Average Fans Storm the Club

The ones outside the gates of Wimbledon, the kids wrapped in blankets, the guys under a makeshift plastic tent, the four women in shorts and T-shirts that read “We love Henman,” the family jogging up Church Road from the Southfields tube station who had headed out of their flat as soon as they got the news, these were the happy tennis fans.

For the third time in its 127-year history and the first time since 1997, there will be tennis played at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club on the middle Sunday of Wimbledon.

But for the second time this week, an entire day of tennis was rained out Saturday. “Why don’t they put a roof on this place?” muttered Rod Masters, a 47-year-old fan who had traveled from Scotland. He and his wife had planned this trip for a year.

The roof is coming but not until 2009. Saturday’s paid ticket holders, many of whom had congregated under awnings and umbrellas from 11 a.m. until 6:35 p.m. when all efforts to play tennis were abandoned, will get their money back. “But I don’t want my money,” Masters said. “I want to see tennis.” Masters was inclined to get in the line forming outside the gate, but his wife was not.

Meanwhile, 28,000 lucky fans, first come, first served, will be allowed into the gates at 9 a.m. today. Weather willing, they will see national hope Tim Henman and everybody else still in the men’s and women’s draw. About 11,000 Centre Court tickets will be offered, with another 10,000 for Court 1 and 7,000 for the outside courts.

These impromptu Sundays -- the first came in 1991 -- have become known as “People’s Sunday.” While tournament officials fervently work to avoid playing on this day because the residents of the neighborhood resent having their weekly day of rest cluttered up with cars, taxis and thousands of tennis fans clogging their streets and dumping garbage in their yards, it is the only time an average British tennis fan has a chance to grab a seat on Centre Court.

For the bargain price of 35 pounds ($63.77) and a night spent in a steady rain expected to last well past midnight, “us commoners,” as one man said, can get inside a place mostly reserved for AELTC members and those able to afford scalper prices.

“We know the neighbors are not keen on us playing middle Sunday,” tournament chief executive Christopher Gorringe said. The neighbors, Gorringe said, “can’t get in and out of their drives. They can’t have people parking outside their houses. If you lived next to a major event, not all of them are going to be sympathetic for that major event.”

But on the bright side, Gorringe noted, “I do think it’s good for Wimbledon because it so often brings a different type of person to the championships, which is good.”

In 1997, no matches were played for two consecutive days -- Thursday and Friday. In 1991 and 1997, the tournament was further behind than the 120 matches this year. But while the weather forecast for today is mostly rain-free, there is serious rain predicted for Monday and Wednesday.

So far this year, Friday has been the only rain-free day. Tournament referee Alan Mills said that if there was no tennis today, some of the women would have to play four straight days. “I think in this sort of championship, that’s asking a little bit too much. And if that did happen, as you know, most of the girls play doubles or doubles and mixed and then there would be absolutely no chance of those finishing all the championship events by next Sunday.”

Mills said 262 matches have been completed so far this year. In 1997, there were only 163 matches completed by the first Saturday and in 1991, there had been 210 played.

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Featured Matches

MEN

* Roger Federer (1), Switzerland vs. Thomas Johansson, Sweden.

* Tim Henman (5), Britain, vs. Hicham Arazi (32), Morocco.

* Andy Roddick (2) vs. Taylor Dent (26).

* Fernando Gonzalez (24), Chile, vs. Mark Philippoussis (11), Australia

WOMEN

* Serena Williams (1) vs. Magui Serna, Spain.

* Nathalie Dechy (25), France, vs. Jennifer Capriati (7).

* Amelie Mauresmo (4), France, vs. Ludmila Cervanova, Slovakia

* Meghann Shaughnessy (32) vs. Karolina Sprem, Croatia

‘People’s Sunday’

This is the third time in the tournament’s history matches will be played on the middle Sunday. Matches completed by the first Saturday:

* 2004: 262. * 1997: 163. * 1991: 210

1997 MIDDLE SUNDAY HIGHLIGHT

* Playing in her first Wimbledon, Anna Kournikova upset No. 7 Anke Huber, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, in the third round. She would advance to the semifinals, which would prove to be her best showing at a Grand Slam.

1991 MIDDLE SUNDAY HIGHLIGHT

* An enthusiastic crowd of 24,894 attended, with fans doing the wave 15 minutes before anyone had stepped onto Centre Court. John McEnroe won his match, but Jimmy Connors fell to Derrick Rostagno. “You don’t often hear a soccer crowd at Wimbledon,” McEnroe said.