Last Updated:
Marin Cilic has raised questions over the early start of his fourth-round clash that got underway at 11 am.
Marin Cilic reacts during his men’s singles fourth round match against Flavio Cobolli. (AP Photo)
Marin Cilic expressed dissatisfaction with the Wimbledon scheduling on Monday after his fourth-round match against Flavio Cobolli, which commenced at 11 a.m. local time. The 36-year-old Cilic noted he had to warm up indoors since the Wimbledon practice courts do not open until 9:30 a.m., and the No. 2 Court, where his match took place, was still quite soft due to overnight rain.
Play on the outside courts at Wimbledon starts at 11 a.m. (1000 GMT) throughout the fortnight, while matches on Centre Court and No. 1 Court begin at least two hours later. However, Cilic suggested that all singles matches in the fourth round should be scheduled later in the day.
“I don’t like to speak about the conditions. OK, I lost and everything. I have to accept it,” Cilic said. “But I feel bitter because why is there a need to play at 11?”
The Cobolli-Cilic match was the only one of the eight singles matches on Monday that began so early. Liudmila Samsonova’s match against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro followed theirs on No. 2 Court, while the other six matches were played on Centre Court and No. 1 Court.
“It’s raining overnight, and the court was quite soft,” Cilic said. “It was really difficult to play on. You just push the ball in the middle of the court, and the ball just stays super low. It was just a struggle.”
He lost 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3). Despite the defeat, Cilic had a relatively successful Wimbledon. The 2014 U.S. Open champion and 2017 Wimbledon runner-up is returning to top-level tennis after undergoing two knee operations and competing in lower-level Challenger Tour events this year to improve his ranking. He had to go through qualifying rounds to enter the French Open bracket, where he lost in the first round.
“I have great encouragement, happiness, positive attitude, and positive outcomes out of the tournament,” he said. “I found great form, played some fantastic tennis. Even today was quite close.”
A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you live updates, breaking news, opinions and photos from the wide world of sport. Follow @News18Sports
A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you live updates, breaking news, opinions and photos from the wide world of sport. Follow @News18Sports
- Location :
London, United Kingdom (UK)
- First Published:
