After the challenges of yesterday’s downpour, for us in the forecast centre the men’s singles quarter-finals day has been a mostly quiet and rather surreal day.
It began for me with pink flamingos and the fan from St Helier, Jersey celebrating his birthday at The Championships in a psychedelic feel-good suit.
It continued with the youngest visitor I’ve seen to date whose birthday was only four months ago, baby Anoushka on her first trip to Wimbledon with parents Alex and Nicky from Esher, Surrey.
After that, there was the chance to sample some exquisite tennis in the second set of the Marin Cilic versus Gilles Muller match on No.1 Court before an indulgent pizza lunch.
In the press restaurant, we began gathering around the TV as Andy Murray’s exit from The Championships started to look imminent. With Murray not reaching for shots in the final set, the 1-5 chasm seemed insurmountable.
A kilted supporter, Sen Dhayalan originally from Glasgow but who’d flown in from New Zealand, shared his thoughts: “He should have won in three sets. He had enough in the tank.” But Sen also thought Murray had been below par all year.
Back in the office, shortly after watching what felt like a Roger Federer masterclass, we heard the news that Novak Djokovic had retired.
I’d watched the Federer-Milos Raonic match standing up. Announcing here for the most part is a sedentary job, meaning it’s all too easy to pile on the pounds. To make matters worse, today is the third time I’ve had the Fiorentina pizza which is freshly made to order.
To try and correct this further, I walk three times around the exterior of Centre Court.
Not as glam as being on it but at least my phone has bleeped its approval that I’ve reached my personal goal.
