Andy Murray, who could become the first British man to win Wimbledon since 1936, was not the only one feeling the pressure as the tournament got under way on Monday.
Expectations of his success reached new heights after his victory at Queens and the withdrawal of reigning champion Rafael Nadal.
But, as the United Kingdom begins its annual two-week obsession with heaps of expectations on the shoulders of the 22-year-old Scot, the spotlight also fell on the man who must decide when the new retractable roof on centre court will move over the famous grass for the first time.
Andrew Jarrett, the Wimbledon referee, admitted that he expects teething troubles with the new roof, which is part of an ongoing £100-million overhaul.
He is braced for some criticism over the calls he will have to make on when to close the translucent, 16m-high dome and how long to allow play to go on.
”We’d be crazy to say we’d always get it right from the word go. But, at the moment, we’re very excited about it. It’s a fantastic facility — 15 000 people experiencing an exciting final set with the roof closed will make the atmosphere even better.”
The roof will take about 10 minutes to close and play will be suspended for a further 20 to 30 minutes while the air management system recreates an outdoor atmosphere. The court’s floodlights are designed to replicate a bright summer day.
Once shut, the roof will remain closed until the end of the match, raising the possibility of some games finishing indoors while bright sunshine has replaced showers outside, thanks to the changeable British climate.
Despite the All England Club insisting that Wimbledon will remain primarily a ”daytime, outdoor event”, some suspect that matches will be scheduled later and later for the benefit of broadcasters.
Guidelines say that if the roof is closed during a deciding set, the match should be played to the finish with no cut-off — raising the prospect of some games going on until 11pm. Jarrett said that although he would ”never say never”, the need to protect the grass meant that play long into the night on a regular basis remained unlikely.
”We’ve got to be very careful to protect the centre court. It’s a living surface. It’s not a clay court or a hard court that can be used consistently without changing the nature of it.”
Last year’s runner-up, Roger Federer, opened proceedings on centre court against Yen-Hsun Lu and aims to overhaul Pete Sampras’ record of 14 Grand Slam titles. He said he hoped to be the first to play indoors at Wimbledon.
”I’m looking forward to some rain, because I’d like to experience it. It’s going to be a great atmosphere, I’m sure,” he told the BBC.
Murray has been tipped as a potential winner by former champions, including Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe.
Having added sheer physical power to his natural shot-making talent and tactical aptitude, the world number three is reckoned to have his best chance yet of becoming the first British men’s singles champion since Fred Perry in 1936.
As Murray steels himself to deal with the intense pressure, he has shown every sign of being able to cope. The once truculent teenager has cut a much happier figure since overhauling his backroom team and surrounding himself with Team Murray — a group of coaches, psychologists and conditioners handpicked to help him fulfil his potential.
His once abrasive public image has been transformed since he employed former tabloid editor Stuart Higgins as an adviser two years ago to improve relations with the press and then replaced his agent with 19 Entertainment, the company founded by Pop Idol and Spice Girls impresario Simon Fuller.
Higgins, who no longer works directly with Murray but is a corporate adviser to Fuller’s company, helped build bridges with the media, whereas 19 Entertainment, which also has David Beckham on its books, is seeking to boost the young Scot’s global profile and earnings potential. He may not yet have completely won over the middle England crowd on centre court, but his advisers believe Murray’s all-action style and his off-court leisure pursuits — Twitter, PlayStation and go-karting — appeal to a younger demographic.
For the tournament, it also looks good financially. Although the price of strawberries has been frozen and the Royal Bank of Scotland was rebuked in the Sunday papers for splashing out on hospitality despite its travails, there are few other signs of the recession hitting Wimbledon.
Applications for tickets in the public ballot were up by a fifth and the All England Club has sold out of its latest issue of 2 500 five-year centre court debentures, despite a price tag of £27 750. —