WIMBLEDON GHOST TOWN
Losses in millions as shops count cost of no tennis
DOWN at a windswept Wimbledon yesterday morning, some hedges were being cut while a few members, dressed head to toe in white, were preparing for a social hit.
Up in the village High Street, Kelly Duffy, owner and manager of Hemingways Bar — another venerable SW19 institution — was spending the tournament’s scheduled first day counting the cost of this year’s cancellation.
Not everyone in these parts has pandemic insurance, and the businesses close to the All England Club are feeling the big fortnight’s absence hard.
At this time of year, Duffy is usually busy welcoming locals, international visitors and some of the competitors, keen to commiserate or celebrate. In recent years, Nick Kyrgios and Dustin Brown have been among those in, while a function has been laid on for the Williams sisters.
‘You are paying West End rents around here, and I look to this period to cover that annual cost,’ admits Duffy. ‘It’s not just the fortnight, but the whole four weeks when Queen’s and the qualifying is on. People like to come from other parts to soak up the atmosphere.
‘Takings roughly quadruple this time of the year — it has cost me probably the best part of £100,000, so it’s a very big blow. But you have just got to carry on the best you can.’
Wimbledon’s abandonment is why, apart from the briefest of closures, she has kept the place open throughout lockdown doing takeaway food and pints, in compliance with her licence. For those who have supped there in recent months, it has felt like one of those wartime establishments that stayed open, come hell or high water.
She is getting together some tennis-themed artwork and menus to mark the fortnight, but it is not the same. On a blustery morning yesterday, it was clear how the local economy has been hit.
Some shops are open, others are shut and a few have closed for good. Two doors down, the high-end delicatessen seems to be doing OK but one of its most loyal customers this fortnight, Rafael Nadal, is nowhere to be seen.
The losses for the local economy will run into tens of millions. This includes the hundreds of homeowners who rent out their houses, from the odd room to whole places temporarily rented for five-figure sums to top players and their entourages.
At the All England Club, the Royal Box is protected by scaffolding, but there was at least some activity yesterday with the BBC preparing its studio to host its nightly programme fronted by Sue Barker.
Back in late March when meetings were being held to call off The Championships, even this seemed highly doubtful.
It is interesting to reflect that the talk then was of the club being handed over to the NHS as an emergency facility. Here we are now and its borough, Merton, recorded just two new Covid-19 cases last week among its 206,000 residents.
Tim Henman, on site last night for the opening BBC show, is also on Wimbledon’s main committee and was one of those who reluctantly made the decision to cancel the tournament.
‘I still really can’t believe it’s not happening,’ he told Sportsmail. ‘The decision had to be made and it left me feeling a bit numb.
‘If I’m honest, there’s part of me that can’t wait for this fortnight to be over so we can get cracking on 2021’s Championships.’
NICK KYRGIOS has launched a scathing attack on Alex Zverev after the World No7 was filmed flouting Covid-19 lockdown guidelines.
Zverev pledged to selfisolate for 14 days after testing negative following his participation in the Adria Tour event that sparked a flood of positives, including host Novak Djokovic. But at the weekend, 23-year-old German Zverev was shown partying at a crowded restaurant near his Monte Carlo home.
‘How selfish can you be?’ asked Kyrgios, who is never afraid to speak his mind. ‘If you have the audacity to f***ing put out a tweet saying you’re going to selfisolate and apologising to the public about putting their health at risk, at least have the audacity to stay inside for 14 days.’