Wimbledon Wild Cards

Shhh · Challenger level

Wimbledon Wild Cards

fart1 · Junior player

Go for Boggo and fix it so he plays a fellow GB player, in the 1st round ranked about 600ish!

Malteaser · Junior player

This year has been a real let-down so far after last year and I don't blame the players, I blame the LTA, there must have been more funds available for events. Five UK events to date does not give our players enough time to get in form and accumulate points.

There's not going to be alot of WCs being handed out as a direct result of this poor strategy. Our young players just don't have a chance.

So WCs for Wimbledon? I agree Cox and Evans are the only ones that "deserve" it. I'd add Fleming to that list. Goodall should get one too. So that's four.

If Wardy and Slabba can find some form and boost their ranking they would also have a chance.

.... and we shouldn't forget Bloomers, who is consistently a top 500 and higher player and maybe would tyake advantage if we gave him a chance.

P.s. I'm available if the LTA need someone to work out the schedules and targets to make British Tennis work better for our "potentials".

freerider · Futures level

eaton will probably get a wc - id much rather there were 8 british wild cards losing in Rd1 then 8 johnny foreigners getting to the 4th.

As has been said before the more in there the more chance of getting a Rd1 win - and more importantly the money and experience for individuals could spur on assaults on the rankings, in particular for young guns such as cox and evans.

steven · Tennis legend

Malteaser wrote:
This year has been a real let-down so far after last year and I don't blame the players, I blame the LTA, there must have been more funds available for events. Five UK events to date does not give our players enough time to get in form and accumulate points.

There's not going to be alot of WCs being handed out as a direct result of this poor strategy. Our young players just don't have a chance.

So WCs for Wimbledon? I agree Cox and Evans are the only ones that "deserve" it. I'd add Fleming to that list. Goodall should get one too. So that's four.

If Wardy and Slabba can find some form and boost their ranking they would also have a chance.

.... and we shouldn't forget Bloomers, who is consistently a top 500 and higher player and maybe would tyake advantage if we gave him a chance.

P.s. I'm available if the LTA need someone to work out the schedules and targets to make British Tennis work better for our "potentials".

Most of that makes sense and I think quite a lot of us on here wouldn't mind a go at that scheduling job! wink

Unfortunately, rumour (=> it might not be true, and I hope it isn't) has it that the Belgian who hasn't left is the one most keen on the Brits entering the tournaments likely to yield the least points. cry

As freerider implies, the best way to maximise the number of Brits in R2 at Wimby is to maximise the chances of them drawing a grass court muppet like Pashanski or Berlocq in R1, which means giving WCs to anyone capable of winning if they got a draw like that. I think any of the GB top 10 are capable of doing that.

-- Edited by steven on Saturday 18th of April 2009 09:28:47 AM

Malteaser · Junior player

Freerider, you're right, I missed Eaton, but I'd put him in the same group as Wardy and Slabba, if they get in form and accumulate some points then it follows they should get a WC.

If not, well I'm afraid that's how tough love should work.

Malteaser · Junior player

Freerider - I don't agree that we should fill all the 8 places with Brit WCs.

If they are not good enough and don't deserve it then they shouldn't get one.

But as I said previously it's not that they are not good enough it's that they haven't been given the chance to progress from the lower rankings.

ForeverDelayed · Grand Slam Champion

The first thing to say about the Wimbledon WC situation is that it all depends on what the LTA's criteria for getting a WC is - if it stays at 250 like it was last year, then Boggo may end up being the only Brit eligible for a wild card, and if they've said any Brit in the top 250 gets a WC, then they'll have to give one to him.

But as we don't know what it is yet (and that's because they probably haven't decided themselves yet!), we can't really say.

Brits won't get all 8 of the wild cards - that's pretty obvious, and I think we can safely say that Taylor Dent will get a WC, as will Marcos Baghdatis (who is currently outside the top 100) and Juan Carlos Ferrero (who will drop outside the top 100 next week) if they don't make the cut, which means there's only five WC's available. (and maybe fewer depending on what Thomas Johansson's PR is, and whether or not Sebastien Grosjean is fit and fancies one last Wimbledon)

As it is, I'd expect main draws WC's to go to:

Dan Evans
Josh Goodall
Chris Eaton
and then depending on how many WC's are left, and how everyone else does, maybe James Ward or Dan Cox.

And then quali WC's to:

Dan Cox
Colin Fleming
Alex Slabinsky
Richard Bloomfield
Jonny Marray
Marcus Willis
Josh Milton
Jamie Baker (if fit)
and then whoever else does something from now on

with obviously Boggo and Ward ranked high enough to not need a WC into qualies.

Mervatron · Masters Series Champion

I agree with your choices. Personally the only person at the moment who deserves a MD WC is Dan Evans but i do think a few more should get ones.

Boggo - no. I'm sorry hes had his chance what 6/7 chances now. If hes good enough he will qualify and then will feel more confident in the MD.

Salmon · Tennis legend

freerider wrote:

eaton will probably get a wc - id much rather there were 8 british wild cards losing in Rd1 then 8 johnny foreigners getting to the 4th.

Absolutely. Why should we help people from other countries?!

Vandenburg · Futures level

Boretti clearty deserves a wc, his grass court skills are similar to that of sampras in his peak-(sampras 2007)

steven · Tennis legend

You mean that peak when Sampras lost to Bastl?

mjd · Challenger qualifying

As I said in previous years when this question arises -and proved to be true - Visitors to Wimbledon gladly flock around the courts where British 'no-hopers' are playing in preference to higher ranked and better known (to followers of tennis that is).

Two years ago the AELTC acknowledged that fact and gave more WC's that the LTA had wanted, this really annoyed Roger Draper who declared that he would make sure it would never happen again. Who pulls the strings at the AELTC?

I also agree with Malteaser - the LTA are depriving many British players of getting pro level play by reducing the number of tournaments held in the UK, even making sure that British players have to 'travel abroad' for so called home tournaments (Jersey) - this proves to me how out of touch the LTA is with the problems that young players have in funding their tennis aspirations and instead preferring to finance foreign WC's for Wimby thus depriving British players of funds that would enable travel to 5 or 6 overseas events.

Drew · Apr 18, 2009

In the climate of less UK events surely (says that with a slight cough) the WCs should be given out to as many Brits that are ranked high enough and that are on the way up.

That could include Boggo, Goodall, Eaton, Evans, Cox, Ward. Thats 6 out of 8 easy. If Slabba finds form and Fleming keeps moving in the right direction would it not be great to have all 8 ?

They have all got central Aegon contracts and targets. Why not right now give all the top 10 ranking targets that they have to reach in order to get a WC ? (and I dont mean 275).

For the likes of Fleming if he say got into the top 350 from where he is right now (522) would that not be enough of a climb to warrant one ?

I am not one for giving these things away like confetti to Brits but in the light of the disadvantage they are facing with the lack of home events....for goodness sake look at the Italians and Spanish...and we have the richest tennis body on the planet ?

Lets give the tennis public some improving Brits to watch at SW19...give them a target and give them the carrot.

Vandenburg · Futures level

I think as a nation GB should have around 25 futures and 5 challangers, due to its history and prestige etc.
now on to the wildcards, i think for queens and Eastbourne, wildcards should be handed out galore to everyone but for Wimbledon well.......

Goodall and bogdanovic jut dont deserve them sorry,thre shown nothing to impress that they are pushing for the top 150.

A wildcard should be used for senitiment,injury or young promising players, im sorry non of them are.
the wilcards should be for ward(whos never had one i dont think) and evans.