2011 Tennis Tour to Wimbledon - Umpiring with Tony G
The Tennis Tour 2011
By Tony Glentworth - 07/07/2011
As I sit back here I the land of the midnight sunset, I look
back over the last 12 months and wonder how I came to be here. Half
a world away from my family and home, and feeling for my fellow
Cantabrians as they endure the ongoing effects of mother
nature.
Midnight Sunset Sweden
Last year my trip to London, for Wimbledon Qualifying, was a
step into the International Tennis scene that has brought great
rewards for my officiating career and NZTUA. Following the
Commonwealth Games, where the Chief umpires from the LTA were able
to see that New Zealand had International quality line umpires, we
were able to get three umpires accepted into the Wimbledon
Qualifying event this year.
3 Kiwis in the Wimbledon Qualies
Christine Mcknight (centre), who forged an international
reputation before taking time out to have her children, returned to
work even with a broken arm, suffered just before leaving home.
Matthew Burrell (left), originally accepted for Wimbledon
Qualifying and two other events during Wimbledon in England, was a
welcome late addition to the Wimbledon Main draw only 3 days before
the start of the event. His shock at being asked was evident as he
succumbed to silence and forgot to finish his lunch. I was accepted
into Wimbledon Main draw on the initial acceptance list and had a
bit more time to get used to the idea than Matt had. I was also
assigned to work at the Nottingham Challenger event prior to
Wimbledon, to help get my eye in on grass, and then planned a
sojourn to Sweden to take in a two week event in Bastad (pronounced
borshtar) on clay courts. It is from there that I am compiling this
report.
Nottingham Challenger
My arrival in England on the 3rd of June broke the
drought they had been experiencing and was to be the start of a
very wet 3 weeks. Arriving at Heathrow at 6am, direct from
Christchurch via Sydney and Singapore, I caught the tube to
Wimbledon Park, where Jane's cousin (Kevin & Jane Scoon) was
providing a bed and storage for my excess luggage for the first
couple of weeks. Off to Kings Cross Station for the train to
Nottingham. Unfortunately the air conditioning broke down and we
endured +30oC for most of the trip. Coming from
10oC in Christchurch barely 36 hours before meant it was
sweaty hot ride. On arrival I was met by a tournament car, a brand
new Jaguar, and taken into the Tennis centre. There I was
introduced to Maureen, who was filling in for Andrew Wynne, the
Chief Umpire, until Monday. I was then taken to my accommodation, a
very nice little B&B about 20mins walk from the tennis. Uniform
was issued and I unpacked ready for my first week of grass court
tennis.
Tony G - Chair Nottingham
The Nottingham Challenger is a fortnight of tennis with both
weeks hosting a Men's & Women's event at the same time. The
Women's event has higher prize money and attracted a good draw. We
worked the first few days as a 3 person crew with the Chair umpire
calling the baselines. On these grass courts the chalk flew nicely
so it was easier to call the base from the chair, the baseline was
also 4 inches wide which also made the job a little easier. After
getting through the first day with only one rain delay, we were not
so lucky over the next week. Most days had matches unfinished due
to rain and put pressure on umpires to work longer. I worked 4 days
as a chair umpire and would have had more chairs if the rain had
not caused matches to be postponed. The last match I had in the
chair involved the Tournament top seed Monica Niculescu as she won
6/1 6/2. This match brought out a couple of quotable moments from
her opponent. Having lost a point on the opposite baseline, dust
flew up and she asked why I called the ball out, "there is a
difference between dust and chalk, and that ball was clearly long"
was my reply, to which she answered, "and someone just happened to
throw some random cocaine at the back of the court, is that what
you saw?" Later in the match she was heard to chastise herself for
hitting the ball into the net, "the net is so small and the space
above is infinitely huge, how come you keep hitting such a small
target?"
The week finished with the Women's Singles and doubles being
played indoors, and other events having to play finals on the
Monday at Birmingham and Queens. One noticeable player to come
through the men's draw and look to be playing well on grass was
Australian Bernard Tomic, he lost the semi-final to the top seed
Jeremy Chardy in 3 sets over 3 hours. A good warm up for Wimbledon
as it would later show at the Championships.
Nottingham by Bike
Away from the tennis I was able to hire a bike and see a fair
bit of Nottingham and the surrounding shire. Canals and the river
Trent form a big part of this city, its heritage, and development.
I saw many canal boats and they offer a great way to see much of
the country also giving you a unique way to travel. I went to
Nottingham castle and saw the museum and history surrounding the
"real" Robin Hood. There is still a Sherriff of Nottingham and it
has been a woman only recently. I did not get into the Sherwood
Forrest, but that will be for another day as the rain stopped me
from cycling too far.
Wimbledon Qualifying
After the Nottingham finals, I caught a ride to London with
Robert Smith, an English umpire who has been out to New Zealand and
officiated at the Auckland WTA & ATP events. I unpacked at the
Scoon house and looked forward to catching up with Christine &
Matthew at Roehampton the following day.
Monday of Qualies dawned grey and it looked likely that we
wouldn't start on time. As it turned out this was to be the longest
time on court for the year so far; 435mins on court as we worked
80mins on and 40mins off until the end of play at 8.30pm. The
Wimbledon Qualies event is very international with many of my
umpiring friends from around the world working here, from over 40
countries. The English officials are usually getting ready for
Wimbledon, or working at the Eastbourne event. Whereas last year we
finished the qualifying event on the Thursday, this year we came
close to carrying over until the Sunday, with the last 3 matches on
Saturday night finishing at around 8.30pm. The Roehampton courts
are at the Bank of England grounds and are also home to the Head
office of the International Tennis Federation. During the week I
moved to a Guest house in Putney where I would also stay during the
first week of Wimbledon. As this week was punctuated by long
days and rain, it was not easy to get to any sights in London.
Sunday I picked up most of my uniform for Wimbledon, including the
stylish blazer that signifies you have become one of the elite who
has worked at the Wimbledon championships and chilled out at a
movie. Sunday evening was the International Officials cocktail
party hosted by the LTA, with 39 new officials this year it was one
of the biggest they had hosted and Jenny Higgs, Wimbledon Chief
Umpire, welcomed us all to the 125th Wimbledon
Championships and wished us all a successful fortnight. Steve
Ulrich, USA Gold Badge Chair umpire, provided the entertainment
with a comedy sketch that was tennis related and hilarious, a
career change maybe?
Wimbledon Week one
Arriving at SW19, 20th June 2011 - Wimbledon, home of
the 125th Championships, was a very proud moment. To
walk in the gates surrounded by 300 other officials, some who were
also here for the first time, sent a shiver down my spine as this
is the realisation of a dream. To umpire at what many consider to
be the premier event in world tennis should be the aim of any
aspiring official. A tournament steeped in tradition, matches that
have formed folk lore, battles carried out on the halloed grass
courts at this prestigious address. Would this year produce some
matches worthy of being included in the annuals of Wimbledon
Tennis? Like last year's match between Isner & Mahut over 11
hours and so many records set on the now famous court 18. This
year's draw saw these two playing again in the first round! Surely
not on court 18? Not with the same Umpire? No, they were scheduled
on the new show court 3, and it was a tame match by comparison,
Isner winning in 3 sets. My first day at Wimbledon was on Court 7,
if the day ran to completion it would see Marina Erakovic playing
last on that court, what a chance to be on court with the only kiwi
in the draw!
First Wimbledon Crew
My crew chief, Nitin Kannamwar (far left) from India, knew me
well and put me on serve for the first match, calls straight away
got me into the swing of it and the day seemed to go buy quickly,
until the rain came at 4.30pm and we were released at 8.30pm. Day
one down and some time to reflect on the experience, rest and
recharge for the coming week. Tuesday was to be that only day
during the week that my crew didn't get rained off at some stage
(it rained during our off court time!), rotations on court 11 and
the evening was spent at the ABTO (British tennis officials) awards
cocktail party. The only time you attend a function in full
uniform, as they honoured officials who had given 25 & 40 years
service at the All England Club. Kath Lovell who has travelled to
New Zealand on many occasions, was given her 25 year award and the
Jenny Higgs, Wimbledon Chief Umpire, was awarded with the 40 year
award. Days 3 to 5 went by with rain and time running off court so
not to get caught by the covers coming across! I got to view some
matches on centre court and we had a special photo on the Friday
with all the officials on centre court, a big undertaking by the
photographer who probably needed a wider lens, as he was half way
up the stands to get us all in J Saturday saw Alex Eason &
Jenny, business associates from Christchurch, come to the tennis
and it was good to catch up with some faces from home. I had been
surviving on Skype calls home to Jane & Samantha, mostly
everyday but sometimes we didn't connect. We finished the matches
on Saturday and even with all the rain, Wimbledon was still enough
on track to not make us work the Sunday. Yay first real day off for
over 3 weeks. What does one do on the day off in London? As I had
moved from the Guest house on the Thursday to stay in South East
London, I thought it was probably best to head straight into the
heart of London.
Thames Bridge
The Thames river boat cruise, down to Greenwich Village and take
it from there. A visit to the Prime Meridian 0o
Longitude, centre of the Universal Time Clock, sunny day, lots of
Londoners out in the parks and greens around enjoying a British
summer. Washing and ironing done ready for week two, Alison
& Gerry, my hosts for this week live in Shirley, East Croydon
and nearby is a park in the Addington hills. Yes, in walking around
these parts you can see where Christchurch got a lot of the suburb
and street names we use. The difference in the Addington hills were
the Foxes, something I had not seen on my previous trip to London
but became very familiar whenever I ventured out to the parks and
even at night around the streets.
Wimbledon week two
Phew, a heat wave arrived on Monday; 30oC when you
are wearing a blazer and tie can prove to be a very sticky day.
Forecast thunder storms did not arrive until Tuesday, and when they
did, they came with vengeance, even causing the players on centre,
under the roof, to flinch with the volume and proximity. As first
year officials we get a rating of L4, because we have previous
grand slam experience we get utilised as service line officials but
do not get to work show courts. To be considered you have to
receive a rating of L2 or L1. This may take 2-3 years of working at
Wimbledon to get this rating and if you make L1 you would be
considered for centre court. So the second week we worked the
junior draw and doubles on outside courts, including a doubles
match with Jaden Grinter (WAIK), we both came a long way to end up
on the same court at Wimbledon. Still got to see some great tennis
and during an off court time I was lucky enough to be on Court 1
watching Bernard Tomic as he almost upset eventual champion Novak
Djokovic, signalling to the Tennis world that he had arrived and
joined the elite final 8 club at the All England Club. My time at
the championships came to an end all too quickly and the last day
all the international Officials spent the day saying our goodbyes
and watching tennis on the show courts. We were there in case it
rained and they needed to open up more courts but at 6pm we were
given our cheques and released. Time to see how I can fit all this
uniform into the suitcase for the trip to Sweden and then home. A
nice email arrived offering to upgrade my flight home to business
class, a big thank you to Qantas if it comes off, not only will it
mean sleep on the way home, but the extra baggage allowance could
be a life saver! To fly in the top deck of the A380 would be a
great way to cap off the trip. First there is a trip to Copenhagen
to get ready for.
Public transport in any city is never usually straight forward,
but London has to be one of the best, plenty of tubes, trains, and
buses get you where you need to be usually with little fuss and on
time. Getting to Heathrow from Wimbledon proved to be just like
that, in fact arriving an hour early for my flight check-in is not
my usual style! Just as well I did as I needed to negotiate my
extra luggage as I decided to bring my Wimbledon uniform home, all
£4,000 worth. Paying extra to get the bag to Sweden and back was
cheaper than storing it at Heathrow, just for future reference.
Bastad - Collector Swedish Open WTA
I arrived in Copenhagen on a BA flight that I would describe to
my daughter as a 3 bounce landing, and not pleased with being stuck
in the back row where the seats don't recline. British Airways need
to check if their passengers are priority seated with their One
World partners. I would consider where they put me to be the worst
seat on the plane (Isle seat, next to the toilet, back row). Saving
grace was the short flight to Copenhagen. At the Airport it was
trying to work out how to get to Bastad (pronounced borshtar) by
train. They run every 40mins and take about 2 hours to go up the
west coast of Sweden. 221 Danish Krona (about $50 NZL), some help
from a nice station attendant and I was aboard. Travelling through
the bread basket of Sweden, lots of grain fields and farms, up to
the coast, it was a great trip and it was nice to be met with by a
driver with my name correctly spelt on a sign board.
Bastad Hotel
Immediately this little resort town reminded me of a cross
between Hanmer Springs and Picton. About the same size as both of
those two towns combined, nestled on the coast of the North Sea,
the Tennis centre forms part of a resort hotel and has 6 clay
courts, two with stadium seating and the centre court seats about
3,000 with big corporate boxes and marquees.
Game On - Bastad
The first week here is the WTA Tour event, with the World No1
Caroline Wozniacki as the top seed. Our accommodation is in private
housing rented by the tournament and we pay per room. Very nice
house, about 25 mins walk uphill from the tennis centre. As I am
here for 2 weeks I will probably hire a bike for the first week.
The weekend sees us down to umpire the qualifying event and I am
doing chairs first day, 16 years since I have umpired on clay, I
had few problems adapting to the techniques required when working
on this surface.
A Kiwi Icon in Sweden
It seems every-day here there is something going on, a real
festival atmosphere around some tennis happening on-court as well,
a bit like tennis's version of sevens rugby but more people watch
the players here. The uniform is very stylish and the umpires are
mainly from Sweden, with notable exceptions of 3 Australians
(James, Tom & Catherine), and Milena Sapula from Poland who has
stayed with us in New Zealand when she has come out to umpire over
the last couple of years. We are getting down to the Semi-Final
stages and the centre is abuzz with the withdrawal of Wozniacki
yesterday and the possibility that two Swedish players will play
off for a spot in the final on Saturday.
Wozniacki on Centre Court
Next week is the ATP Men's event and I leave on the Friday, a
day sight-seeing in Copenhagen before the long trip home via
London>Singapore>Sydney>Christchurch. It will be 46 sleeps
by the time I get home, a challenge for my 6 year old daughter to
count them down from the day I left.
This year I decided to track my on-court time in the chair and
on lines. Some of the stats make interesting reading. To date I
have spent just under 10,000 minutes on court and 21 days as a
Referee, a total by the end of this tour that will equate to 79
days at tennis events in 7 months. My average chair time is 96mins,
my longest match 170mins, average time on court per day is
220mins.
In looking back I feel extremely lucky to have had this
opportunity to step onto the world stage and look forward to many
more chances to enjoy travelling and umpiring. In future I would
like to be able to take my family with me and it is only with their
support that I can do this. I would also like to thank SPARC and
the Prime ministers Scholarship fund for the support for this trip
and the endorsement from Tennis New Zealand in making this trip
possible as well. There are many other people who made this trip a
reality and they know that their input and support is greatly
appreciated.
The next few months see me back in Christchurch, teaching a
course in Hawera and possibly more travel later in the year
(Australia & Turkey?). We also wait for the Olympic
applications to be released, the Australian Open selections and of
course the opportunity to work at the ASB Classic and Heineken Open
in Auckland 2012.
Watch this space for more on travelling NZ Tennis Umpires.
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