Tim Henman wants Wimbledon to 'get rid of one rule' that he says disrupts the competition
BBC commentator Tim Henman would like to eradicate one particularly jarring nuance across Wimbledon matches.
A former professional tennis player himself, who reached six Grand Slam semi-finals (the Australian Open being the only one he couldn't get past the Fourth Round in), the 51-year-old was enjoying a match between Arthur Fery and Grigor Dimitrov when he made the admission, which many fans will probably agree with.
His suggested rule change pertains to the break that allows tournament participants to nip to the loo during a match.
After Fery's Bulgarian opponent won the second set to make it 1-1, the young prospect disappeared from Centre Court to change his clothes, but this didn't go down too well with the courtside Henman.
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"Once you get to the area that you're going to change your clothes, you get five minutes," he said. "There's a couple of little changing options just behind those doubles doors behind Centre Court.
"For me it's a break that you'd like to get rid of, but unfortunately if it's a bathroom break, or playing in these hot climates around, which you'd probably put London into it now, I think you've always got to give the players that opportunity," he conceded.
"But it does disrupt the rhythm, and therefore the momentum of these matches sometimes."
In the end, Fery prevailed over Dimitrov 7-5 3-6 4-6 6-4 7-6, leading to a quarter-final battle against Italian star Flavio Cobolli tomorrow (July 8).
Elsewhere at the Wimbledon Championships, eight-time champion Roger Federer made headlines for remaining seated in the Royal Box when everybody else had seemingly rushed off for cocktails.
Reacting to a shot of him alone surrounded by empty green seats, one social media user wrote: "Class personified. I don't even have the words to say how much I admire him. And tennis isn't even my favourite sport."
A second person went on to pronounce it the 'image of the tournament'.
"It's 8:50 p.m. at Wimbledon. All the sheep, stuffed with champagne, have deserted the Royal Box. Only one remains. Federer. Out of respect for the players, and especially for the last Roland-Garros champion. The ultimate elegance," they shared.
"Federer reminds us that respect for the game is most evident when the cameras are no longer seeking anyone out," a third tennis fan responded. "Staying until the end to salute the players' effort speaks louder than any speech. It's this kind of detail that explains why his aura transcends the titles."
All hail King Roger.
Dan Seddon