Wimbledon, England—A controversial decision by Wimbledon officials forced the Ladies’ Singles final to be delayed by over two hours, causing many to wonder why the biggest match of the tennis season was pushed back to accommodate the Gentlemen’s Singles schedule when other accommodations could have been made.
Wimbledon 2018: Angelique Kerber Defeats Serena Williams and Wins Wimbledon
After her 6-3, 6-3 loss to Angelique Kerber in Saturday’s final, Serena Williams downplayed any controversy, saying that there was nothing the tournament could have done about it.
“Honestly, I just feel like it was a necessary evil,” Williams said. “Not knowing how this match would go, two hours, three hours, I don't think they could put the men's semifinal behind the women because they have to come back the next day. If the tables were turned, I would have—hopefully they would have done the same with the women. They would have put the women's semifinal before the men's final, if we had to come back the next day.
“If you look at it that way, it was probably really the only way to schedule it.”
On Friday at Wimbledon, a six-hour and 36-minute contest between Kevin Anderson and John Isner delayed the start of the second men’s semifinal so that it couldn’t be finished before Wimbledon’s 11PM curfew.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal returned on Saturday to complete their semifinal, with Djokovic winning 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(9), 3-6, 10-8.
Women's singles champion Kerber also believed that the tournament made the right decision. She said she was able to relax, despite the delay.
"I saw the whole match yesterday, the long match in the semis," she said. "I was actually expecting a long match before our match. I think that was the right decision, to put the match before us because they have tomorrow the biggest final. I was quite relaxed. I was trying to staying there, waiting in the locker room, getting ready for my final."
The men will play the final at 2PM on Sunday with Djokovic bidding for his fourth Wimbledon title against South Africa’s Kevin Anderson.