#wimbledon 2013

[bluespring864]

Wimbledon 2013 Wimbledon 2024

[nadiapodoroska]

ASH BARTY / CASEY DELLACQUA [d. A-L. Grönefeld / K. Peschke] | 2013 Wimbledon Championships Semifinals

[bluespring864]

Novak just called this match "a historic, special moment that I cherish" because of course he did.

Andy & Novak / Great game…

[willoughbywhispers]

Holly Willoughby attends the Evian 'Live Young' Suite at Wimbledon on June 24, 2013 in London, England.

[vox-anglosphere]

A hearty Happy Birthday to Prince George from your future subjects!

[batsplat]

the way tennis to motogp pipeline is definitely a thing…….

switching to motogp really does highlight how a lot of those atp guys are just soooooo freaking boring in comparison. and I’m talking about big 4 and 00’s players here. current gen is so so much worse. horrible. abolish atp

*nods in agreement* I mean it's not a completely one-way street - obviously I'm never going to stop following tennis, I'm never going to stop PLAYING tennis, I want to do more coaching again in the future... and this stuff does come and go in waves, like 2019-2022-ish I was definitely drifting more from motogp to tennis again (minus going crazy on the motogp archives during the pandemic). but at the start of this year I did have a moment where I was like... no. enough. I do still follow women's tennis very closely!! but the state of the men's game looks SO dire right now headed into next season that I cannot even pretend to be mildly excited about the australian swing (which I usually am every year, in charlie brown trying to kick the football fashion)

but yeah honestly every time I revisit motogp it's this kind of... man, I am operating with crumbs when it comes to tennis, and then motogp is kind enough to hand you an entire buffet. and admittedly valentino does deserve a lot of credit here, also makes the other blokes more interesting, can't imagine what the sport would be like without him. but crucially, you do just end up with a far more interesting slate of guys. it's a shame because, again, I might be biased but I fully believe tennis as a sport has insane amounts of narrative potential. it's just... yeah, idk what's happened. it IS also a men-specific problem, like obviously noughties wta cooked insanely hard by every metric and the women's game is still plenty engaging since then. but still!! frustrating

also my thing is. okay so the women's game right now obviously also isn't feuds galore, the top girlies mostly get on fine and there's not TOO much of an edge there. but I still far prefer it to the men, and not just because I think the women generally have way more personality. it's also just... idk, I sometimes joke with my friends that I have a chart in my head with two axes that goes. x axis = skill; y axis = evil. or maybe not EVIL, just like. capacity for drama. and draw a line across the chart. and if you're under that line, I just can't deal with you. I love underdogs, I still root for a bunch of scrubs on the men's side who are journeymen or chokers or just kinda mid. same obviously with the women. but then at the top of the men's game, it's just?? these guys who dominate SO much and are SO good, but who quite frankly do not have enough narrative juice to sustain that kind of dominance. (okay maybe rather than 'evil', let's say 'narrative juice' as the y axis.) I'm not saying they're ALL so boring that I'd hate them if they were ranked ten positions lower, but given the chokehold first the big three then this current lot have had on the game... simply not good enough

whereas with the women, we've obviously had a chaos era or three, but now we have these women who are all like... really strong, really pushing each other forward, but also deeply imperfect! and I mean that in the best way possible. igatha with her rigidness and fragility and inability to step back when she's returning - who's so fucking good, but also constantly seems to be walking a mental tightrope and is currently in a bit of a crisis where her game is at. sublanko with her history of semifinal choking and serving yips and who's constantly visibly fighting herself on the court. the fascinating contrast that particular rivalry provides, not least in how they behave on the court. gauff, who constantly appears to have a major part of her game falling apart whether it's the forehand or now the serve - and who is overcoming that primarily by just making herself ridiculously hard to beat. I could go on, I mean where do you even start with ryba... all these current stars of the sport who really feel like they're here to stay - yeah, they're not cooking up complex feuds so it's never going to be COMPLETE brainworms territory for me, but I still find it deeply deeply compelling!! I love watching them play, I'm rooting for them to figure their shit out... but also not. like. too much. it's great to follow in sporting terms!!

and if you are going to be so dominant over the sport, so unyielding, so unblinking in your refusal to allow new major competitors to emerge for such an extended period of time... well, then, as far as I'm concerned you'd better be motogp alien levels of deranged. like, that's the bar for me. sure, then I can accept it. none of this awful 'oh well, the less talented guy lost his five hundredth consecutive slam final, what can you do' business, if you're going to suppress the less talented then at least do it with the ruthlessness and affinity for existential horror that valentino displayed towards sete. enough with pretending like crowds booing your opponents for having the temerity to challenge you is something you don't even notice - at least weaponise it like valentino did. tennis as a gentleman's sport is unbearable... I'm not a gentleman, I want mess. and if you're going to dominate, at least attempt to beat each other to death with hammers!! god. is that too much to ask for

[almostfantasy]

Rafael Nadal is quizzed on his Wimbledon knowledge

[carlitosalcaritos]

A little personal story about Madison Keys

So I got into tennis in 2013 as a 16 year old and my first ever live tennis event was Wimbledon in 2014. I went with my best friend and I was SO excited, I didn’t sleep the night before. We got there super early but there was still a HUGE crowd outside the practice courts. My friend and I were right at the back of the crowd, and we waited an hour without seeing any tennis players. We were tired and didn’t think we’d ever see any players or get an autograph from anyone. Suddenly Madison Keys appeared and we were absolutely buzzing even just to see a pro tennis player up close and in the flesh. She stayed for 30 minutes, making sure every single person in that crowd got an autograph or a picture, even though she was struggling with an injury and only 19 years old. Despite us being at the back, Madi spotted us and some other kids desperately trying to get an autograph and beckoned us to the front so we were able to get an autograph and a picture. Her kindness made me love tennis even more and the thoughtfulness she showed made me become a fan. I still have the photo and the autograph almost eleven years later and it’s one of my clearest memories. I am so so happy for her (Australian Open champion!!) as I remember her simple act of kindness for a young tennis fan and how it made me fall in love with the sport. ❤️

[bluespring864]

Tags by @crossedcourt <3

I will now run with them and write an essay because I am always insane about Novandy ;-)

Specifically I want to talk about the "yes i've beaten you on every surface" part. Because I've had a few messages and seen a few comments to the effect of "Wait, they are starting a partnership at the Australian Open of all places?! How many times did Novak beat Andy there?" To which the answer is: Andy lost four of his five Australian Open finals to Novak, three of them rather badly (two in straight sets, one with a fourth set bagel) and he also very narrowly lost probably the most epic match they ever played - according to both of them - which was the Australian Open semifinal in 2012.

While this would be devastating and a cause for animosity for many tennis players I need you to understand that THEY ARE NOT LIKE THAT. At their first meeting at an under-14 tournament, Les Petits As in France in 2001, which concidentally was Novak's first international tournament ever, Andy destroyed him 6-0, 6-1 (Novak: "You gave me one game!") and they still laugh about it to this day. If and when they do press for this new coaching partnership, expect this to come up a few times.

It has always felt to me like their modus operandi was: us against the world (Novak: “Sometimes we catch up for dinner. It’s good to see somebody you grew up with doing so well in professional tennis and it’s great to show to people that top-five players, who are big rivals on the court, can be really good friends as well.”) And it never really changed, even when Novak took a commanding 24-11 lead in the H2H over the years (I am only counting matches played and leaving out the fucking tragic walkover from Andy that prevented their last meeting from happening), after it briefly almost evened out in 2012/2013.

This attitude, of course, is rather impressive from Andy, who could very well be bitter about how differently their careers have gone, considering that they are such similar players who were born only one week apart and that there was definitely much more hype around Andy at the start of their careers (Novak said when they were both 18 and played doubles at, you've guessed it, the Australian Open, that he would and wouldn't like to be like Andy because on the one hand Andy had much more support than him at the time, on the other hand he had the crushing weight of expectations to contend with).

But instead of being bitter, for the last few years of his career you could hear Mr. Murray say things like: “It would be amazing to see him do it [win the 23d Grand Slam] on Sunday. I will be supporting him. And I hope he can do it. Because it is incredible what he has done.” or plainly "I'm happy for him, he deserves it." Or even: "After Wimbledon [2023], everyone was saying it was a changing of the guard, but it wasn't for me." Oh it wasn't for you? You are defensive over the man who has beaten you more than any other in your career being written off too early?

Even during that crazy year of 2016, when they were the two frontrunners in the rankings by miles and Andy was chasing the number one spot, what did he say after losing the only French Open final he ever played? Well, he started it off with "This is his day today. What he’s achieved the last 12 months is phenomenal." and not only told the audience they had been extremely lucky to see Novak make history once again, but also ended with: "I’m proud to have been a part of today."

Us. Against. The. World.

So that's Andy, but what about Novak? Well, not to be outdone he will mention Andy in almost every interview, even when he was very much not asked about him. He will remember the 2013 Wimbledon final which he lost in straight sets to Andy as "a historic, special moment that I cherish" and, on court at the ATP Finals 2016, after his own second half of the year had been rather dismal, he also explained to the crowd that they were part of history that day and that "It was an honour to be on the court and to be a part of the big occasion. Andy is definitely number one of the world. He is the best player. He deserved to win."

If asked about the best matches he has played with Andy he will readily mention the 2012 London Olympics semifinal. We all know how important the Olympics have always been to Novak (if you didn't before 2024, you certainly know now) and this was a semifinal loss at his beloved Olympics in straight sets. Let that sink in.

When Andy retired this year, Novak explained: “He will inspire many generations to come. He inspires me, and we are about the same age." He, who has just finished his career outside of the top 100 and in a doubles match because his body wouldn't even let him play singles anymore, inspires you, who has achieved more than any other in this sport? That's really lovely, Novak. Oh, and by the way, how about Andy becoming world No. 1 and ending Novak's longest stint at No. 1 in his career? Novak's post at the time: "I am really happy to be in the same era with you."

Us. Against. The. World.

So, to make a very long story short: If I was surprised about the coaching news yesterday it was because they actually went for it, not because it seemed outlandish to me in any way. As you can see, it makes perfect sense. I am really glad we are getting another chapter of this story which - according to Novak - is "A script, a long story. A romance, I’ll call it." after we previously were treated to - according to Andy - "Rivals, doubles partners, friends and lovers?" By the way, he still has that Instagram post pinned. Anyway, before I digress, let me conclude this by saying:

You thought their story was over? Think again.

[truly-sincerely]

ALEX RIDER (BOOK 1-5) TIMELINE

According to years given in Skeleton Key the books all take place in 2001. Alex Rider's birthday is February 13th, 1987.

Caveat: April 1st, 2001 was a Sunday and while it wasn't explicitly stated as being a Monday in the book, that's the day of the week that makes the most sense based on what events happened on what days. So I've based the days of the week on the 2002 Calendar year (Bonus: April 1st was also on a Monday in 2013 and 2019).

Dates marked with a tilde (~) are approximate

STORMBREAKER

March 12 - Tuesday - Alex told about Ian’s death

March 13 - Wednesday - Ian Rider's Funeral

March 14 - Thursday - Alex almost gets compacted in Ian's car

March 15 - Friday - Alex goes to "the Bank" where he gets tranq'd

March 16 - Saturday - Briefing w/ Blunt and Jones

March 17 - Sunday - Day 1 at Brecon Beacons

March 26 - Tuesday - Killing house (day 10)

March 27 - Wednesday - Big hike (day 11)

March 28 - Thursday - Parachute, gadgets, Yassen briefing (day 12)

March 29 - Friday - Arrives at Sayle Enterprises

March 30 - Saturday - Plays with Stormbreaker

March 31 - Sunday - Yassen arrives 2am, daytime quad bike attack (claustrophobia)

April 1 - Monday - Ceremony at the science museum of london

April 2 - Tuesday - Sayle Yassassinated

POINT BLANK

April 3 - Wednesday - Alex is back at school

April 5 - Friday - Alex commits crane crimes (dissociative episode)

April 6 - Saturday - Point Blanc briefing

April 9 - Tuesday - Fiona Friend plays the most dangerous game

April 10 - Wednesday - Horse vs train (claustrophobia)

April 13 - Saturday - Meets Mrs Stellenbosch, hotel in paris

April 14 - Sunday - Arrives at Point Blanc

~April 22nd - Monday - Hits the panic button

~April 23rd - Tuesday - Captured and monologued

~April 24th - Wednesday - Alex’s 2am escape and funeral

~April 25th - Thursday - SAS raids Point Blanc

May 1 - Wednesday - Alex and Julius death match

SKELETON KEY

Note: There are major timeline problems internal to this book that have repercussions on Scorpia's timeline. This is the only way I could make it make sense with Wimbledon.

May 7 - Tuesday - Summer Term starts

May 24th - Friday - Crawley approaches Alex about Wimbledon

May 27th - Monday - Alex starts training to be a ball boy

June 24th - Monday - Wimbledon Tennis Tournament begins

~June 1st - Monday - Fights the Big Circle gangster

July 13th - Saturday - Arrived in Cornwall for vacation

July 17th - Wednesday - Jet ski attack

July 22nd - Monday - Packed off to Miami

July 23rd - Tuesday - Mayfair Lady explodes

July 24th - Wednesday - Arrived on Cayo Esqueleto

July 25th - Thursday - Scuba diving, shark racism, sugar crusher

July 26th - Friday - Sarov tells Alex about Vladimir

July 27th - Saturday - The Russian president arrives (claustrophobia)

July 28th - Sunday - Refueling stop in Edinburgh, Murmansk

August 2nd - Friday - Jones and Blunt meet to debrief

August 3rd - Saturday - Sabina invites Alex to the South of France

EAGLE STRIKE

August 10th - Saturday - Bomb at the rental (panic attack), bullfight

August 11th - Sunday - Back in London, blows it with Sabina

August 12th - Monday - Gameslayer launch party

August 13th - Tuesday - Meeting Marc Antonio in Paris

August 14th - Wednesday - Spying on Cray in Sloterdijk (claustrophobia)

August 15th - Thursday - Sabina kidnapped by Cray

August 16th - Friday - Cray’s ransom demand

August 17th - Saturday - Eagle Strike

SCORPIA

September 7th - Friday - Alex arrives in Venice

September 9th - Monday - Masquerade at the Widow’s Palace (claustrophobia)

September 10th - Tuesday - School trip leaves Venice without Alex

September 11th - Wednesday - Consanto blows up, dinner with the Widow

September 12th - Thursday - Malagosto

September 24th - Tuesday - Told he’s being sent back to England (suicidal ideation)

September 25th - Wednesday - Football team dies at Heathrow, Alex doesn’t kill Mrs Jones

September 26th - Thursday - Alex attends COBRA, sent back to Scorpia

September 27th - Friday - Invisible Sword

October 5th - Saturday - Alex debriefs, learns about his dad, and gets shot

TV Show Timelines: Season 1 and Season 3 and John & Ian Rider.

Complete Yassassination Count (for both TV and books)

Post where I talk about my methodology

[tashiduncandonaldson]

thinking a lot about the in-universe world of challengers and what tennistwt and tennisblr would've been like. the random "i miss art donaldson" text posts during the time art's getting surgery and recovering from his injury. the tashi duncan's best wimbledon looks tweets. the qrt discourse over calling her tashi duncan or tashi donaldson after she and art get married. the photo edits of art that emphasize how the blue of his eyes match the blue on his kit. the compilations of tashi reacting to every time art crashed out at shanghai in 2013. the rpf fics written about art and andy murray.

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

I'm glad Kate isn't attending. It's a little icky to me that BAFTA tried to put public pressure on her to attend with that story to the Daily Mail. I think it sets a dangerous precedent if Kate did go to BAFTA this year, and other organizations would start leaking PR to force her support.

It worked for Wimbledon last year, so I guess BAFTA tried their luck, and lost even William attending

W&K attended in 2023, it also fell on the half term, but it was the 2nd weekend

I feel like Wimbledon is different. Kate always goes to Wimbledon - the only year she missed it was 2013 when she was expecting George. So the question last year wasn't will she/won't she, it was "men's finals, women's finals, or both?" Plus it's her own patronage.

On the flip side, William and Kate haven't always attended BAFTA. They've only attended the film awards in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2023, but William's had the patronage since 2011.

[dreamymaiyaaaa]

Written by Fate

Andy's one of the first tournament as Junior back in 2001 against Novak.

Andy's first masters 100 title in Cincinnati, 2008 against Novak.

Andy's first Grand Slam Title US Open in 2012 against Novak.

Andy's first Wimbledon Championship in 2013 against Novak.

Andy's first time as World No 1 in 2016 against Novak.

Honorable mention,

Novak's first time winning French Open in 2016 against Andy.

In all of these events,

Born a week apart, they have been each other's very first, since the day they were 11 year old boys with dreams and high hopes.

The coaching news seems so fitting with this notion.

Andy's first time as Coach of Novak.

They are finally in the same team.

[silvianap]

Did you have any favorite movie of Nik?

Hey Anon! Thank you for your question :D

Of course I have a favorite movie of Nik! He's my favorite actor and in all my entire life I've watched almost 60 of his works! (movies, series, short films, documentaries etc)

Here's my TOP 10 (movies edition):

1- "A Thousand Times Good Night" (2013)

2- "A Second Chance" (2014)

3- "Shot Caller" (2017)

4- "Suicide Tourist" (2019)

5- "The Day We Died" (2020)

6- "A Taste of Hunger" (2021)

7- "Against the Ice" (2022)

8- "3 Ting" (2017)

9- "Headhunters" (2011)

10- "The Silencing" (2020)

BONUS: "Wimbledon" (2007), the movie that introduced me to him for the first time ❤️

[killa-trav]

irwanmussry: It’s true that I’m here for Wimbledon but now this is becoming more of a Formula 1 week for me. So happy to have met Sebastian Vettel today, one truly remarkable driver who has such a fine soul. He is one of the most successful drivers in Formula One history with his four World Drivers' Championship titles won consecutively from 2010 to 2013. He was also the youngest World Champion, which still blows my mind today!

[pleasereadmeok]

I'm hellishly busy at the moment - hopefully back next week when Wimbledon starts.

Wimbledon tennis gets going on Monday - so keep your eyes on the crowd coz you never know who you might spot!

Matthew Goode has turned up at Wimbledon a few times.  Hope to see him in the royal box again this year.  Just keep looking for him and 🤞🏻

📷 Ralph Lauren x 2 from 2013, The Sun x1 from 2018 (with Sophie in white`) and the rest from 2019 license purchased by @alyssa-ty