10 to Zen: Wimbledon 2015 Musings
wimbleDONE ? Well, not yet.
The dust has barely settled and the euphoria is yet to dampen.
Wimbledon 2015 was by far the most exciting edition of the most prestigious Grand Slam for more reasons than one. From brilliant matches to stunning upsets and controversies, it had it all.
While Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams were the crème dela crème of Wimbledon, there were other players too who earned their fair share of limelight. Dustin Brown, Richard Gasquet, Garbine Muguruza, Leander Paes, Sania Mirza, Martina Hingis and Sumit Nagal contributed to the joy and entertainment over two weeks of pulsating tennis.
The Great Roger Federer was constantly under the gaze; even after the Final when he walked past Novak Djokovic and his wife Jelena in the corridor.
John McEnroe and Boris Becker made a U-turn with their views. In 2013, John McEnroe had chosen Rafael Nadal as the Greatest Of All Time. Boris Becker had expressed not-so-flattering views on the Federer-Djokovic camaraderie in his book.
After the Final, both of them hailed Federer as the Greatest Of All Time.
All said and done, this is definitely the Age of the Novak and the Era of the Williams.
This year’s Wimbledon has forced all experts and tennis buffs to ponder over some profound questions that will have a bearing on the future of the Sport.
10. Is more Indian glory in store?
In 1990, when Leander Paes first shot to limelight by winning the Boy’s Singles Championships at Wimbledon, both Edberg and Becker played an epic Final for the coveted Men’s Singles Championships. 25 years later, Paes is still bagging Grand Slams while Edberg and Becker watch over their respective star wards as Coaches. He has been the torchbearer of Indian tennis and is the only Indian to have achieved 700 career wins.
Sania Mirza, the Golden Girl of Indian Tennis, had a great run with Cara Black in 2014.
With Martina Hingis by their side, 2015 has been even better for both Paes and Mirza. Paes won his fourth Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Title with Hingis and Mirza won her first ever Wimbledon title partnering the Swiss Miss.
Rohan Bopanna did make a commendable effort by reaching the Semi Final of the Men’s Doubles Event with partner Florin Mergea. Sumit Nagal’s first title in the Boy’s Doubles event proves that the future of Indian Tennis is in safe hands.
9. Is 33 the new 23?
Though the question is now a cliché, it resurfaces time and again.
The Men’s top 20 is crowded with players in their 30s. With Federer at the helm of the ‘Thirties Club’ the field includes David Ferrer, Stan Wawrinka, Gilles Simon, Jo Wilfred-Tsonga, John Isner and Feliciano Lopez. Tomas Berdych, Rafael Nadal, Kevin Anderson and Richard Gasquet will be joining them soon in less than a year.
At the age of 33, both Federer and Williams, by reaching the Wimbledon Final, have defied age and still have the zeal for more Grand Slam victories. Anderson, Gasquet, Wawrinka and Simon made a deep run too in this Wimbledon.
8. For how long will Andy Murray play second fiddle?
Andy Murray has been among the Big Four for a long time now. However, he has been unable to claim the Numero Uno position. Having played second fiddle for a majority of his career to the triumvirate of Federer, Djokovic and Nadal, he yet again failed to go the distance and win another Home Slam.
With Nadal down to No.10 and Wawrinka among the Big Four, the possibility of Murray rising to No.1 still looks bleak. He will have to play a sensational hard court season and follow it up with another US Open title win in order to have a chance to usurp Djokovic’s throne.
With Djokovic in such ominous form, the Numero Uno position for Murray is a far cry.
7. Are the Rising Stars still rising?
More than a year ago Nick Kyrgios, Jack Sock, Borna Coric, Grigor Dimitrov and Dominic Thiem earned themselves the tag of Rising Stars. A year later they have failed to achieve the kind of consistency and level that Nadal, Federer, Murray and Djokovic achieved to win Grand Slams in their early 20s.
Though Kyrgios still looks promising and did much better than the rest at Wimbledon, his on-court antics and tanking still make one wonder whether he is ready to break into the next level.
Among the women Alison Van Uytvanck, Timea Bacsinzsky, Karolina Pliskova, Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys have been quite promising but still have a long way to go.
6. Where does Rafael Nadal go from here?
After yet another forgettable visit to SW19, Rafael Nadal has a lot to think about going into the hard court season. Following an upset at the hands of Dustin Brown, Nadal was a hapless victim to analysts and former Grand Slam Champions. While some hint at a change of fortune with a coaching change, the rest have resorted to writing him off for good.
Knowing Nadal’s ability to make a comeback when you expect him the least, the hard court season is a great chance for him to reinvent himself. With hardly any points to defend for the rest of the season, he can play freely on the court.