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Wimbledon's organizers incurred the anger of tennis fans after the much-awaited clash between Andy Murray and Stefanos Tsitsipas was halted mid-match due to poor scheduling.
On Day 4 of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, only two completed matches took place on Centre Court.
Fourth seed Casper Ruud and home favorite Liam Broady featured first, commencing their match at 1:30 pm local time. The pair engaged in an enthralling five-set encounter which saw Broady claim a 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory after three hours and 27 minutes.
Elena Rybakina and Alize Cornet took the court next, with the defending champion coming through with a 6-2, 7-6 (2) win in an hour and 48 minutes.
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Subsequently, the highly anticipated clash between Andy Murray and Stefanos Tsitsipas took the stage on Centre Court. However, with the match thrillingly poised at 6-7 (3), 7-6 (2), 6-4 in favor of the Brit, play was halted at 10:38 pm local time in order to adhere to the strict 11:00 pm curfew.
Several fans raised questions about the decision to start play on Centre Court at 1:30 pm, considering the curfew regulations.
"Start at 1. It makes absolutely no sense to start at 1:30 given the strict curfew," a fan tweeted.
"Starting play on centre court at 1.30pm seems to be held over from when the average match length was considerably shorter. They used to start the whole event at 1pm every day. Probably not sustainable with matches getting longer and longer," another fan chimed in.
Tennis journalist Jose Morgado criticized the Wimbledon's scheduling, highlighting the issue of the Grand Slam not being able to complete three matches on Centre Court.
"Something is terribly wrong with your schedule when you can't play three full matches on your main stadium. And there weren't interruptions. And one of the matches was a Women's Singles straight setter. Not a good look," he posted.
Here are a few more fan reactions:
How Andy Murray and Stefanos Tsitsipas' Wimbledon 2R clash played out before stoppage
Andy Murray advanced to the second round of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships after defeating fellow Brit Ryan Peniston 6-3, 6-0, 6-1 in his opener. Meanwhile, Stefanos Tsitsipas came through with a hard fought 3-6, 7-6 (1), 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (10-8) win over Dominic Thiem.
Both Murray and Tsitsipas made strong starts to their second-round clash, with neither player suffering a break of serve in the opening set. The Greek put on a strong showing in the tiebreak to edge out the home favorite and claim the lead of the match.
The second set played out in a similar manner. However, it was Andy Murray who emerged victorious in the tiebreak after committing only two unforced errors over the course of the set.
The two-time Wimbledon champion maintained his high level of play in the third set, claiming the lead of the match at 6-7 (3), 7-6 (2), 6-4 before play was halted.
The match between Andy Murray and Stefanos Tsitsipas will resume play on Centre Court on July 7. It will take place after the conclusion of Carlos Alcaraz's clash with Alexandre Muller.
