By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
en_US English
en_US English hi_IN हिन्दी
India United PressIndia United Press
Notification Show More
Latest News
HC denies bail to man for posts against PM, armed forces
HC denies bail to man for posts against PM, armed forces
July 3, 2025
What Fourth of July will look like for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs behind bars
What Fourth of July will look like for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs behind bars
July 3, 2025
Are you always stressed? It can affect your brain, says neurologist; know these 5 tips to manage stress
Are you always stressed? It can affect your brain, says neurologist; know these 5 tips to manage stress
July 3, 2025
HT City Delhi Junction: Catch It Live on 4 July 2025
HT City Delhi Junction: Catch It Live on 4 July 2025
July 3, 2025
Fonseca youngest to 3rd round after 2011
Fonseca youngest to 3rd round after 2011
July 3, 2025
Aa
  • Home
  • News
  • Regional
  • Editor’s Choice
  • World
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Culture
  • Technology
  • More
    • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
    • Sports
Reading: Wimbledon: The servebots need a new trick to win
Share
India United PressIndia United Press
Aa
Search
  • Home
  • Latest News
  • Regional
  • Editor’s Choice
  • Politics
  • World
  • Business
  • Health
  • Culture
  • Technology
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • hi_INहिन्दी
  • en_USEnglish
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • Home
  • News
  • Regional
  • Editor’s Choice
  • World
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Culture
  • Technology
  • More
India United Press > Sports > Wimbledon: The servebots need a new trick to win
Wimbledon: The servebots need a new trick to win
Sports

Wimbledon: The servebots need a new trick to win

Press Room
Press Room July 1, 2025
Updated 2025/07/01 at 5:28 PM
Share
SHARE
Wimbledon: The servebots need a new trick to win

Mumbai: There was a deafening thud. Then a deft touch. The thud fetched a collective awe. The touch earned the point.

France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard dished a 153 mph serve — it was the fastest in Wimbledon history. (REUTERS)

This is the story of a 6’8” giant throwing down the gauntlet in the form of the fastest serve ever recorded in Wimbledon history, and yet, losing the point. This is also the story of modern-day tennis, across gender, where possessing a powerful serve alone may not hand you the match on a platter.

In the opening game of his first-round match against Taylor Fritz on Monday, Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard smoked a 153mph shot off his racquet that might as well have been a bazooka. It broke the record for the fastest serve ever recorded in the history of tennis’ oldest Grand Slam, comfortably going past Tayor Dent’s previous mark of 148mph set in 2010. It was eye-popping. What happened after that, though, was more business as usual.

Fritz responded to that sizzling body serve with an ice-cool forehand chip. The return sent Perricard scrambling sideways to loop the ball back into play. Two shots later, Fritz won the point. Electric start, easy end. Ditto the match that Fritz won 6-7(6), 6-7(8), 6-4, 7-6(6), 6-4 across two days.

The point, and the match itself, is emblematic of the modern game. Even at Wimbledon, where one-strike monsters once feasted on those faster grass courts.

Goran Ivanisevic would blaze through his 2001 Wimbledon triumph as a wildcard relying largely on his lightning left-handed serve. Across his seven singles final wins at the All England Club, Pete Sampras would drop just four service games from his total 131, as per the Wimbledon Compendium. The John Isner-Nicolas Mahut 2010 marathon, among the most iconic contests at Wimbledon, would feature a combined 216 aces. Isner served 113 of them, the highest in a singles match till date.

Isner also holds the record for the most aces by a man in a single Championships – 214 in 2018. Serena Williams has the women’s record (102 in 2012). Last year, Perricard topped the aces count among men and Elena Rybakina among the women. The number: 115 and 39, respectively. A drastic dip. Perricard exited in the fourth round, Rybakina in the semi-final.

The reliance and reward of a powerful serve as the biggest weapon is hardly as rich as before. If it were, the likes of Isner, Ivo Karlovic and Reilly Opelka, the fastest servers the men’s game has seen in the last decade, would have fancied a singles Grand Slam title. Only Isner has made as far as the semi-final among the three.

On the ATP’s serve leaderboard – it takes into account the overall service quality including first serves, second serves and aces – of the past 52 weeks, Perricard sits on top ahead of Fritz, Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini. Neither has a major trophy. It takes Jannik Sinner for a Slam champion to emerge on that list at fifth place.

Several factors have contributed to this serve slide. The courts, even those freshly-minted greens at SW19, have increasingly gotten slower over the years. The balls tend to vary from tournament to tournament, the lack of uniformity bringing an extra variable at play. Baseliners have taken over, irrespective of the surface, with greater attention to a more solid all-round game.

No better than the Big Three of men’s tennis to exemplify that, individually and collectively. Roger Federer had a 21-3 win-loss record against Andy Roddick, who flaunted a big serve as his USP. Federer had a bigger serve from the trio, but Novak Djokovic, a seven-time Wimbledon champion, and 22-time Slam winner Rafael Nadal also often made light work of the servebots.

More recent proof of the first strike invariably not having the final say, even on grass? The 2023 and 2024 Wimbledon champion is Carlos Alcaraz, the Spaniard carrying the serve as his game’s weaker facet.

Source

Press Room July 1, 2025
Share this Article
Facebook TwitterEmail Print
Share
Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Popular News
Bitcoin rallies back above ,000 to show some recovery signs
Editor's Choice

Bitcoin rallies back above $40,000 to show some recovery signs

Press Room Press Room April 12, 2022
Musk eyeing Twitter deal? Speculations grow as he avoids board
THEMIS ECOSYSTEM TACKLES THE GAIA HYPOTHESIS AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY, MAKING THEM PERFECTLY USABLE
Ditch and dump the plastic for better alternatives
India’s ‘Unicorn Couple’ aim for first startup IPO within a year
- Advertisement -
Ad imageAd image

You Might Also Like

Fonseca youngest to 3rd round after 2011
Sports

Fonseca youngest to 3rd round after 2011

July 3, 2025
Emma Navarro net worth: Wimbledon star is richer than Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic
Sports

Emma Navarro net worth: Wimbledon star is richer than Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic

July 3, 2025
Diogo Jota dies at 28: LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, Liverpool FC, Manchester City, ‘devastated’ and ‘shocked’
Sports

Diogo Jota dies at 28: LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, Liverpool FC, Manchester City, ‘devastated’ and ‘shocked’

July 3, 2025
Jurgen Klopp ‘heartbroken, struggling’ to process Diogo Jota’s death: ‘Can’t see the bigger purpose’
Sports

Jurgen Klopp ‘heartbroken, struggling’ to process Diogo Jota’s death: ‘Can’t see the bigger purpose’

July 3, 2025

Trending Now

  • Money
  • Art & Books
  • Trending
  • International
  • Technology
  • LifeStyle
  • Politics

About US

We, India United Press, believe in free, pure, and unabridged information for all. Correct news should be provided with a touch of education, sprinkled with entertainment, and wrapped in warm but concise language.
Quick Link
  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • My Bookmarks
Top Categories
  • Business
  • Politics
  • RegionalHot
  • Technology
Top Topics
  • India
  • Business
  • Culture
  • BollywoodLive
Top Resources
  • ScienceNew
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports

© 2022 All Rights Reserved – Blue Planet Global Media Network

Removed from reading list

Undo
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?