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Time of India
09-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Wimbledon Diary: Auto rides & Fan cheers
Asha Rai, Resident Editor of the Times of India, Bangalore, has been a journalist for over 30 years. Having started her career with the Economic Times she was amongst the first to capture the entrepreneurial energy unleashed by the tech sector in Bangalore in the 1990s. In the process, she captured, through her writings, the transformation of the city from a sleepy town to a bustling, global tech hub. She enjoys reading, travelling, movies and sports, especially football, but above all a good conversation over a coffee. LESS ... MORE A jazzed up, illuminated version of our humble auto rickshaws are plying their trade at Wimbledon. As the nearest tube stations are a good 20-30 minutes' walk away from the grounds, and in slightly uneven terrain, a handful of autos are willing to save you the uphill/downhill climb. Of course, at a steep price. Pound 20 for a mile-long ride. Most give it a pass. But those in the spirit of attending the Championships or caught out by the rain or the very hot temperatures, do hop onto them. Strawberries & Cream Cost of living crisis has caught up even with Wimbledon's most famous staple. For the first time in 15 years the price has been upped by 20 pence from pound 2.50 to pound 2.70. This is for a small portion, mind. Not that there seems to be a drop in the number of people buying it. About 1,40,000 punnets are sold every year. That's roughly about two million strawberries! A punnet is a small container that is used to hold a portion of strawberries. The English media has been documenting the increase in price of almost all food and drink at the grounds this year. But given that Wimbledon is one of the rare sporting events that allows you to bring in your own food and drink, those on a budget do just fine. Fans at Centre Court The Italians are the most cheerful and the loudest. The Carlos Alcaraz – Fabio Fognini matchup on Day1 where the latter, playing his last Wimbledon, took the defending champion to five sets provided the perfect setting for full-throated support. `C'mon Fabio' was often accompanied by 'Vamos Fabio.' Given that Vamos is Spanish for 'Let's go' one wondered if it was aimed as much at Carlos as Fabio! Then there are the Serbs. Given that Novak Djokovic is a demi-god if not a sporting God to them, they make for a very partisan support base. Cheers for Nole (Novak's nickname) rend the air for every good play as much as bad. The latter has been very rare so far. 'Let's go Nole, let's go,' is a favourite as are some Serbian chants. Djokovic's current 'pump-it-up' win celebration has his fans mimicking it during the closing stages of the match. Box behaviour One can tell who a higher-ranked player is or has been on tour for a long time from the behaviour of the respective player's boxes, especially in the 'show courts.' The more famous, seasoned pros' boxes are generally rather quieter with not loud cheering and pumping of fists. They obviously have been here before and pretty much seen it all – the ups and downs during a match/tournament. Week 1 has seen fancied players and seeds bite the dust, or should we say the `grass?' The reaction was muted either because they are stunned or just resigned. Alexander Zverev, the 3rd seed, who crashed out in the very first round, in a big upset, kept gesturing helplessly to his box as his famous serve came undone throughout the match. The lower ranked, the less fancied, have a more animated support group. Instructions flow ceaselessly in between games. More friends and family turn up as it's a rare chance to be able to sit in a player's box in Centre court or Court No.1. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Time of India
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Wimbledon Diary
Asha Rai, Resident Editor of the Times of India, Bangalore, has been a journalist for over 30 years. Having started her career with the Economic Times she was amongst the first to capture the entrepreneurial energy unleashed by the tech sector in Bangalore in the 1990s. In the process, she captured, through her writings, the transformation of the city from a sleepy town to a bustling, global tech hub. She enjoys reading, travelling, movies and sports, especially football, but above all a good conversation over a coffee. LESS ... MORE Why no India? A Kazakh journalist making small talk in between games at the Centre Court casually asked me: How many Indians in the main draw? Zero, was my sad reply which drew a startled 'Oh' before he went on to reel off the names of the five Kazak players of whom I could only name check Elena Rybakina. The 2022 Wimbledon champion is Russia born but switched to Kazakhstan in 2018. Still. He then said, 'there are lots more playing in juniors next week.' He then wanted to know of Indian tennis: 'What happened?' What, indeed? AILTA? Royal Box roll call Wimbledon has perfected the art of packing the Royal Box with celebrities of all ilk. In fact, it merits a press release of its own. Sports and movie stars get the most attention. Day1, naturally, is full of British celebs. Sir David and his mum shared the front row with the former English football coach Gareth Southgate. Later in the day royalty arrived in the form of Princess Beatrice and her mum. Day 2 has Oscar-winning actor Cate Blanchett, members of the British media establishment like the editors of Daily Telegraph and the Sun. A puzzling entry `Mr & Mrs Vim (Pooja),' CEO of Barclays, UK perhaps referred to Mysore-born C. S. Venkatakrishnan, who is, indeed, the CEO of the British bank and his wife. The English & their Qs The most interesting and admirable attendees are far removed from the royal box. It's those who queue up for hours and many overnight to get into the grounds. A process exacerbated by the relentless heat of 30 degrees plus beating down on them as they stand for hours in the meandering queue. On Day 1, 10,000 queued up. This is because Wimbledon is one of the very few big sporting tournaments where you can buy premium tickets, albeit in limited numbers, on the day of play. Non-transferable and one per head, about 500 tickets are sold for what's dubbed as the `Show courts': Centre Court (excluding last four days), No.1 Court, and No.2 Court and then of course, ground tickets. People are allowed in till the 42,000 crowd limit is reached. The Hill Those with ground passes and without access to the show courts sit at Murray's Mound (the name changes depending on which British player is ascendent. It used to be Henman's Hill in the 1990s when the then British No. 1 made it to four semi-finals). It's also called Raducanu Ridge after Emma, the former US Open winner who is the current No.1 British female player. Its proper name is the Aorangi terrace. The Maori roots of the terrace is another story, altogether. On a giant screen flanked by equally large, mounted green gardens you can catch live action sitting under the Sun and drinking Pimms. A Wimbledon institution, it's a popular destination for picnics, too. Actually, Hill is an euphemism for a magnificently manicured, rising lawn. Made even more attractive by it being flanked by two famous bars: Pimms' on the Hill and Perfect Serve. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
