Wimbledon: a feast of tennis in store

As is my annual ritual, I went to the Wimbledon Tennis Qualifying Tournament last week at Roehampton. And, as always, it was brilliant. I took my deckchair and my picnic, and the weather was perfect.
And, as usual, we saw some great tennis. Notable players such as Taylor Townsend, Adrian Mannerino and Nikoloz Basilashvili were forced to play three qualifying matches to gain entry into the tournament proper. Other big names such as Marton Fucsovics and Cristian Garín fell short, except that Fucsovics qualified as a “lucky loser”. Lucky losers replace anyone who drops out of the main draw, usually due to injury.
I sat next to a man in the picnic area who was wearing a University of San Diego sweatshirt. His son, Oliver Tarvet, is a student at that university on a tennis scholarship. The father was bursting with excitement that his son, world ranking 719, had got through to the third round. Players need to win three rounds to qualify. He explained that, as a college student, Oliver was classed as an amateur and could only get expenses such as hotels and flights up to a maximum of £7,300. For getting to the third round, prize money amounts to £44,000. Winning the third round and getting into the main tournament represents £66,000, even as a first round loser. So, the unfortunate Oliver must give the prize money minus that £7,300 back to Wimbledon.
As I left, I wished him and his son luck for the next round against world no 181 Alex Bolt. At the third qualifying round, the male players play best of five sets and the atmosphere is intense as players are desperate to get into Wimbledon itself. And Oliver had never played a five-set match before. I didn’t hold out much hope for him.
However, to my amazement, I read the following day that he beat Bolt in four sets.
His first opponent at The Championships was world number 506 – and a former number 117 – Leandro Riedi from Switzerland, and he got through that match in straight sets, which takes his prize money to £99,000. Perhaps he should turn pro now and just bag the money, except he says he loves his Uni and wants to complete his final year, although it must hurt. However, having got through that match, he’s likely to draw Carlos Alcaraz, the holder, in the second round.To play Carlos Alcaraz on the centre court (which is certainly where it would be staged) would be an unforgettable experience for young Oliver Tarvet.
Looking ahead at the draw, there look to be some other intriguing early match ups. In the women’s, watch out for Victoria Azarenka vs Coco Gauff, Taylor Townsend vs Sophie Kenin, Naomi Osaka vs Qinwen Zheng, Ons Jabeur vs Jelena Ostapenko — all of which involve former Grand Slam champions or finalists.
In the men’s, look out for the wonderfully gifted Gael Monfils against Ugo Humbert and the British No. 4 seed Jack Draper in a potential second round match against the former US Open champion, Marin Cilic. A second-round encounter between Novak Djokovic and Britain’s Dan Evans would also be an entertaining match up.
The next couple of weeks are going to be a cracker. I have turned down all social invitations and will be watching the whole fortnight with curtains closed. I can’t wait.
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