Don’t Damage The Grass! Not A Problem On Tuesday, As Queen’s Club Gets Washed Out

By Ricky Dimon

 

Monday at the Fever-Tree Championships went unscathed by weather, as there were no rain delays of which to speak despite some cloudy skies and considerable winds.

 

That allowed for a full schedule of play, including the finale on Centre Court between French veteran Gilles Simon and British qualifier James Ward. It proved to be an entertaining conclusion to opening day, right from the start….

 

…In fact, from even before the start.

 

This happened during the pre-match meeting at the net between Simon, Ward, and chair umpire Fergus Murphy:

 

Fergus: “The last thing, to remind you, we’re on grass. Please don’t damage the surface. Don’t throw your racket. Any questions?”

 

Simon: “Can I break it?”

 

Fergus Murphy: “Yes…. But over there somewhere.”

 

Simon ran into plenty of trouble throughout the two-hour and 29-minute battle, but he damaged no grass, broke no rackets, and stayed mentally tough to prevail 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(2).

 

None of the perfect Queen’s Club grass was damaged on Tuesday, either. In fact, the grass is probably thriving. Not only did it go untouched, but it also received a proper watering. It rained all day in London–most of the time not more than a slight drizzle but enough to wash out an entire day of tennis.

 

A few players took to the indoor courts at least to get in some practice. That included an all-iron men…bionic hip men..whatever you call them session between Andy Murray and Bob Bryan. Murray’s post-surgery return to tennis got delayed by one day due to the rains, as his opening doubles match with Feliciano Lopez was moved from Tuesday to Wednesday.

 

This was the third complete washout in Queen’s Club history. Previously entire days of play were wiped out in 2011 (a Murray vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga final was played on Monday instead of Sunday) and 2012 (opening day).

 

The first round is scheduled to conclude on Wednesday, with the entire second round to be played on Thursday.

 

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.