The talented Kordas
Petr Korda, from the Czech Republic, won the Australian Open in 1998 before being found guilty of doping. His son Sebastian has been playing in the junior competitions at Wimbledon and last night was involved in the boy’s doubles semi-finals. Meanwhile, Korda’s daughters Nelly and Jessica were playing in the women’s US Open golf and were six and eight strokes off the lead at the halfway point.
Lea’s happy returns
Robert Lea was a net position ball boy in 1990. Twenty-seven years later he returned to SW19 as a service steward posted on No 1 Court. Now a Royal Marines sergeant major, Lea was 15 then, just a year older than Jennifer Capriati, who also made her debut at Wimbledon that summer. ‘I’ve always known of the affiliation between the Armed Forces and the tournament. I’ve always wanted to come back, but for operational reasons and other work commitments, I’ve been unable to until this year,’ he said of his return.
From centre court to the big screen
You wait years for a tennis movie and then two come along once. Before the October release of the ‘Battle of the Sexes’, a film depicting Billie Jean King’s landmark clash with Bobby Riggs, comes ‘Borg/McEnroe’, in UK cinemas from September 22. At the centre of this take on their rivalry is the 1980 Wimbledon final, with its epic tie-break. Swede Sverrir Gudnason plays his compatriot Borg, while Shia LeBeouf is McEnroe. Stellan Skarsgard (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) also stars as Borg’s coach, Lennart Bergelin.