Day 2: Olympic diary

Down came the rain

The unpredictable British summer - or predictable, depending on which way you looka t it! - returned on Day 2 of the Olympic Tennis Event as rain disrupted play so that only a third of the scheduled matches were completed.

Matches on the outside courts (due to start at 11:30am) and on No. 1 Court (12:00pm) began late after light drizzle became a downpour, accompanied by an ominous clap of thunder. The action finally got underway late under grey skies, only to be interrupted again 45 minutes later. It was well into the evening when play restarted for the last time.

It was frustrating for both players and spectators on a day that began in bright sunshine, but a good opportunity at least to put up your patriotic umbrella, and discover how versatile a national flag can be – should it be draped over your head to protect you from a downpour, or wrapped around your knees while you wait in the stands for play to resume?

Roof of wonders

Play did of course continue as usual on Centre Court, where the roof was closed all day to allow four matches to be played.

The first of these was Julia Goerges’s surprise defeat of Agnieszka Radwanska, which became the first Olympic tennis match to be played indoors since tennis was reintroduced as a full medal sport at Seoul 1988.

Next up on Centre Court was Andy Murray versus Stanislas Wawrinka, which, coincidentally, was the same match-up that three years ago was the first to be played from start to finish at Wimbledon under the brand new retractable glass roof. 

Back then, Wawrinka took Murray the distance before finally sucumbing in what proved to be a fantastic five-setter. However, the roof brought him no such luck today as he lost in straight sets 63 63.

Famous faces

Supporting their players at Wimbledon today were Dimitris Christofias, President of Cyprus, and David Lloyd Johnston, Governor General of Canada.

Christofias could be seen on No. 14 Court cheering on Marcos Baghdatis. The Cypriot flagbearer was up against Japan’s Go Soeda, although the match was interrupted and eventually suspended due to rain.

Lloyd Johnston was at Wimbledon to support four Canadian players, whose matches were also affected by the wet weather. Vasek Pospisil and Milos Raonic are playing in the men's singles, Aleksandra Wozniak in the women's singles, and Daniel Nestor in the men's doubles with Pospisil.

Keen golf fans would have spotted Greg Norman (pictured) in the Royal Box, just a day after Rory McIlroy was also seen on Centre Court. The Great White Shark, as Norman’s known, is a former world No. 1 golfer and two-time winner of The Open.

And Norman wasn't the only sportsman watching the tennis on Sunday. Chelsea’s goalkeeper Petr Cech, who is also the Czech Republic national team’s shot stopper, was on-site and had his photo taken with British tennis player Anne Keothavong.

Roger Federer was also spotted on Centre Court, which in itself is obviously not unusual, but this time he was in the crowd supporting his Swiss teammate and doubles partner Stanislas Wawrinka, or maybe he was scouting Wawrinka’s opponent... Andy Murray!