The Wimbledon Finals 2023: A Shift in Schedule
The Wimbledon finals this year have seen a notable shift in their schedule, strategically planned to cater to the global tennis fanbase. The women’s final, where Iga Świątek convincingly defeated Amanda Anisimova with a score of 6-0, 6-0, occurred two hours later than the traditional 2 p.m. local start time. This adjustment has been made to better align with the viewing preferences of audiences around the world, ensuring that as many fans as possible can catch the tournament’s marquee matches.
Changes to the Finals Schedule
This year’s modifications also included a precursor to the women’s finals—the men’s doubles championship, which took place beforehand on Centre Court.
“We have adjusted the provisional schedule for the final weekend of The Championships with the ambition of improving the experience for all involved,”
remarked Sally Bolton, CEO of the All England Club, when announcing the changes last October.
The objective of these adjustments is to provide men’s doubles finalists with clearer scheduling while maximally enhancing fan engagement throughout the play.
“Fans will enjoy each day’s play as it builds towards the crescendo of the ladies’ and gentlemen’s singles finals, with our champions crowned in front of the largest possible worldwide audience,”
Bolton added.
Upcoming Matches
Looking ahead, the men’s singles final featuring Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner is set to commence at 4 p.m. local time (11 a.m. EST in the United States). Before that, the women’s doubles final will kick off at 1 p.m. local time, with Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko taking on Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens.
Controversies and Innovations
Tennis scheduling has become a contentious issue lately, especially highlighted by the occurrences at the French Open earlier this year. The tournament faced criticism for its handling of women’s match timings and was reported to have declined Amazon Prime’s request to air Loïs Boisson’s fourth-round match during the more lucrative night session.
In addition to the schedule changes, this year’s Championships have also seen the unprecedented decision to eliminate line judges for the first time in 147 years. Automated electronic line calling was deployed for all main draw and qualifying matches, placing Wimbledon on par with the U.S. Open and Australian Open in terms of technology use—contrasting with the French Open, which continues to use line judges. However, the new system has sparked controversy, particularly after Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova lost a game due to an accidental deactivation of the technology mid-match.
