Wimbledon top 10: Matches under the roof - The Championships, Wimbledon 2017 - Official Site by IBM Wimbledon top 10: Matches under the roof By Simon Cambers Whatever the weather... Wimbledon.com looks at some of the best matches under cover. 1. Roger Federer v Andy Murray – Final, 2012. In his first Wimbledon final, Murray had the home crowd umming and ahhing when he took the opening set against six-times champion Federer, and a first British men’s champion since 1936 seemed possible. But after the Swiss levelled the match, the rains came, the roof was closed and Federer was transformed. The Swiss was a class apart in the third and fourth sets as he wrapped up Wimbledon title number seven. 2. Andy Murray v Marcos Baghdatis – Third round, 2012. As the host nation’s top player, Murray plays almost exclusively on Centre Court these days. The difference with this one was that it was against the clock as Murray raced to get it finished before the 11pm cut-off. Baghdatis led 4-2 in the third set but Murray recovered to move ahead and then raced through the fourth in a flash.

The match actually finished at 11.02pm, past the official curfew, but officials showed some sensible leniency. 3. Andy Murray v Stanislas Wawrinka – Fourth round, 2009. This was the first full match played under the roof and it became a bit of a classic. Wawrinka, the No. 2 Swiss player behind Roger Federer, did his best to ruin British hopes but Murray dug deep to win it in the fifth set as the match ended at 10.38pm, at that time the latest finish in Wimbledon history. 4. Dinara Safina v Amelie Mauresmo – Fourth round, 2009. Before Murray and Wawrinka made it on to court, Safina and Mauresmo had been interrupted by rain and became the first two players to play an official match at Wimbledon under the roof. Safina led 4-1 in the second set when the rain came and after levelling the match, went on to become the first winner under the roof. 5. Rafael Nadal v Lukas Rosol – Second round, 2012.

When two-times champion Nadal levelled the match at two sets all, it seemed he would go on to clinch victory against an inspired opponent. But after the roof was closed due to fading light, world No.100 Rosol began to go for broke and it came off, taking out the French Open champion in one of the biggest upsets in Wimbledon history. Little did we know that would be Nadal’s last match for seven months due to an injured knee. 6. Roger Federer v Julien Benneteau – Third round, 2012. Federer had not suffered a defeat before the fourth round of a Grand Slam since 2004, so when he dropped the first two sets to Julien Benneteau of France, he looked in real trouble. Benneteau was two points from victory a couple of times in the fourth-set tie-break but Federer held on and went on to record his seventh Wimbledon crown. 7. Novak Djokovic v Olivier Rochus – First round, 2010. Until Murray-Baghdatis, this was the latest finish in Wimbledon history at 10.58pm.

In fading light, the diminutive Belgian was two sets to one ahead and heading for a shock win when the roof was closed to enable the match to finish. That proved to be a life-saver for Djokovic, who won the next two sets with relative ease to stay alive. 8. Exhibition matches – May 2009. After years of waiting out rain delays, Wimbledon finally got its roof in 2009 and the first players to test it out were former champions Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, together with Kim Clijsters and Tim Henman. The four played a mixed doubles and a couple of singles exhibitions. Clijsters, who had retired from tennis two years before, was clearly impressed as she made a comeback to the Tour three months later. 9. Agnieszka Radwanska v Heather Watson – Third round, 2012. Heather Watson enjoyed the honour of becoming the first Briton – other than Andy Murray – to play on Centre Court under the roof when she was drawn to play the Pole in the third round. But that was where the joy ended as she was routed 6-0, 6-2.

Radwanska went on to reach her first Grand Slam final. 10. Rafael Nadal v Ryan Sweeting – Second round, 2011. Nadal’s first experience of life under the roof was a much more enjoyable one than his loss to Rosol as he brushed aside the challenge of American Ryan Sweeting in straight sets. The Spaniard maintained his form through to the final, only to lose to Novak Djokovic. Follow the latest news and scores from Wimbledon 2013 on Wimbledon.com or download the official iPad, iPhone and Android apps Andy Murray beats Stanislas Wawrinka to reach Wimbledon quarter-final | Sport | The Guardian Andy Murray beats Stanislas Wawrinka to reach Wimbledon quarter-final • Murray wins 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 under roof • Juan Carlos Ferrero the next challenge for Scot Andy Murray celebrates victory against Stanislas Wawrinka to advance to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon.

Photograph: Sean Dempsey/PA Andy Murray beats Stanislas Wawrinka to reach Wimbledon quarter-final • Murray wins 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 under roof • Juan Carlos Ferrero the next challenge for Scot Monday 29 June 2009 19.07 EDT First published on Monday 29 June 2009 19.07 EDT Share on Messenger Close Andy Murray collapsed to his knees on the Centre Court as if the new roof had fallen in on him. It very nearly did. He reached his second successive Wimbledon quarter-final with a dramatic 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 victory, lasting three minutes short of four hours, over Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka. So for the second year running he will play a Spaniard for a place in his first Wimbledon semi-final.

But this time it is not Rafael Nadal, rather the unseeded Juan Carlos Ferrero, the 2003 French Open champion, who many believed had been put out to grass, but who has discovered a new lease of life on the surface. Murray beat him in the semi-finals of the Aegon Championships at Queen's on the way to that title, and will be reasonably confident of repeating that victory again, depending on how muchtonight's win took out of him both physically and emotionally. "I was getting very tired towards the end, and will try to recover as best I can," said Murray, whose mother, Judy, and his girlfriend, Kim Sears, hugged each other joyously when this fourth round match finished at 10.39pm, making Wimbledon history by becoming the first full match to be played indoors. The All England club's insistence that BBC television would not hold sway over any decision to close the new multi-million pound roof were placed under immediate doubt when, on a perfect summer's evening, it remained solidly shut from the beginning, having been closed during the previous women's fourth round match between Dinara safin and Amelie Mauresmo.

The club claimed there were showers in the vicinity and that, with the match starting late at 6.41pm, it would ensure a finish. Nevertheless there were mutterings of duplicity. "It was great," said Murray immediately afterwards. "Always when you play indoors the atmosphere is great." But later he was much more critical of the decision. There is no doubt that floodlit tennis was thoroughly enjoyed by the 15,000 fans, though all the talk of Wimbledon's open air traditions being maintained seem to have been dispensed with at the first available opportunity. Certainly the roof amplified the huge cheer that greeted Murray's entrance, though Wawrinka was clearly not the least unnerved. He was up on his toes like a boxer, running to the baseline in the style of Nadal just before the match began. The Swiss player had emphasised the need to be ultra-aggressive against Murray and he was true to his word. Clearly he was seeing the ball wonderfully well. "I thought Stan played a great match, and the standard he set in the first set was very tough," said Murray. The first set had not developed at all in the way Murray had wanted or the Centre Court crowd had expected.

Wawrinka, ranked No 18 in the world, 15 place below Murray, seemed as if he had been watching Bruce Springsteen at Glastonbury and decided he could be the Boss too. This was Wawrinka at his most authoritative. He has always had a wonderful topspin backhand, but now the forehand was struck with tremendous depth and he also served particularly well. The first set was over in 34 minutes, leaving Murray stretching his jaw, a common mannerism, as he attempted to calm himself down and increase his levels of concentration. Wawrinka has a poor record over top five players. Murray, a good friend of the Swiss, knew this well enough. Nevertheless he was unable to gather any sort of rhythm initially, and danger signs were there again in second set. Wawrinka, straining for the break that might have been crucial, missed a killer forehand by a whisker. It was a crucial error, not the last, which Murray exploited. At 4-3 the Swiss called for the trainer and had his left thigh massaged, a practise that is frowned upon by many in the game.

Murray, aware of his opponent's fragile temperament, increased the tempo and urged the crowd to increase their support. The response was intense, just at it had been at this stage last year when Murray came back from two sets down against Richard Gasquet of France. He broke Wawrinka for a 5-3 lead and clinched the second set with an ace. Wawrinka again put pressure on Murray towards the middle of the third set, and once again Murray shrugged it off to take the lead. There was an understandable easing of tension, and perhaps Murray was caught up in it. An errant forehand prevented him from taking a 5-3 lead in the fourth set, and suddenly the match swung back in Wawrinka's favour. Murray squandered a 3-0 final set lead, but on wearying legs he prevailed. Ultimately it was Murray's will, competitiveness, and desire that swayed the course of a thoroughly compelling contest. This was not bravura Murray; it was battling Murray. And another step nearer the final, though how long the All England Club can now resist scheduled early evening-night matches must be doubtful. The pressure is on, though nothing like the pressure Murray will come under this week.

• This article was amended on 30 June 2009. Andy Murray was quoted in the original as saying: "I thought Stanislas played a great match." This has been corrected. History - 2000s - The Championships, Wimbledon 2017 - Official Site by IBM READ MORE 2000: Venus Williams v Lindsay Davenport A decade of Williams dominance began on 8 July 2000, when elder sister Venus defeated defending champion Lindsay Davenport 6-3, 7-6(3). The win came two days after 20-year-old Venus had defeated her then 18-year-old sister Serena in the semis, and 10 months after Serena had won the US Open. The Williamses thus became the first sisters in the Open era to win Grand Slam titles. Though many suspected that the American siblings would be a force to be reckoned with over the coming years, few could have predicted just how the first 10 years of the new millennium would belong to the Williamses, with SW19 proving to be a particularly happy hunting ground.

Venus’s win over Davenport, which came thanks to a combination of powerful services and groundstrokes, crisp volleys and tireless running, which made her opponent look decidedly flat-footed, was the first of five titles on Wimbledon’s lawns to go with the US Open titles which she won in 2000 and 2001. Only Maria Sharapova in 2004 and Amelie Mauresmo in 2006 managed to break the Williams hegemony during that magical decade. 2000: Pat Rafter v Andre Agassi Andre Agassi versus Pat Rafter was always a good one for the fans to watch. The American was one of the best returners in the game and wore out a path along the baseline, while the Aussie was an attacker who felt most at home at the net. In the space of 12 months they played three Grand Slam five-setters between June 2000 and June 2001, two of them at Wimbledon (where they had already met twice, Agassi winning in 1993 and 1999). All of them were classics, none more so than at The Championships 2000.

Rafter parlayed his serve-and-volley to a one-set lead, but Agassi found his range on his passing shots to level at one-all. Errors in the American’s game again handed Rafter the advantage but Agassi could never be counted out over the Grand Slam distance and duly fought back to take it to a fifth set. The match went down in the annals as a classic, primarily due to the number of rallies it contained. Though the Australian tried to keep the points short on his own service, he managed to disrupt Agassi with his returning game full of heavy slice from the baseline. The American cracked first, and Rafter found himself in his first Wimbledon final. 2000: Pete Sampras wins seventh title Wimbledon was where Pete Sampras felt most at home and none but the most foolish were prepared to write him off. Having battled tendonitis in his right knee on his way to the final, the American was left to face Australia’s Pat Rafter for his seventh Wimbledon title and his record-breaking 13th Grand Slam trophy. Sampras stumbled through the first set tiebreak, offering it up with a double fault but then sniffed the scent of blood as Rafter blew a 4-1 lead in the second.

At a set apiece, Sampras, at last, began to settle and as the night drew in, he closed out his emotional 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory. He burst into tears and then ran for the back of the stands to find his parents, Sam and Georgia, who had flown in overnight to see their son make history. It was Sampras's last great moment at the All England Club. Two lean and title-free years later, he was rewriting the record books again, winning his 14th grand slam title at the US Open by beating Agassi. That, he thought, was enough and with nothing left to achieve and no prospect of bettering those last two grand slam triumphs, he called it a day. History could take care of itself from now on. 2001: Tim Henman v Goran Ivanisevic Friday 6 July Croat Goran Ivanisevic had started The Championships as a wild card, but the tennis he went on to produce defied his world ranking of No.125.

The day’s first semi-final was a marathon and when rain brought a halt to the Henman-Ivanisevic clash after just three sets at 6.18pm, it was the Briton who was in charge. Although Ivanisevic had clinched a tight opening set 7-5, Henman hit back to nick the second on a tie-break before racing through the third by ‘bageling’ Ivanisevic in just 15 minutes. With Henman up 2-1 in the fourth when play was abandoned for the day, the Oxfordshire star was within touching distance of a place in the final. Saturday 7 July A full night’s sleep had given Ivanisevic the chance to gather his thoughts and he quickly put the disastrous third set behind him. Ultimately, a fourth-set tiebreak was required and when Tiger Tim opened up a 3-1 lead, once more, things were looking good for the Henmaniacs. Croatia’s finest had other ideas however, and despite standing two points from defeat, Ivanisevic fought his way out of the breaker to force a deciding set.

The two men played another five games and with the wild card up 3-2 in the fifth rain brought another premature end to the day’s drama at 6.29 pm. The match would go into a third day. Sunday 8 July Both men knew it would be decided by one thing – guts – and so it proved. Henman had a brief window of opportunity when Ivanisevic trailed 0-30 on serve at 3-3, but the outsider blasted his way out of trouble, broke in the very next game and served out the match to complete a memorable 7-5, 6-7(6), 0-6, 7-6, 6-3 victory exactly 45 hours and nine minutes after it had begun on the Friday. 2001: Goran Ivanisevic v Pat Rafter In what was arguably the feel-good tennis final of all time, the charismatic Croat Goran Ivanisevic defeated the equally regarded Australian Pat Rafter in an epic five-set, three-hour-one-minute final, with Centre Court inhabited by an ecstatic corner of Bedlam.

The three-times beaten finalist had been given a wildcard as a gesture of goodwill for what he once did; he was 125 in the world and two months off his 30th birthday. A string of early exits and a lingering left shoulder problem provoked talk of imminent retirement and a career without a Grand Slam. The crowd, on People's Monday, cried, cheered, roared and chanted as Ivanisevic, like a gentle giant, stood with his arms aloft on top of a television commentary box to cast his shadow over his kingdom; acknowledging the ovation, capturing the moment with his mind's eye. Rafter, himself troubled by injury and losing a second successive final, was a gallant loser and recognised the Centre Court happening described by Ivanisevic as a time when "everybody was going nuts". The third seed said: "I don't think Wimbledon has seen anything like it and I don't know whether it will again." 2001: Pete Sampras v Roger Federer We did not realise it at the time, but this was a changing of the guard.

Pete Sampras – a seven-time champion unbeaten in 31 matches dating back to 1996 – was defeated by Roger Federer, who would go on to win six Wimbledon titles himself. Sampras had already walked on egg shells earlier in the tournament, taking five sets to overcome British wildcard Barry Cowan in the second round. Federer meanwhile was only 19 but already one for the future, having won the Hopman Cup (alongside Martina Hingis) and Milan already in 2001 and reached the quarter-finals of the French Open a few weeks prior to Wimbledon. Federer’s serving, movement and attacking mentality were Sampras-esque throughout a match which ebbed and flowed for five sets and in an ironic twist, it would be the only time the two greats faced each other on tour. He and Federer would meet again in SW19 however, when the latter sealed his 15th Grand Slam win on Centre Court in 2009, taking Sampras’ record in the process. 2002: Pete Sampras v George Bastl The graveyard of champions earned its sobriquet over the years, and never more so than in 2002.

Previous Wimbledon winners to have lost on Court No.2 included John McEnroe, Virginia Wade, Jimmy Connors, Pat Cash, Andre Agassi, Richard Krajicek and Lleyton Hewitt, and then in 2002 came the biggest of them all. Pete Sampras was feeling out of sorts, hounded by the press who wanted to be the first to hear about his impending (according to them at least) retirement. He took to the court to face George Bastl, a Swiss player for whom the word “journeyman” was invented. He was 145 in the world, only in the tournament as a lucky loser and had set up this second-round clash by defeating another lucky loser a few days earlier. Two months later, Pistol Pete would go on to capture his 14th and final Grand Slam title at the US Open but in between times, Bastl recorded the greatest win of his career, downing Sampras 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4 in what would be the American’s last ever match at Wimbledon.

The Swiss then lost 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 to David Nalbandian in the next round, and like Sampras, he never won another match in SW19. 2003: Lleyton Hewitt v Ivo Karlovic To crow, along the lines of “how the mighty are fallen”, would be terribly unfair. Lleyton Hewitt was a mere 22 years old and he found himself up against a 6’10” Croat who would go on to carve himself a niche as one of the hardest servers in the game. But when the title-holder crashed out in the opening round of the 2003 Championships to an unknown qualifier ranked 203 in the world, there was more than enough Schadenfreude to go round. Hewitt was unlucky enough to come up against a young Ivo Karlovic at a time when the grass was fast and aces rained down. He had, the previous year, been lucky enough to peak early in his career, during the "interregnum" between the Pete Sampras and the Roger Federer eras to secure his second Grand Slam title.

He made the most of the period of grace accorded to him by the waning of Sampras’s star prior to Federer’s ascension to greatness, winning the US Open in 2001 and the ATP end-of-season world tour finals in 2001 and 2002. Only once in the history of The Championships had the defending men’s champion had lost in the opening round. At least 1966 winner Manuel Santana (who lost to Charlie Pasarell in the first round the following year) had some company in the record books. 2003: Martina Navratilova wins again In 2003, 25 years after her first singles title (of nine), Martina Navratilova equalled the amazing Championships record of Billie Jean King with her 20th Wimbledon title, this one coming alongside Leander Paes in the mixed doubles. This historic moment came less than six months after she had achieved the "boxed set" of winning the singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles at all four Grand Slams (something that eluded even Billie Jean), emulating Doris Hart and Margaret Court before her.

"All my titles here are special but the last one was eight years ago and I never thought I'd play again after that," said Navratilova after she and Paes defeated Andy Ram and Anastasia Rodionova 6-3, 6-3 in the final. The Czech-born American toyed with retirement but accepted a wildcard into the singles draw at The Championships the following year – a decision which attracted criticism both of Navratilova and the AELTC, which she summarily silenced with a 6-0, 6-1 win in the first round over Catalina Castano and by taking Gisela Dulko to three sets in the second round. The win with Paes also took her overall Slam record to 58 wins, second only to Margaret Court’s 62, and she would go on to add another in 2006, when she partnered Bob Bryan to the US Open title a month before her 50th birthday.

2004: Maria Sharapova If we take out Lottie Dodd, who was still 15 when she won at the tail-end of the 19th century, then only Martina Hingis, who was 16 years and nine months when she won in 1997, was younger than the six-foot Siberian champion. Sharapova was a tender 17 years and 2 months when she arrived in SW19 in 2004, but she opened a few eyes when she won at the Priory Club in Edgbaston earlier in the month and was seeded No.13 for The Championships. Not that she was expected to win even after she defeated Lindsay Davenport in the semis – a certain Miss S.J. Williams was lying in wait in the final. Serena had won The Championships in 2002 and 2003 and had taken over from her sister Venus, who took the Wimbledon title in 2000 and 2001. Only 30 minutes into the match however and the sibling domination was all but over. Sharapova took the opening set in half an hour.

Serena managed an early break in the second set but the tide was not for turning. Sharapova won 6-1, 6-4, and with her triumph book-ended by Anastasia Myskina’s surprise win at the French and Svetlana Kuznetsova’s success at the US Open, it seemed as if a new Russian era of tennis was being ushered in. Instead it served to spur on the rivalries between the Williams sisters, Justine Henin, Amelie Mauresmo, Kim Clijsters and Sharapova herself in a brief golden age in the women’s game. 2004: Wimbledon the movie There have been plenty of films about Wimbledon, but in 2004 there was one which is now filed not under sports documentaries but romantic comedies. “Wimbledon” is the story of a player ranked just outside the top 100 who gets a wildcard to The Championships and ends up winning the whole shebang (much a la Goran Ivanisevic in 2001).

The film features John McEnroe, Chris Evert, Mary Carillo and John Barrett in the commentary box, and while Kirsten Dunst cuts an unlikely figure on the baseline, Paul Bettany who plays the lead most certainly benefitted from the coaching of 1987 Wimbledon winner Pat Cash, who trained the actors in the art of swinging the catgut. Plenty of local landmarks are featured including Heathrow airport, the Dorchester Hotel and the London Eye, but the most unmistakable images came from the All England Club, predominantly on the old and sadly now departed No.3 court where the fans were so close to the action. 2004: Todd Woodbridge After six titles with the other “Woodie”, Todd Woodbridge bagged another hat-trick – this time alongside Jonas Bjorkman – and broke the Wimbledon record for men’s doubles titles. His ninth success, achieved in 2004, outshone the previous best of eight, which dated back a century, when "Big Do and Little Do" – brothers Reggie and Laurie Doherty – were at their peak. SW19 was certainly a happy hunting ground for Woodbridge during his playing days.

As a singles player, he defeated Sampras on the hallowed lawns in 1989 and even made the semis in 1997. Doubles was definitely his speciality however, and he secured every big trophy there was to win – all four Slams for a total of 16 Majors, the ATP World Tour Finals on two occasions and Olympic Gold in 1996. Most of his success came as one half of the Woodies, but when Mark Woodforde retired in 2000, Woodbridge went on to secure four more Slams alongside Bjorkman, the last one coming at Wimbledon in 2004. The following year, with a record 83 ATP doubles titles to his name, Woodbridge announced his retirement – at Wimbledon, of course. 2005: Venus Williams and Lindsay Davenport The longest women’s singles final in Wimbledon history saw Venus Williams win her third title, seeing off No.1 seed and 1999 champion Lindsay Davenport in two hours 45 minutes.

Davenport had defeated Dinara Safina, Kim Clijsters, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Amelie Mauresmo en route to the final, while No.14 seed Venus had had to overcome Mary Pierce in the quarters and defending champion Maria Sharapova in the semis. Having taken such prominent scalps along the way, it was only fitting that the final was such a classic. Davenport edged the opener then broke Venus in the 11th game of the second set, giving the taller of the two lofty Americans the opportunity to serve for the title. Venus amazingly broke back to love to stay alive before dominating the tie-break to level the tie. Davenport broke to lead 4-2 in the decider and stood at 40-15 on her own service. Undaunted, Venus broke back then levelled. Davenport went for treatment on her back before returning to carve out a match point on her opponent’s serve. Venus saved it and the match went into overtime.

At 7-7 the elder of the two tennis-playing Williams sisters broke, and despite double-faulting on her first match point she took the second to emerge victorious 4-6, 7-6(4), 9-7 after a tie which, for once, actually deserved to be called an "epic". 2005: Stephen Huss and Wesley Moodie Having played the grand total of one Challenger event together prior to the tournament, South African Wes Moodie and Australian Stephen Huss swept all before them at The Championships in 2005 and became the first ever qualifiers to win the men’s doubles. The pairing formed just weeks before The Championships, but claimed plenty of notable scalps throughout the tournament. Todd Woodbridge, who had won his ninth Wimbledon men’s doubles title just 12 months earlier, was sent packing into retirement after he and Mahesh Bhupathi fell to the newcomers in the second round, then in the semis they defeated Jonas Bjorkman (who had partnered Woodbridge to victory in 2002, 2003 and 2004) and Max Mirnyi.

To cap things off in the final, they defeated the legendary Bryan brothers, perhaps the best doubles pairing of the decade, in four sets. For the two victors, this would prove to be the pinnacle of their careers. Huss did win in Beijing in 2008 alongside Ross Hutchins, while Moodie won at Queen’s in 2009 with Mikhail Youzhny. Grand Slam success however came along just this once. 2006: Agassi’s last match Was it a changing of the guard? Not quite, but it was certainly symbolic. A balding, 36-year-old American was dispatched in straight sets by a Spaniard 16 years his junior, complete with flowing locks and a pirate’s bandana. It was probably more ironic than symbolic. Back in the day, it was Andre Agassi who created a stir around his hair, his accessories and his return of service. And after 134 minutes of play followed by a far-from-traditional on-court interview, Agassi’s Wimbledon career was over, beaten by a young Rafael Nadal.

As a 17-year-old prodigy from the Nick Bollettieri academy, he won a mere five games against Henri Leconte in his debut and vowed never to return. He finally came back in 1991 and the following year, despite a few warnings from umpires for some very un-Wimbledonesque language, he defeated Goran Ivanisevic in a five-set epic. His only disappointment that year was not being able to dance with ladies’ singles winner Steffi Graf at the Champions’ Ball, but that pleasure would come later. Indeed, he would return alongside Stefanie Graf-Agassi in 2009 for the Centre Court celebration. In the intervening years he had won the US, Australian and French Opens to become the first man to win all four Grand Slams on three different surfaces. He had earned that on-court interview in 2006, and the showman and contrarian in him revelled in the fact that he had engineered a break with tradition “in the place that first taught me to respect the sport”, as he himself put it as he bowed out.

2007: Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal It was not surprising that ‘The Ice Man’, Bjorn Borg, betrayed no emotion as he watched Roger Federer’s bid to equal his record of five successive Wimbledon titles. The world No.1 was undefeated in 33 matches at the All England Club going into the final, but standing in his path was Rafael Nadal, who had beaten the Swiss in the French Open final just weeks before. Having won the third set in a tie-breaker, the usually unflappable Federer became frustrated by his relentless opponent and a succession of Hawk-Eye’s calls that went against him. Nadal stormed into a 5-1 lead in the fourth but was then forced to call for the trainer to have his right knee taped. Inclement weather meant that the Majorcan had not had a day's rest since the start of the second week. Though Nadal won the fourth set 6-2, Federer could smell blood in the water.

His mind was in total lock-down, focused on winning and winning alone, and he raced away to claim his fifth Wimbledon trophy 7-6(7), 4-6, 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-2 in 225 minutes. 2007: Equal prize money After at least a year’s brouhaha during which Venus Williams, Billie Jean King and even then British Prime Minister Tony Blair added their two pennies’ worth on the subject, the All England Club decided in 2007 to award equal prize money to both men and women across the board, from the champions down to the first-round losers in all events. The princely sum of £11,282,710 was split evenly, with winners Roger Federer and Venus Williams pocketing £700,000 each for their fortnight’s work. "Tennis is one of the few sports in which women and men compete in the same event at the same time," said Tim Phillips, Chairman of the All England Club.

"We believe our decision to offer equal prize money provides a boost for the game as a whole and recognises the enormous contribution that women players make to the game and to Wimbledon. We hope it will also encourage girls who want a career in sport to choose tennis as their best option. In short, good for tennis, good for women players and good for Wimbledon." 2007: Hawk-Eye The 2007 Wimbledon Championships saw the All England Club deploy Hawk-Eye for the first time as electronic line-calling technology on Centre and No.1 courts. The move followed successful testing to verify the accuracy of the system on grass as well as agreement of the protocol to be adopted when using the system – namely that Wimbledon would allow for three incorrect challenges in a set, an increase from the previous figure of two used at the US and Australian Opens. Whilst the name "Hawk-Eye" has obvious connotations of pin-point vision, it actually comes from the system’s inventor, Dr Paul Hawkins, whose innovation was first used in the 2001 Ashes cricket series. It was used as part of television coverage for the Davis Cup in 2002, and debuted at a Grand Slam in Australia in 2003.

Hawk-Eye replaced the previous "Cyclops" system, which involved infra-red beams used to determine whether services were in or out. 2007: Jamie Murray "Murray wins Wimbledon" is a headline British journalists have been dying to write for years now, but they already had such an opportunity in 2007. This was the year that Jamie Murray, elder brother of Andy, partnered soon-to-be singles world No.1 Jelena Jankovic to victory in the mixed doubles. The success had the two vital ingredients for the UK tabloid press: a home-grown hero and a "leggy" (their words) partner who was happy to fuel the speculation that this was no mere on-court marriage of convenience – this was indeed a "love match". "When it was a breakpoint I was telling him if he got a good return he would get many kisses, but he kept putting it out," sighed Jelena in many a post-match press conference. When the pairing overcame Jonas Bjorkman and Alicia Molik in a three-set final, the fairytale was complete.

They danced at the Champions’ Ball and there was even talk of Jelena being invited to spend Christmas up in Scotland with the Murrays. Since then, things have cooled. Jelena is concentrating on her singles career, Jamie has married a waitress from Dunblane and the journos are still waiting to dust off their "Murray wins Wimbledon" headlines. 2008: Serena Williams v Venus Williams From 2000-2010, the Williams sisters made SW19 their own back yard. Venus won five singles titles, Serena four. Four times they faced each other in the final, and on three of those occasions they then returned to Centre Court to contest – and win – the women’s doubles. Beaten semi-finalist Elena Dementieva had fanned the flames of criticism over their seemingly dull previous finals, saying of the final: "For sure it's going to be a family decision." If it was, then they certainly did an admirable cover-up job. Serena started the quicker and was a hair’s breadth away from a 4-1 lead when a net cord intervened.

Venus powered back to take the first set with a run of five games out of six then breaking her own Wimbledon service record in the second set with a 129mph offering en route to a 7-5, 6-4 win. Three hours later they were back on Centre Court, and this time neither sister would have to leave disappointed or metaphorically empty-handed. A 6-2, 6-2 win over Sam Stosur and Lisa Raymond gave the Williamses their third Wimbledon doubles title. 2008: Rafael Nadal v Roger Federer It has been hailed as the greatest tennis match ever played, watched, or attended. At 9.15pm, in the gloaming of Centre Court, Rafael Nadal proverbially snatched the glinting gold Wimbledon trophy from under Roger Federer's nose for his first Wimbledon victory. Flashbulbs exploded and reverberated around the court, Federer rooted to his chair in disbelief, Nadal, the happiest man on earth. He had conquered Wimbledon's grass, and one of its greatest champions.

Spain's world No.2 won 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7, to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to do the French Open and Wimbledon double in the same summer. He was also the first Spaniard to win Wimbledon since Manuel Santana in 1966. "It's impossible to explain what I felt in that moment but I'm very, very happy. It is a dream to play on this court, my favourite tournament, but to win I never imagined," Nadal said. "I tried everything, got a little late, but look, Rafa is a deserving champion, he just played fantastic. The rain didn't make it easier but you have to expect the worst and he's the worst opponent on the best court," Federer said. 2008: Andy Murray v Richard Gasquet Was this the moment when the British crowd finally decided that Andy Murray was "one of us"? The SW19 like nothing more than an epic fight-back from a local hero, and the Scotsman served one up at the end of "Manic Monday" – the mid-point of every Championships.

In 2008, it was former French prodigy Richard Gasquet, the No.8 seed, looking as if he would at last live up to the hype, taking the opening two sets 7-5, 6-3 against a man who had lost both of their previous encounters. These were the days when Murray, No.12 seed that year, lived and died by the drop-shot, and some of them were plain suicidal. He hung tough to take the third set to a tie-break and the tide had turned as just over half an hour later it was two sets all. The 22-year-old Gasquet seemed vanquished, but could Murray beat the clock? The canny Frenchman took a comfort break to eat up an extra few minutes, but at 9.29pm in the SW19 twilight, Murray emerged victorious, 5-7, 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-2, 6-4. Alas, Rafael Nadal was lying in wait just over 36 hours later.

2008: Laura Robson At the tender age of 14, Laura Robson became the first British player since Annabel Croft in 1985 to win the Wimbledon girls’ singles title, defeating Noppawan Lertcheewakarn 6-3, 3-6, 6-1. No.1 Court was packed to the rafters with fans looking to watch someone other than the Williams sisters (busy contesting the women’s singles and winning the women’s doubles on Centre Court that day) and desperate for some home-grown success. Robson’s win over the no.3 seed (who would go on to capture the crown 12 months later) capped an amazing run. She defeated soon-to-be big names Melanie Oudin and Bojana Jovanovski in straight sets and then held her nerve despite the pressure of the expectant crowd to take glory in the final. Her win earned her a wildcard for the main draw the following year, which she made the most of, pushing one-time world No.5 Daniela Hantuchova before falling in three sets.

2009: Serena Williams v Elena Dementieva After 10 days of watching Serena Williams sail majestically through the draw, her semi-final against Elena Dementieva was determined to throw a spanner in the works. Williams was forced to chase, scrap and battle for every point of her 6-7, 7-5, 8-6 win. It was the longest women’s semi-final in the Open era at Wimbledon. Williams is used to this winning Grand Slam titles business – she had 10 of them already at the time and was about to go on and win her 11th. The quality of the ball striking throughout the match was at times breath-taking from both women. Few can live with Williams from the baseline but Dementieva was giving as good as she got and moving her rival from corner to corner and then out into farthest reaches of Centre Court. The decider alone lasted more than an hour as first Dementieva held a match point and then, 23 minutes later, Williams got her racket on a match-winning opportunity. When Dementieva’s final backhand sailed wide of the line, the crowd rose as one to applaud.

They had not expected a spectacle like this. 2009: The 16-14 five-set final Roger Federer became tennis's greatest men's champion, watched by a legion of champions, as he beat Andy Roddick 5-7 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 16-14 in 4hrs 16mins to claim his sixth Wimbledon crown. It was also a record 15th Grand Slam title for the Swiss master, overhauling the total of Pete Sampras who was in the Royal Box along with fellow legends Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver. It was a truly momentous climax to the 2009 Championships as the 27-year-old Swiss became the most successful man in the sport. Sampras, previous holder of that title, had been an unannounced surprise visitor to Wimbledon – where he has not been seen since 2002. The American arrived three games into the contest, but then sat as enraptured as the rest of the crowd as the two gladiators battled through 77 games, the most seen at any Wimbledon final.

Federer's ace count passed the 50 mark and then, finally, it was Roddick who cracked in the 30th game of the set. Three mishits off the frame indicated he was fatigued and when Federer was offered the first Championship point he grabbed it eagerly, leaping into the air with joy as another Roddick mishit sailed long. 2009: The unveiling of the Centre Court roof Over recent years, whenever play at The Championships was affected or even washed out entirely by rain it produced an inevitable outpouring of frustration. So when, on the afternoon of 17 May 2009, Wimbledon finally unveiled its long-awaited Centre Court roof – three years in the assembly and nine long years in the planning - the timing proved to be perfect. As the 3,000-ton construction began its eight-minute closing procedure, the weather lent a helping hand by sprinkling on the proceedings. A set of mixed doubles was played out between the husband and wife team of Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf took on Tim Henman and Kim Clijsters.

Despite only having one Slam between them at the time compared with the 30 that their opponents could muster, Henman and Clijsters won 7-6. Agassi then edged Henman 6-4 before Clijsters defeated Graf by the same score. So impressive was the Belgian, who had retired from tennis in favour of marriage and motherhood, that then-chairman of Wimbledon, Tim Phillips, promptly offered her a wild card for the upcoming Championships. This was politely declined – "hopefully, next year", she said – but this glittering day proved to be a defining moment for Clijsters, who resumed her career brilliantly and won the US Open a mere four months later. 2009: Dinara Safina v Amelie Mauresmo History was finally made at 5.19pm on Monday 29 June 2009, when Amelie Mauresmo struck the first service under the cover of "5,200 square metres of a very strong, flexible, translucent waterproof material". As the Centre Court crowd sat and stared at the skies on Monday, suddenly the roof started to move.

At 4.39pm, the two halves of the structure started to roll towards the middle of the court to gasps and cheers from below. And then it stopped. "I hope someone’s kept the receipt," said one wag in the stands. Surely it cannot be broken? No, actually, the roof closes in the three stages with a slight pause between each phase. By 4.46pm the roof was finally shut and there was a huge round of applause. Outside, the drizzle had stopped. At 5.11pm, the players returned to thunderous applause. Mauresmo, the first on court, could not take her eyes off the roof above her – and the floodlights that had now warmed up and were shining brightly – as she began her warm-up routine. Her opponent Dinara Safina meanwhile kept her eyes firmly fixed on the grass beneath her feet and tried not to let the moment of history distract her, on her way to victory and a place in the quarter-finals.

2009: Andy Murray v Stan Wawrinka On 29 June 2009, the last match scheduled for the day on Centre Court was a fourth-round men’s singles tie featuring Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka. The pair would have the honour of contesting the first competitive match to be played in its entirety under the Centre Court roof. Some 50 feet below 3,000 tons of structural steel and Tenara architectural fibre, the lights illuminated the famous turf on an overcast evening and 15,000 spectators witnessed Dunblane-born Murray battle with high-calibre Swiss opponent Wawrinka. Just as it looked as if this unique evening’s entertainment was coming to an end Wawrinka pounced at 5-5 in the fourth set to break and then serve out the set 7-5 to force a decider, breaking another record at The Championships with the contest destined to go on later than any other Wimbledon match.

Breaks were exchanged to open the fifth set but in the end it was Murray who emerged victorious, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 ending it all on service at precisely 10.39 pm securing his place both in the quarter-finals and in a new chapter in Wimbledon Centre Court’s unrivalled history. Wimbledon Retractable Roof - Centre Court, London Tennis - e-architect Wimbledon Retractable Roof Wimbledon’s Court No 1 Retractable Roof Wimbledon’s Court No 1 is to have its own retractable roof by 2019 after a £70m modernisation of the All England Club was given the green light, reports the London Evening Standard. A seven-year masterplan to upgrade the home of tennis at SW19 was backed by Merton council on 11 December 2014, heralding a “defining moment” in the site’s 137-year history.

The roof design by Grimshaw architects can be closed in 10 minutes when rain starts to fall, with play resuming within half an hour after it stops — minimising hold-ups for the court’s 11,500 spectators. page updated 26 Jun 2014 Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof June 23, 2014 – Rod Sheard on the Architecture Behind Wimbledon’s Centre Court Retractable Roof for CNN With Wimbledon beginning today, CNN sat down with Populous’ Rod Sheard, Senior Principal, to discuss the architecture behind the iconic All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s (AELTC) new retractable roof for Centre Court . Design: Populous Wimbledon Centre Court Roof Wimbledon’s Centre Court roof is in use again today as Andy Murray plays in the Men’s final against Roger Federer. Centre Court Retractable Roof in position: Mixed Doubles: Andre Agassi & Steffi Graf v Tim Henman & Kim Clijsters Wimbledon Retractable Roof image : Neal Simpson/ AELTC Structure : hydraulic operation Material: translucent fabric – Tenara, 40% transparent Supports : steel trusses Fabric supplier: W.L.

Gore & Associates, Germany Structural Engineer: Capita Symonds Time to close the roof: max. 10 minutes Default position: open Centre Court Roof in position A Centre court celebration at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club Wimbledon. Date: Sunday 17/05/2009 Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof photo : Neal Simpson/ AELTC Andy Murray was involved in the first tennis match under the retractable Centre Court roof in 2009, against Stanislas Wawrinka during a weather interruption. Despite beating the Swiss player in five sets he found the humidity and slower pace of the tennis balls inside less than enjoyable. The 2012 final started at 2pm, with Andy Murray aiming to become the first British man since Fred Perry (in 1936) to win the men’s singles trophy and Roger Federer attempting to earn a record-equalling seventh title.

24 Jan 2012 Design: Populous – formerly HOK Sport Venue Event 20 Jun 2011 Wimbledon Centre Court Roof Wimbledon’s controversial Centre Court roof is poised to be put to use again today following a forecast of rain but the home nation favourite – Andy Murray – has refused to repeat criticism of the innovative structure after an unhappy experience when it was first used in 2009. Wimbledon Centre Court: Wimbledon Retractable Roof image : AELTC Andy Murray was involved in the first tennis match under the retractable Centre Court roof, taking on Stanislas Wawrinka during a weather interruption. Despite beating the Swiss player in five sets he found the humidity and slower pace of the tennis balls inside less than enjoyable. The fourth-seeded Andy Murray will probably play his first-round tennis match today against Spain’s Daniel Gimeno-Traver indoors, with south-west London having been beset by consistent showers since late last week and more set for today. Murray was careful not to criticise the use of the Centre Court Retractable Roof but explained that its closing dramatically altered the conditions for tennis usually expected on grass. ”It’s more humid. It slows the conditions down and the balls become heavier,” he said.

”At the time I was the first one to play a match under it, and that is what the indoor court does. It was a new experience for me, it was obviously great to get the match finished, if you can.” Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof Client : All England Club Material: translucent fabric – Tenara, 40% transparent Supports : steel trusses Fabric supplier: W.L. Gore & Associates, Germany Structural Engineer: Capita Symonds Time to close the roof: max. 10 minutes Default position: open Air control: 600 air distributors pump dry air into Centre Court to prevent condensation and excessive humidity Unveiled: Centre Court Celebration event, 17 May 2009 Original building dates from 1922, south facade retained Wimbledon in southwest London is the world’s premier tennis event and takes place every Summer in June.

Previously: Centre Court Retractable Roof Final phase of plan to transform the Centre Court London, UK, Tuesday 21 April 2009: The All England Club, Wimbledon, confirmed today that its new Centre Court retractable roof is on schedule to be ready in time for the Centre Court Celebration matches on Sunday 17 May, when Andre Agassi, Stefanie Graf, Tim Henman and Kim Clijsters will be the first players to play under the new structure. Final testing of the roof and air-management system is being carried out. The air-management system has a vital role in controlling and stabilising the internal environment within the bowl – essentially controlling humidity and preventing either condensation on the inside of the roof or sweating of the grass – either of which would make the court slippery and unsuitable for play. Ian Ritchie, Chief Executive of the All England Club, said: “We set out to make Wimbledon the world’s premier tennis event; the tournament the players most want to win, the tournament spectators most want to come to and the tournament everyone wants to watch. “The new Centre Court roof project has been a sophisticated engineering feat.

Much of the testing is complete and we are now making final adjustments ahead of the Centre Court Celebration event on 17 May.

That event is an important part of the testing procedure and will enable us to see how both the roof and air-management system actually perform under live conditions with a capacity crowd.” Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof – Technical Information 8 Litres per second of fresh air per person pumped into the bowl to manage the environment 9 Chiller units required to cool the air 10 Minutes (maximum) that the roof takes to close 10 Trusses holding up the roof 16 Metres – height of the roof above the court surface 30 Minutes – maximum time expected before play can start/continue after the roof is closed and the internal environment is controlled and stabilised 43 Miles per hour – wind speed up to which the roof can be deployed/retracted 77 Metres – the span of the moving roof trusses (width of football pitch = 68m) 70 Tonnes – weight of each of the 10 trusses without extra parts 100 Tonnes – weight of each of the 10 trusses with all extras – eg motors, locking arms 100 Percent of the roof’s fabric which is recyclable 214 MM per second – maximum speed of truss deployment 1

,200 Extra seats installed in 2008 3,000 Tonnes – combined weight (both fixed and moving) of the roof 5,200 Square metres, area of retractable roof when fully deployed 7,500 Wimbledon umbrellas, needed to cover the same area as the retractable roof 15,000 Maximum spectator capacity 143,000 Litres per second – total amount of conditioned air that the air-management system supplies to the bowl 290million Tennis balls – number that could fit in the Centre Court with the roof closed Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof – System Information – Type of folding fabric concertina, which allows the roof to be folded into a very compressed area when not in use.

– Fabric (Tenara) is a special waterproof structural material that is very strong, highly flexible and at 40% translucent is not transparent for players/spectators but will let in natural light. Around 5,200 square metres of fabric used. – Key element of the design allows natural light to reach the grass – brought about by re-contouring the fixed roof. – An airflow system removes condensation from within the bowl to provide good court surface conditions conducive to the playing of tennis when the roof is closed. – Roof is divided into two sections, with a total of nine bays of tensioned fabric – four bays in one section and five in the other. Each of the nine bays of tensioned fabric is clamped on either side to prismatic steel trusses. There are 10 trusses spanning approximately 77 metres across the court. Ends of each truss are supported by a set of bogies that move along parallel tracks positioned at either side within the new ‘fixed’ roof. – In preparation for closing the roof, one section is parked in its folded state at the north end of the court while the other is parked at the south end.

– The coordinated electro mechanical movement moves the trusses apart and, at the same time, unfolds and stretches out the fabric between the trusses over the court until the two sections meet in an overlapping seam above the middle of the court. – The arch shape to the tops of the trusses helps the structure to withstand their own dead weight and loading from elements such as snow and wind when the roof is stretched and closed over the court. – The roof has been designed to close in a maximum of 10 minutes. If the roof is being closed for rain, court covers will protect the grass in the usual way while closure is in progress. – After the roof has been closed, play can resume after a period of around 30 minutes, depending on climatic conditions.

Countdown to a new Centre Court – The Roof Timetable Championships Activity Centre Court Clubhouse renovated, new balconies added Centre Court South Stand terracing replaced Royal Box, TV/radio commentary boxes refurbished 2002 Centre Court terracing rows A-H replaced 2003 Gate 3: Demolition of old Wimbledon Museum Shop, Barclays Bank and turnstiles to make way for new Museum Building including Club offices January 2004 ” Announcement of new Centre Court retractable roof, increase in capacity to 15,000, new wider padded seats (470mm seat spacing) and new restaurants/bars for public and debenture holders 2004 Gate 3: Museum, Turnstile and Club Offices building concrete structure complete to ground floor level New ticket booths operational from Church Road 2005 Gate 3: Museum, Turnstile and Museum Building (Club Offices) concrete structure continues Diversion of essential services under and around Centre Court Centre Court terracing (rows J-T) replaced Design work on the new roof, North and East Stands well advanced 2006 Enabling and infrastructure works start to strengthen the court foundations and prepare for air-management system AELTC staff relocate to Gate

 3 Museum Building (Dec 2005) New Museum opens (Apr 2006) 2007-09 Roof model testing carried out in Rotherham 2007 Demolition of East Stand and old Club offices Removal of existing roof Piling and construction of new East Stand frame and floors East Stand rebuilt and terraces operational No roof on Centre Court Extra six rows of terracing completed Centre Court restaurants/bars in situ but not open – used as rain shelters 2008 Installation of new fixed roof East Stand building finished and fully operational Refurbished North Stand including Centre Court Debenture Rooms operational Completion of new public and debenture facilities within East and North Stands, including enhanced and extended dining/lounge areas for Centre Court Debenture Holders and 400-seat Wingfield Restaurant for public, 10 new hospitality suites Capacity rises to 15,000 with addition of 1200 new seats Installation of the first two moving roof trusses No.2 Court shell complete Completion of moving roof trusses Erection and completion of moving roof Fit fabric covering to sliding roof Commissioning and testing of roof and environment of Centre Court.

Construction of new permanent Gatehouses at Gates 4 and 5 Retractable roof and air-management system operational. All new wider, padded and more comfortable seats installed on Centre Court No.2 Court complete and operational Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof – Additional Information The new Centre Court roof comprises two distinct roof forms: the main fixed roof to the perimeter of the Court which is surmounted by a translucent retractable steel and fabric “concertina like” structure. The design for the fixed perimeter is modelled on the 1922 dodecahedron form which provides the distinct intimate Centre Court atmosphere with a droop down leading edge to focus spectators’ eyes to the action on the grass court. The use of the translucent fabric for the retractable element affords natural light into the arena and in part retains the open-to-air quality of the 1920’s stadium. The relatively lightweight steel truss and fabric retractable roof is set above the fixed perimeter roof so as not to impinge on the spectators’ view and perception of the grass court in either the open or closed mode. It also retains the 1922 dodecahedron roof form when viewed from the terraces below.

The roof is designed to provide appropriate playing conditions when the roof is deployed in adverse summer weather conditions; specifically:- – Light – the translucent Tenara fabric will permit adequate levels of light for play in most daylight conditions; where natural light fails to meet the levels required, it is supplemented by a bespoke design sports lighting system (permanently installed on the trusses), which has been designed to provide compliant light conditions both for play and for media coverage. There are 72 indirect, truss mounted sports luminaires and 48 direct truss mounted sports luminaires. On the turf, horizontal lighting level is 3,200 lux and on the vertical (for service and shots in the air) is 1,900 lux. – Wind – the roof can be safely deployed in wind conditions of up to 43 mph (69 kph). – Rainfall – the roof is designed to be weathertight. Rainfall on the fabric roof is rapidly dispersed to the two sides as the top profile of the roof is a curve; at the sides the water falls into gutters and then into the main surface water drainage system.

– Internal environment – the air systems are designed to firstly control and then stabilise the internal bowl environment at the specified levels (24 degrees C +/- 2 degrees C, with 50% +/- 10% relative humidity based on ambient conditions of 27 degrees C with 72% RH; if ambient temperatures rise, the bowl temperature will be maintained provided ambient RH levels fall), to prevent condensation on the inside of the roof or sweating of the grass, and to provide a fresh air allowance into bowl of eight litres/second/person. – Seats – the new seats are padded and more comfortable. The seats are wider and the spacing between them (centre to centre) has also been increased. Wimbledon Centre Court Retractable Roof images / information from Populous, Architects To see all listed projects on a single map please follow this link . The Latest: Kuznetsova beats Wozniacki under roof | FOX Sports More The Latest: Kuznetsova beats Wozniacki under roof Andy Murray of Britain serves to Liam Broady of Britain during their men's singles match on day two of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Tuesday, June 28, 2016.

(AP Photo/Ben Curtis) Ben Curtis/AP Jun 28, 2016 at 2:43p ET 0 LONDON (AP) The Latest on Wimbledon (all times local): 6:35 p.m. In a first-round contest played under the Centre Court roof, Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Caroline Wozniacki 7-5, 6-4 in a match between two former No. 1 players. The 13th-seeded Russian, playing in her 13th Wimbledon, held off a late charge from the 45th-ranked Wozniacki, who was unseeded at a Grand Slam for the first time in eight years. Kuznetsova has reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals three times – in 2003, 2005 and 2007. The retractable roof was closed for the match – the third on Centre Court – after the first rain delay of the tournament. — 6:20 p.m. Because of rain, play has been suspended for the day at Wimbledon on all courts except Centre Court. — 4:55 p.m.

Two-time major champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki have started their first-round match at Centre Court with the roof closed. Play is still being delayed by rain on other courts. — 4:40 p.m. Didn't take long for the first rain delay of Wimbledon this year. Play has been halted on all courts Tuesday, Day 2 of the tournament, because of a shower. The retractable roof is closed on Centre Court, the only arena at the All England Club where play can proceed when there is wet weather. Due there next is a match between two-time major champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki. — 4:35 p.m. The first all-British men's match at Wimbledon in 15 years went as expected. Andy Murray was kept busy for 102 minutes by Liam Broady in winning 6-2, 6-3, 6-4. Murray wasn't broken, and broke Broady, ranked 235, four times in their first meeting. ''It's hard playing someone you know, but I did OK,'' Murray said.

— 4 p.m. Fourth-seeded Stan Wawrinka was extended to a fourth set before subduing American teenager Taylor Fritz to reach the second round at Wimbledon. Wawrinka, who had lost in the first round at the All England Club five times, passed the 18-year-old Fritz 7-6 (4), 6-1, 6-7 (2), 6-4 on Court 1. The 65th-ranked Fritz, making his Wimbledon debut, was the youngest man in the draw. Also advancing was Juan Martin del Potro, the big-hitting Argentine making his first appearance at a Grand Slam since the 2014 Australian Open after a series on surgeries on his left wrist. Del Potro, the 2009 U.S. Open champion now ranked 165th, beat Stephane Robert of France 6-1, 7-5, 6-0. — 2:30 p.m. Serena Williams began her Wimbledon title defense with a comfortable but tentative win over Swiss qualifier Amra Sadikovic, winning 6-2, 6-4 on Centre Court. Williams won the final point on a line call challenge.

The six-time champion barely served any better than the 148th-ranked Sadikovic, who was making her main draw debut in a Grand Slam at the age of 27. Williams' serve was shaky, she was broken once, and hit more unforced errors. But in her first match since her loss in the French Open final to Garbine Muguruza, Williams advanced to a second-round meeting with fellow American Christina McHale. — 2:15 p.m. Back on the same No. 2 Court where his Wimbledon campaign imploded last year, Nick Kyrgios behaved and beat Radek Stepanek 6-4, 6-3, 6-7 (9), 6-1 to open his latest run at the All England Club on Tuesday. The match really got interesting only when Kyrgios tried to finish it in the third set. He was broken serving for the match at 5-4, and was 5-2 down in the tiebreaker before squandering two match points and losing it. Kyrgios was warned for an audible obscenity in the changeover, and took out his frustration on Stepanek by rolling through the fourth set.

Stepanek, trying at 37 to become the oldest man to win a Grand Slam match since Jimmy Connors at the 1992 U.S. Open, didn't serve well enough and was always under pressure. Kyrgios was a Wimbledon quarterfinalist on debut in 2014, and departed in the fourth round last year in a loss which included a code violation for swearing and unsportsmanlike conduct against the umpire. He's seeded to meet Andy Murray in the fourth round. — 2:05 p.m. French seeds Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga moved into the second round of Wimbledon with straight-set wins. No. 7 Gasquet swept past Britain's Aljaz Bedene 6-3, 6-4, 6-3, while No. 12 Tsonga got past Spain's Inigo Cervantes 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-4. Gasquet reached the Wimbledon semifinals last year, while Tsonga made it to the semis in 2011 and 2012. — 1:10 p.m.

Leave it to showman Nick Kyrgrios to pull off a shot like this. The Australian hit a between-the-legs shot – a ''tweener' – from behind the baseline that sailed over Radek Stepanek's head at the net and dropped in for a perfect lob winner. The shot came in the opening game of third set, with Kyrgios already up two sets to love. Two years ago at Wimbledon, Kyrgios hit a tweener for a winning drop shot in his upset victory over Rafael Nadal. — 12:30 p.m. Nick Kyrgios has grabbed the early advantage in his intriguing battle of the generations against Radek Stepanek in the opening round of Wimbledon. The 21-year-old Australian took the first set 6-4 against the 37-year-old Stepanek, who is bidding to become the oldest man to win a Grand Slam match since Jimmy Connors reached the second round of the 1992 U.S. Open at the age of 40. Kyrgios, who reached the quarterfinals here in 2014, went up 4-1 before Stepanek fought back to 4-4.

Kyrgios then held for 5-4 and broke for t he set, and raced out to a 3-0 lead in the second set. Stepanek is making his 14th Wimbledon appearance. He made it to the quarterfinals back in 2006. — 11 a.m. Serena Williams and Andy Murray both face potentially easy opening matches against lowly ranked opponents on Day 2 at Wimbledon. Defending women's champion and six-time winner Williams opens play on Centre Court against 148th-ranked Swiss qualifier Amra Sadikovic, making her first appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament. Since winning last year's title, Williams has come up short in the majors, losing in the semifinals at the U.S. Open and finals of the Australian and French Opens. She needs one more Grand Slam championship to equal Steffi Graf's Open-era record of 22 titles. Murray, the 2013 Wimbledon champion, will be up second on Centre Court on Tuesday against Liam Broady, a British wild-card entry ranked No. 235.

It's the first all-British men's meeting at Wimbledon since 2001 and first at a Grand Slam since 2006. 0

Question: In 2009 which Swiss tennis player played the first match in The Championships at Wimbledon under the closed Centre Court roof, against Andy Murray?
Answer: STANISLAS WAWRINKA