Jamie Murray has revealed his concern over a ‘big change’ at Wimbledon which could impact the final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Alcaraz and Sinner, the two best tennis players in the world, are set to battle it out for the Wimbledon trophy on Centre Court later today.
The men’s singles final used to start at 2pm – but it’s been pushed back two hours to 4pm at this year’s Championships by the All England Club.
It’s because Wimbledon are keen to attract more of a worldwide audience, with the singles finals in SW19 now taking place at 11am New York time.
Given that the last Grand Slam final between Alcaraz and Sinner lasted five hours and 29 minutes – Murray says it would be ‘sad’ if the Wimbledon final had to be halted to close the roof due to bad light.
‘It would be sad if they had to stop the match’
‘They’ve obviously moved the final to 4pm for TV,’ Murray told Metro. ‘I guess for the [United] States, I guess for the BBC getting a primetime audience or peak audience.
‘That’s a big change. I think what would be sad about that would be if they had to stop the match to close the roof because of light and stuff.
‘It’s not right that I don’t think. But hopefully that doesn’t happen.’
Why is the Wimbledon final at 4pm this year?
All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton said: ‘We have adjusted the provisional schedule for the final weekend of The Championships with the ambition of improving the experience for all involved.
‘The move has also been designed with players in mind.
‘The doubles players competing in the finals will have increased certainty over their schedule and fans will enjoy each day’s play as it builds towards the crescendo of the ladies’ and gentlemen’s singles finals, with our champions being crowned in front of the largest possible worldwide audience.’
Murray predicts Wimbledon winner
Meanwhile, Murray believes that Alcaraz will defeat Sinner later today to land the Wimbledon trophy for the third year in a row.
‘The longer Alcaraz goes in the tournament, the harder it becomes to beat him,’ Murray added.
‘It doesn’t feel like grass is Sinner’s best surface… It’ll be interesting to see how it plays out but I can’t look past Alcaraz.
‘He tends to turn up in the big matches. I don’t see him getting to the final and laying an egg. His level and his ceiling is so high.
‘Alcaraz is the man to beat. He’s got more of an edge over Sinner than he’d have on a hard or clay court.’