon match (fittingly, together with his brother, Jamie) and was rightly celebrated. Misplaced within the hubbub, Murray introduced he would name it a profession on the Olympics. For him to exist within the shadow of three mountains and nonetheless generate this type of influence … is as a lot a feat as his three majors.
Yulia Putintseva: The Moscow-born, Kazakh-funded, Boca Raton-residing battler takes out the No.1 seed … to arrange a date with comparably pugnacious (and comparably surging) Jelena Ostapenko.
French comers: Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard was a fortunate loser. After booming his solution to Week 2, he might properly be seeded come U.S. Open time. Arthur Fils, simply 20 years previous, additionally stays. Bonus: you’ll not discover two extra amiable (and fewer jaded) younger gamers.
School tennis: Alumni have been in every single place. Navarro, Danielle Collins, Ben Shelton, Lulu Solar, half the doubles subject and a very good many coaches …
Peroxide: With the inevitable nod to this look from Roger Federer, these are heady instances for frosted suggestions. Fabio Fognini, Jan-Lennard Struff, Flavio Cobolli and Maxime Janvier have all adopted the type.
Conor Niland: This is a wonderful piece about skilled tennis’s foot troopers.
Steve Carell: This riff on Alcaraz is—dare we are saying it?—stunning. And, bonus factors for his off-the-celebrity menu fondness for Ostapenko.
Otto Virtanen: The Finn saves 4 match factors and wins his first qualifying match. He then saves 4 match factors and wins his second qualifying match. He reaches Wimbledon’s fundamental draw however then should go residence to Finland to bury his grandfather. He flies again, beats Max Purcell (a top quality win) and leads Tommy Paul 2–1 units earlier than, understandably, operating out of steam.
Naomi Osaka: Tennis is best when she is within the combine. And credit score to her for a full schedule and full dedication. However one other occasion, one other defeat. This time a 6–4, 6–1 capitulation to Navarro in underneath an hour. She stated that she needs to peak on the U.S. exhausting courts. And he or she very properly could. However you marvel concerning the calcifying of those losses.
Frances Tiafoe: With a sub-.500 document heading into the occasion, the American gained two matches and made information dismissing a few of his vanquishers as clowns. (Right here’s his 2024 recap. Emmett Kelly was by no means an opponent.) In Spherical 3, he led Alcaraz 2–1 units, outplaying the defending champ. Then Tiafoe receded.
The grass: Talking of receding—or reseeding … that is such a sublime and unique floor. However, man, these courts are chewed up. And there’s nonetheless per week of tennis left.
Solar: A College of Texas product from New Zealand-via-Switzerland reached the center weekend and bounced hometown hero Emma Raducanu. She will get an A.
The common is introduced down by the precise solar—allegedly, a yellow orb perched within the sky—which was seldom in proof.
Balkanization of tennis: Gamers from the Balkans, beginning with Djokovic, are doing fairly properly. They get excessive marks. As for the colloquial balkanization—the fragmentation, grievances and turf wars—it persists. Low marks right here. There are murmurs of one other Premier Tour blueprint coming, because the ATP wrestles with the place to place a Saudi occasion.
Mom Nature: Final month, they held the French Open. This month they’re holding the Drench Open. (Seven periods, seven days with rain.)
Ladies’s favorites: The highest seed (Iga Swiatek) goes down meekly. The second seed (Gauff) goes out in Spherical 4. The third seed (Aryna Sabalenka) doesn’t put up. The defending champ (Marketa Vondrouskova) goes out in Spherical 1. Alone among the many majors, Wimbledon doesn’t have “open” in its identify, however the subject is exactly that …
Damage mania: Participant after participant—most notably Sabalenka and Murray—fail to put up for his or her first match, a lot as they needed to. Now is just not the time to carry a symposium, however the bodily toll this sport exacts is simply brutal. Talking of …
Indoor grass: All of us like coated courts that guarantee continued play throughout rain. However when the grass will get humid and slippery underneath the roof, it might probably result in injured gamers.
Andrey Rublev: Not solely does he lose in Spherical 1, however it comes with one other act of self-flagellation (actually). As somebody kindly put it, He’s good to everybody. However himself.