Wimbledon’s first week has been a rollercoaster. We have witnessed emotional moments, we have seen carnage on the court, and we have also seen the last of British tennis players at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. For this year at least.
Andy Murray, Cameron Norrie, and Liam Broady all suffered defeats in the span of two hours on Friday evening. All of Britain’s hopes rested on the shoulders of Katie Boulter. Unfortunately, with Boulter’s loss to number three seed Elena Rybakina, all hopes were dashed.
This is a new low for British tennis, with all players getting eliminated within the first week. Fans are rightfully upset at the dismal display at the All-England Club. Here are some of the fan reactions-
The state of British tennis. All out, no second week interest. Time to give the working class more of a leg up, but clearly it will never happen. All wrong. pic.twitter.com/4G3fr5Ior6
— Russ 🇬🇧 (@smiffy2609) July 9, 2023
All the positive talk about the state of British tennis over recent weeks yet not a single player into the second week of Wimbledon.
Potential is great. Top 100 world rankings are great.
About time they converted to some decent results in the grand slams. #Wimbledon
— Jonathan (@JonathanLCFC) July 9, 2023
I think I should stop watching tennis as I’ve jinxed all the British ones 😱 I do have a favourite that I’ve got going all the way to the final and that’s @carlosalcaraz I truly believe it will be Carlos vs @DjokerNole the young stud vs the old goat of tennis! 🎾 #Wimbledon
— 𝔽𝕠𝕩𝕪 🦊 🇺🇦 🌻💙💛 (@finefoxyfingy) July 9, 2023
You’ve just summarized exactly the state of British tennis. That is what’s happening week in week out. Opportunity for those with the 💷 and less so for the rest.
— Giuseppe (@MrGMDelgado) July 9, 2023
No doubt the BBC commentators will say how brave they’ve been and should be proud as usual. British tennis players are awful. Open your eyes 👀
— Turk-Frosty (@FrostyTurk) July 9, 2023
A dreadful outing for British players at Wimbledon
Andy Murray, the 3 time Grand Slam champion faced defeat at the hands of Stefanos Tsitsipas. Their scheduled match on Thursday had to be suspended after 2 sets due to rain. He had shown his trademark grit but it wasn’t enough as he faltered when it really mattered. Stefanos won the match 7-6, 6-7, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.
He had the crowd’s support when he was 2 sets up on Thursday. They cheered him on loudly when he slipped and fell on the court. The Scotsman could not repeat the previous night’s performance when their match resumed.
It was a disappointing outing for Murray, especially on the anniversary of his first Wimbledon title. In the post-match conference, he revealed there’s no guarantee he will return in a playing capacity.
Liam Broady had made it to the third round of the championship, defeating Casper Ruud in a sensational match of tennis. He took the route of the other two, just 90 minutes after Norrie. Denis Shapovalov showed him the exit despite the Brit winning the opening set. Shapovalov won the match 4-6 6-2 7-5 7-5.
“It kind of makes it worse that we’ve all lost on the same day. Obviously, I’d have preferred for us all to have won. Probably would have felt a bit better if we’d staggered what days we lost on, whereas now it’s a bit of a Debbie Downer, isn’t it?” said Broady.
British Number 1 Cameron Norrie swiftly followed Murray, who was defeated by unseeded Chris Eubanks. Norrie lost to the big-hitting American 6-3,3-6,6-2,7-6. Norrie had made it to the semifinals last year, but could not replicate his success this year.
Cameron gave credit where it was due. “I fought as hard as I could. I came up against someone who was really confident. He played great. So he definitely deserved to win the match.” said the player.
On Saturday night, the last remaining hope, Katie Boulter was overwhelmed by Elena Rybakina 6-1,6-1. With her defeat, Britain will have no players left to play in the second week of Wimbledon. It’s the first time this has happened since 2018.