Rafael Nadal sent a brief shiver through Wimbledon before it had even started when he took a tumble in practice, which is not unusual on fresh grass, and dismissed it later as: “Nothing: I am good.”
Yet the meticulously manicured courts that make Wimbledon so alluring for millions of fans and a chessboard challenge for those hoping to win the oldest prize in tennis still constitute a seething green sea of doubt for the man who owns clay – even though he is a two-time champion at the All England Club.
Asked again about his recent observation that it was unfair for Roger Federer to be moved above him in the seedings to No 2 behind the defending champion, Novak Djokovic, because of Wimbledon’s emphasis on grasscourt results, Nadal – who almost beat the Serb to reach the final a year ago – said tetchily: “I came here to play tennis.”
He added: “For me the goal is the same always: it doesn’t matter if I’m second or third. [But tennis] is not only about grass. The season is not only on grass. All the players work so hard to be where they are, then arrive here, they see [they might be] in a tougher draw because of that.
“If I believe that is fair or not, that’s another story. I personally believe [it] is not. But I respect the tournament so much, the history of this event. I understand they see the sport from another perspective. They want to do it by their own rules.”
After placating his hosts Nadal – who plays his first match against Japan’s Yuichi Sugita on Tuesday - shifted some of the blame on to the ATP, for allowing Wimbledon to do what they want with the seedings. “We give two thousand points to this event. We are supposed to have something to say about [these] Wimbledon rules when we are giving them the maximum points possible in one event.”
As it happens, Nadal is on course to meet Federer in the semi-finals, the winner probably facing Djokovic in the final on Sunday week – if the natural order of things is not disturbed.
Federer, obviously, loves these lawns, having won eight titles, and disputed the recent view that they are playing more like hard courts.
“Maybe for some, they feel it’s not far from hard,” said the 37-year-old Swiss, who opens against the South African Lloyd Harris on Tuesday. “I think it’s still quite different. The movement requires different talents. I believe also the way the ball bounces, the way it takes the spins or not, is quite a change still. Every year they get better and better, so it’s easier to play from the baseline – especially I would say the first week. [But] it’s still a huge change to hard courts.”
And playing it from the baseline much of the time will be Djokovic, the defending champion and world No 1, who plays Philipp Kohlschreiber on Monday. He revealed he was 17 the first time he played on grass – in trying to qualify for Wimbledon – but the surface holds no fears for the champion, who is seeking to move alongside Björn Borg with five titles.
“I’ve always been a baseline player but grass is the quickest surface in sport and unique. It makes you come in more, try to use short balls and slices and chip returns. You need more variety in your game. Everything happens very quickly. This surface requires more hours spent on the court training than any other, to get used to it. Probably the most radical change is coming from clay to grass. But over the years I guess you get used to it.”
Ever the historian, he added: “We have only a month a year, maybe five weeks, when we play on grass. It is the most historic surface and the most traditional. Of course this tournament is sacred. That’s why you feel special and different than playing on any other surface on the Tour.”
One day, surely, Félix Auger-Aliassime will make history here but, even if the Canadian teenager is being ushered towards the prize with unseemly haste, he appreciates the hunger for change, while profoundly disagreeing with the notion that the Big Three are there for the taking.
Midway through a phenomenal summer, A-A – as he is known by those still struggling to pronounce his double-barrelled name – arrives in the main draw for the first time and his realistic hopes are to make the second week. The 19th seed starts his campaign against his compatriot Vasek Pospisil on Monday, in the same group of 16 as Djokovic. He will probably have to beat the former quarter-finalist Grigor Dimitrov, the 16th seed Gaël Monfils and the 21st seed David Goffin to get anywhere near the Serb, so his caution is justified. “They are not going anywhere just yet,” Auger-Aliassime said of Djokovic, Nadal and Federer.
If they played on green cheese, these three would probably still be the main contenders for the Championship. None of which will matter a lot once the draw settles down, disturbed briefly when Borna Coric withdrew with an abdominal injury, giving a place to the lucky loser Brayden Schnur.
