It is the most highly-regarded Grand Slam and the most prestigious tournament on the tennis calendar, and Wimbledon commences on the 27th of June, 2016. Roger Federer and Pete Sampras hold the joint Open Era record for most titles here with 7 each, and Federer will be participating again this year.
Over its nearly 150-year history, the tournament has been host to some brilliant moments.
We profile ten of the best:
Roger Federer’s first ever Grand Slam, 2003
21-year-old Swiss sensation Roger Federer won his first ever Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003, beating Australia’s Mark Philippoussis in the final. Seeded fourth at the tournament, Federer beat American ace Andy Roddick in the semi-finals before meeting the tall Australian in the final.
It would be the first chapter of the Swiss’ long-standing love affair with the Championships.
Goran Ivanisevic wins as a wildcard
Croatia's Goran Ivanisevic was a powerful player. He had made the finals at Wimbledon on three prior occasions – in 1992, 1994 and 1998 – but never been able to win the title. By 2001, his ranking had dropped low enough that the Croat entered Wimbledon as a wildcard.
That did not stop him. The then-30-year-old pulled off a series of stunning upsets – over three top 10 players in quick succesion, begining with Marat Safin, Tim Henman and in the finals, Patrick Rafter. Ivanisevic would fight Rafter in a closely contested five-setter to take the first and only Grand Slam title of his career, and cried at the venue.
Boris Becker wins Wimbledon at 17
German former World No. 1 Boris Becker, then only a teenager, had not yet turned 18. On the cusp of adulthood, the German was unseeded at the 1985 Wimbledon Championships, and up against some of the best in the sport, many would not have fancied the teen’s chances.
Becker beat Frenchman Henri Leconte and two top-10 Swedish seeds – Joakim Nystrom and Anders Jarryd – en route to meeting American finalist Kevin Curran, whom he beat in four sets to become the youngest ever Grand Slam champion. It was an Open Era record that would later be broken.
Martina Hingis becomes Wimbledon's youngest ever winner
The Swiss Miss is now considered one of the most prolific in the women’s game, and at 17, she was already World No. 1, having won that year’s Australian Open and made the finals on the clay courts of Roland Garros, eventually losing to Iva Majoli.
Top seeded at Wimbledon in 1997, Hingis blazed past her opponents to register a three-set victory over Jana Novotna – dropping only a single set – which was in the final, en route to the title.
She became the youngest player in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam title, oustripping a record German ace Boris Becker had set before her.
John Isner beats Nicolas Mahut in the longest ever match in Wimbledon history
American John Isner and his French rival Nicolas Mahut, both known largely for their big serves, were drawn against each other in the first round of Wimbledon 2010. Their match began fairly routinely, with each player taking a 6-3 set, Isner the first and Mahut the second.
With the players now level at one set apiece, they went two whole sets without a single break of service, with Isner winning the third and Mahut the fourth, 7-6 each time.
The players went to a fifth set – one they were forced to play the following day, with their match halted due not to bad light but simply, darkness.
While the US Open follows a tiebreak deciding set method, the other Grand Slams do not – and with the fifth set also seeing no break of serve, it went on for another day (the third) with Isner finally taking the fifth set 70-68, and with it, the match, which went down as the longest in the history of the tournament.
Leander Paes win’s India's first Wimbledon title with Mahesh Bhupathi
Indian players had not had much success at Grand Slams until Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi burst onto the scene to take a spate of titles in quick succesion. Prior to 1995, only Ramesh Krishnan had won at Wimbledon – but even he had won it as a juniors player.
But in 1999, Indian sporting sensation Leander Paes put paid to that – taking two titles at the tournament. Winning the men's doubles with longtime partner Mahesh Bhupathi – the first of the pair’s Grand Slams together, he took the mixed doubles with American player Lisa Raymond.
Sania Mirza wins India’s first women's title at Wimbledon with Hingis
The Indian ace, who had not found much success during her singles career, saw a resounding comeback in the doubles, and one that has proved immensely fruitful following the beginning of her partnership with Swiss former No. 1 Martina Hingis in early 2015. Together, the pair won the women’s doubles titles at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2015, following that up with a 2016 Australian Open win.
Mirza and Hingis’ title win at Wimbledon last year marked the first time an Indian woman had been in a title victory at the Championships – although Leander Paes had already taken the title there five times prior.
Her win marked a breakthrough for both Mirza and women’s tennis in India.
Arthur Ashe becomes the first person of colour to win Wimbledon
Former World No. 1 Arthur Ashe overcame a number of obstacles, most key among them serious racial prejudice in the United States when he grew up, to excel at his sport. Slightly built and weak, Ashe grew up in a racially segregated area and was taught tennis from a young age.
Joining the professional circuit in the United States at the height of segregation, Ashe was prevented from playing Caucasian players – or from using any common facilities that were also accessible to them.
Not only was the American known for his skill, but became a paragon of on-court ettiquette and sportsmanship.
In 1975, Ashe beat compatriot Jimmy Connors to become the first ever person of colour to win the title at Wimbledon, paving the way as he broke barriers after having seen racial segregation firsthand.
The Queen returns to Wimbledon
As per Wimbledon custom, the Queen of England occupies the Royal Box to watch players on Centre Court. However, current reigning monarch Queen Elizabeth had not visited the venue since the 1970s; but that all changed at the Championships in 2010, when Andy Murray took on Finnish player Jarkko Niemenen – and won.
Watching him from the Royal Box was a visitor who had not been present at the tournament for 33 years, watched Murray win.
You cannot be serious!
John McEnroe was known as much for his brilliant tennis as he was for his foul temper, and the former World No. 1 has gone down in history for this incident.
At the 1981 Wimbledon championships, the American was playing compatriot Tom Gullikson in his first round match. He was completely unhappy with a line call, and let his displeasure with the line judge be known quite clearly to the crowd.
According to McEnroe, the ball had been in, but the line judge had called it out. And at that moment was born the iconic McEnroe phrase “You cannot be serious!”, with the American shouting repeatedly at the line judge saying that chalk had flown up.
He was awarded a fine instead, and the moment has gone down as one of tennis’ most ill-tempered moments.
