This is unprecedented and, frankly, unfair. Although the men’s and women’s tournaments have moved to mark their territory and try to discourage future bans on political issues, the points deduction is clearly more of a short-term blow to the players than to Wimbledon, which has been buzzing with full crowds after a lighter-than-usual first few days and continued to generate global buzz. (Kyrgios vs. Djokovic won’t hurt there.)
But it was also a Wimbledon full of strange twists and major disappointments, with three top men’s players, including Matteo Berrettini, pulling out after testing positive for coronavirus and Nadal failing to play his semi-final against Kyrgios and continue his quest for calendar – the annual Grand Slam tournament. One of the twists: Elena Rybakina, born and raised in Russia and often still training there, is in the women’s final and now represents Kazakhstan. Even the British government failed to complete the tournament, with British ministers resigning en masse before Prime Minister Boris Johnson got the hint.
However, Djokovic had his semi-final to play and the tension didn’t last more than a set and a half on Friday before he found his flow against Britain’s Cameron Norrie and cruised to the final with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
It was, as is often the case with Djokovic, two against one: Norrie and the partisan crowd on Center Court against Djokovic.
It was strong, often thunderous, in the early stages as Norrie took the lead, but it is much less clear which way the crowd will be blowing on Sunday. Kyrgios’ often confrontational approach and expletive-ridden dialogue (and monologues) run counter to the codes generally accepted at the All England Club, whose crowd is aging, especially on Center Court.
Kyrgios, who leads the tournament in fines, also faces legal trouble as he has been summoned to appear in court in Australia on August 2 over an assault charge by his ex-girlfriend. He refused to respond to the accusations at Wimbledon, and on Friday, when his name was mentioned in Djokovic’s on-court interview, there was a brief wave of applause, followed by much louder boos.
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