Millions will gather around their TV sets in Britain, 15,000 more will cram on to Centre Court but only a carefully chosen few will really understand the agony and the ecstasy going through the minds of Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal today.
The players’ box on Wimbledon’s Centre Court harbours many deep, dark secrets. It is the place the players turn to if a match is drifting away, where they look for reassurance before challenging a line call. It has been danced upon, notably by Pat Cash and Goran Ivanisevic, tears have flowed uncontrollably there and lives have changed for ever — and all in this small but clearly separated area of green plastic seating.
Watching at home you are only ever likely to see the occupants in a moment of triumph or disappointment, with the point already won or lost. But focus on the box while a big point is in progress and you will see the tension written deep across every face and in every jerking twist of the neck.
It matters on the court and it matters just as much here. Over the course of a close match there will be as much nervous energy expended in these 13 seats as in the rest of Centre Court put together. Murray’s mother and mentor Judy and his girlfriend, Kim Sears, will attract much of the attention during today’s match. Each has her “lucky” seat and each her own routine.
Uncle Toni is the key man in the Nadal box. He will take his seat on the far right, his cap pulled down firmly over his eyes, his expression unmoving.
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In the past, players were given six tickets for each of their matches, but with their ever-extending entourages that has been increased to 12. Murray will need them all. In prime position is Judy, who sits with Sears to her left. Andy Ireland, Murray’s physio, comes next followed by Jez Green and Matt Little, his fitness trainers.
Dani Vallverdu, a long-time friend and sometime doubles partner, will take another seat as will Simon Fuller, his agent at XIX Entertainment, who has attended his past two matches. Willie, Andy’s father, is also expected to attend. Team Murray are a formidable force.
The Nadal camp is little more compact. His recently separated parents, Sebastian and Ana María, will be there, if not alongside each other. As will Rafael Maymo, Nadal’s trainer and physio. Carlos Costa, the agent, is a fixture in the Nadal box as is the irrepressible Uncle Toni, to whom Nadal looks on the rare occasions the chips are down. Maria Francisca Perello, his girlfriend, and María Isabel, his sister, are also expected to attend.
The way they behave can calm, reassure or reignite their man. Few will forget the image of John McEnroe’s Beanie-hatted father watching impassively as his son exploded into one of his infamous tantrums. Gloria Connors chose to stand up in the box and shout “hit him in the slats, Jimmy” during one of her son’s matches. Coaching of players during a match is illegal, but it goes on, and many a secret signal is exchanged between player and coach.
“It is illegal but it happens more than you might think,” said one top coach,who asked to remain anonymous. “It can be as simple as pointing to your head to get your man to think, or tapping your hands on the ledge to get their feet moving. Every little thing can mean something.”
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Can you influence a match from the box? “Of course you can. If you can see an area your player can exploit or see something from up there that he or she can’t then you can change a match to some extent. It’s a tricky business and people have been caught in the past. If you look at the rules, then if you do or say anything other than ‘come on’ then that is classed as cheating. It happens, although at Wimbledon it is that bit harder because so much focus is on the box.”
So while you watch the main event rage out on Centre Court today, remember there is another bubbling away in the seats perched above the hallowed turf. In victory, the overwhelming feeling of joy is second only to being on the court. In defeat, there is no more lonely and helpless a place at the All England Club.