I said he’d do it in four, but it only took Andy Murray three sets to win Wimbledon again. Yay! And what a day it was for British tennis! (Never thought I’d be typing that!!) Not only did Andy win the Men’s Singles, Heather Watson, with dishy Finn Henri Kontinen beside her, won the Mixed Doubles. And, Jordanne Wiley won the Ladies Wheelchair Doubles, with Yui Kamiji of Japan. AND, Gordon Reid won not only the Men’s Wheelchair Singles but the Doubles as well! What an achievement!
I’m at a bit of a loose end this morning as it’s all over. But it now means that I’m back working on Singles At Sea – I mean really working on it as I’ve set myself a deadline which I won’t tell you about just yet, but promise to punish myself severely – like no watching US Open – if I fail to meet it.
I have to say, though, that I watched much of Wimbledon with the sound turned down. Sometimes I watched on ESPN but some of the American commentators just can’t get their heads round the fact that Great Britain is a geographical term, which refers to the largest of the British Isles and is divided into three countries and that the United Kingdom is formed of those three countries plus Northern Ireland. Jeez!! How hard is it? They talk as if Scotland is a part of England.
And when I listened on BBC it was worse. Why do Andrew Castle and John Inverdale find the need to talk the WHOLE time? Why does it need THREE men to commentate a tennis match? Why can’t a female commentate a men’s match? Why can’t a woman umpire a men’s match? Or the Women’s Final come to that? Oh, no! We’d better put a man in charge!
I’ve often thought I’d like to be a tennis commentator – I think I’d be quite good, after all, I tick all the boxes.
A love and understanding of tennis Tick
Worldwide travel Tick
The ability to talk endless bollocks Tick
Okay, so perhaps I don’t know all the technical stuff; recognising a forehand down the line or a backhand volley might not be quite enough, but I could read all the data in front of me, just like Castle and Inverdale do. I could sit next to Johnny Mac and let him do that part while I do the lighter bits, like players’ private lives info and the who’s who in the Royal Box. Yes, I think I’d quite like that. I might send my CV in.
I do love Sue Barker, though. I think she’s the best sports presenter on TV. I know that’s not difficult; the TV companies don’t seem to realise that because you once excelled at a sport it doesn’t make you a TV presenter. But Sue’s the exception. Love her!
So, it’s back to the keyboard for me. Coffee is on continual brew and I’m promising myself a dip in two hours. Buckle down, Spires! Singles At Sea won’t write itself.
Nice article. Very useful. It was expected for Henri Kontinen and Heather Watson to win the final of WTA Wimbledon 2016 double mixed against Robert Farah and Anna-Lena Grönefeld. Ranked as #55 in WTA, Heather Watson applied succesfully his strengths and scored a well deserved victory against Robert and Anna. I am happy to see her to win for the first time Wimbledon in her career, to move further in the rankings and am sorry to see Farah and Grönefeld kicked out of the tournament, because they could have performed better in this final, though. Hopefully they will readjust the game strategy for the next tournament.