| The Miami Herald WIMBLEDON, England -- Raindrops sprinkled from the sky here at 4:35 p.m. Monday, and rather than a collective moan echoing from Centre Court, there was a thunderous, enthusiastic roar. "Roof! Roof! Roof!" the fans chanted as they closed their umbrellas and pointed their cellphone cameras toward the heavens. SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS That (and a forecast for more showers) was all the prompting Wimbledon organizers needed to put their $140 million new gadget to use. The translucent retractable roof slowly began to close, and for the first time in the tournament's 115-year history, grass court tennis was played indoors. The state-of-the-art roof took eight minutes to close as No. 1 Dinara Safina and former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo waited for their fourth-round match to resume. Mauresmo led 6-4, 1-4 when play was halted. There was another 20-minute delay as the air-management system and lights kicked in. Though the weather cleared up almost immediately, and outer court matches resumed, organizers left the roof closed for the remainder of the match, which Safina won 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. They kept it shut for the following match between British hero Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka, a thriller that wound up lasting nearly four hours before Murray wrapped it up 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. The match ended at 10:39 p.m., setting a record for latest Centre Court finish. Before Monday, the latest match was a 1981 women's doubles contest that finished at 9:35 p.m. Murray, trying to become the first British man to win Wimbledon in 73 years, said he benefited from the amplified crowd noise but took a while to get accustomed to the atmosphere. Temperatures reached 88 degrees Monday, and the heat inside the stadium was oppressive. "The conditions with the roof are very different to playing with it open", Murray said. "It's very, very heavy and very humid. I was sweating so much. I know it was hot outside, but we were sweating a lot. I noticed it very early. Both of us were trying to get white towels from the locker room because your hands were drenched. When I finished, it was like I'd been in a bath." GETTING ADJUSTED He said the humidity affected the way the ball traveled: "It kind of slowed it down a lot, and I struggled to serve because it wasn't coming off the strings that quickly. I like playing indoors, but I haven't ever practiced or played a match under a roof on grass, so you don't know what to expect. It took me a little while to get used to it." Ian Ritchie, chief executive of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, told the BBC: "We've been waiting for the roof for so long, it's the first time ever at Wimbledon somebody's waiting for rain. But we'd still prefer the sunshine." And don't expect U.S. Open-style night sessions anytime soon. "Wimbledon is a daytime tournament", Murray said. "It's very good to have the roof so I could finish the match this evening and not have to come back to finish, but I quite like it being a day event." Others who advanced Monday included Roger Federer, Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic, Venus Williams and her sister Serena. The Williams sisters are the only American women left after 17-year-old Melanie Oudin had her fairy tale run halted by Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, 6-4, 7-5. Oudin, a 124th-ranked qualifier from Georgia, was the youngest American woman to reach a Wimbledon fourth round since Jennifer Capriati made the quarterfinals in 1993. "I gave everything I had, and she played a really good match", Oudin said. "She played very smart, made me run as much as she possibly could. I like the way she plays. Very crafty, lot of different shots. Good defense. My hat's off to her. I'm disappointed I lost but proud of myself how I did here. It's another step I'm taking. Now I know I can play with these girls." Venus advanced when a sobbing Ana Ivanovic retired with a thigh injury. Williams led 6-1, 0-1 at the time. Serena made quick work of Daniela Hantuchova 6-3, 6-1. Federer served 23 aces to eliminate Robin Soderling 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5). Federer, who beat Soderling in the French Open final, improved to 11-0 against the Swede. "It was sort of a serving contest out there", Federer said. "Not many rallies, so maybe not as much fun for the people. But I stayed calm, waited for my chance, and thank God I came up with a good forehand when I had to in the breaker." Federer's next opponent is 6-10 Croatian Ivo Karlovic, who served 33 aces to beat Fernando Verdasco. Karlovic hasn't lost serve in four matches. Roddick hit 24 aces and cruised past Tomas Berdych, who hadn't lost a set before Monday. "I'm having so much fun", Roddick said. "The honor of playing in this place and this setting has never been lost on me." MUTUAL RESPECT Next up for Roddick: 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt, who rallied from two sets down to beat Radek Stepanek. "I have loads of respect for Lleyton and what he's been able to accomplish", Roddick said. "Everyone knows he is certainly capable of playing very, very, very well on this surface." The respect is mutual. "You know you're going to get aced out there", Hewitt said of Roddick. "You know he's going to come up with big shots. You've got to weather the storm and take those small chances when you get the opportunity."
(c) 2009, The Miami Herald. Visit The Miami Herald Web edition on the World Wide Web at http://www.herald.com/ Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. A service of YellowBrix, Inc. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Related News Topics:
Top sports stories
General sports briefs
Other sports news
Mixed Sports News and Releases
Sports photographs
News of the UK
Miscellaneous sports news
Miscellaneous sports news
News of Europe
News of the British Isles
|
