Wimbledon Considers Later Start Date

Wimbledon organisers have revealed that they are considering moving future championships back by one week in order to give players additional recovery time from the French Open.

The 2012 Wimbledon Championships began on Monday, just two weeks after the French grand slam concluded at Roland Garros.

The oldest tennis championships in the world traditionally take place in London over the final week in June and the first week in July.

All England Lawn Tennis Club chief executive Richard Lewis told BBC Radio 5 live: ‘We are seriously considering it. It’s often been discussed and it would be ideal to have a longer break. It would be three weeks, ideally, between the French Open and Wimbledon.’

‘We believe there are really, really good tennis reasons for having a longer break. We think that more time on the softer surface of grass is something that the players will definitely welcome. And they will welcome the rest and recuperation they can get between playing an intense tournament at Roland Garros and coming to Wimbledon. Three weeks gives them much better preparation time.’

World number one and defending Wimbledon men’s singles champion Novak Djokovic has already come out in favour of Lewis’ proposal.