The Wimbledon Championships were set to reach fever pitch this weekend — with organisers hailing “unprecedented” demand from fans hoping to see history being made.
Tunisian star Ons Jabeur, 28, is aiming to become the first African or Arab female winner of a Grand Slam when she competes in the women’s final on Centre Court on Saturday.
Jabeur will face Czech player Markéta Vondroušová, the first unseeded woman in the Open Era to make it to the final. In the men’s tournament, many fans were hoping for a “young v old” clash in the final.
Defending champion Novak Djokovic, 36, could face the rising star of the game, 20-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, if they can get through their semi-final matches on Friday.
It comes amid surging numbers of fans attending the tournament, with the first five days of competition the most attended since before the pandemic. Sally Bolton, chief executive of the All England Club, said: “There has been incredible demand from the public to join us here at Wimbledon for the championships 2023.
“We’ve had an unprecedented number and we’ve been particularly pleased to see international guests return this year with a significant number of tennis fans joining us from the USA, Germany and Italy. We want Wimbledon to be for everyone and that’s why we are one of the few major sporting events to allow thousands of on-the-day sales ranging from Centre Court tickets to grounds passes.”
This year, 252,022 people came to Wimbledon in its first five days — the highest since 2019 when 256,808 people attended between Monday and Saturday. The first Monday — when 42,815 people attended — was the busiest first day since 2015, with more than 7,000 people in the queue by 7am.
Some of the spectators at this year’s tournament were royal with Queen Camilla, the Princess of Wales and Zara and Mike Tindall among those enjoying the action.
Star names in the crowd have included David Beckham, his son Romeo and his girlfriend Mia Regan, model Cara Delevingne, actors Letitia Wright and Sienna Miller, sports stars Dina Asher-Smith and Jill Scott, and singer Jessie J.
The excitement was building as:
- Tickets for the men’s final on secondary selling sites were going for as high as £19,000 each.
- £412,132 was raised during the first 10 days for the British Red Cross in Ukraine via a pledge by the All England Club to donate £1 for every attendee to the cause. This is expected to top £500,000 by Sunday.
- 1,000 Ukrainian refugees were hosted at the championships.
- And an additional £200,000 was expected to be raised for charity via the ticket resale scheme.
Figures suggest Wimbledon contributes £198.9 million every year to the London economy, making it the most valuable annual sporting event in the country. The study — by Sheffield Hallam University — suggested £74 million was brought into the boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth over the two weeks. Adrian Mills of the Wimbledon Village Business Association, who owns Thai Tho in Wimbledon Village, said: “It feels like we are back to the good old days. Speaking to other business owners, for hospitality it has certainly been exceptional.”
Jabeur’s win in the last four saves the Princess of Wales from having to present a Wimbledon trophy to a Belarusian player linked to a key supporter of the war in Ukraine. She knocked out Aryna Sabalenka, 25, who has been photographed hugging Russian president Vladimir Putin’s closest ally, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
However, there is still potential for an awkward moment at the tournament.
Daniil Medvedev, the last Russian standing, was taking on Alcaraz in the second of today’s men’s semi-finals.
There are no British players left in the singles tournaments, but hopes of a home champion at Wimbledon are not entirely dashed. Briton Neal Skupski and Dutch partner Wesley Koolhof are aiming for success in the men’s doubles final tomorrow. He said winning Wimbledon would be the “holy grail” and added: “To be in the Wimbledon final is extra special for me, being British. It is always nice to have a Brit at the end of the tournament at Wimbledon. Luckily, it has been myself in the last couple of years in the mixed doubles. But this is the one we want... the pinnacle.”
Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid have made it to the doubles wheelchair final, with 17-year-old Henry Searle in the boys’ singles semi-finals and Hannah Klugman, 14, and Isabelle Lacy, 17, through to the girls’ doubles semi-finals. The weather is set to be turbulent over the final weekend — with rain predicted tomorrow. But Sunday, the last day, is due to be fine and clear.
