The Championships - Day 10 Diary

© Getty ImagesActors Ben Stiller and Sir Michael Caine watched the tennis from the Royal Box on Centre Court Wednesday.

ATPWorldTour.com takes a look at the news and talking points at The Championships on the second Wednesday.

What The Papers Are Saying

In his blog for The Times, 2008 champion Rafael Nadal a question from a fan. Asked whether he charters a plane for the 100 packets of cookies he takes to every tournament and whether he is worried about putting on weight when he stops playing tennis, Nadal confirms “They actually send me some boxes. Not sure they are 100... No worries about my weight when I stop. I am sure I will stay fit since I am very active! The quely biscuits aren't bad for that.”

Matt Harvey, the first Wimbledon poet, has been writing about The Championships, John Isner and Nicolas Mahut, the visit of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and John McEnroe during the fortnight. On Wednesday, he wrote about the couplet from Rudyard Kipling’s ‘If’ inscribed above the doubles doors of the entrance to Centre Court. View More Poems

'An Unseeded Player Considers Kipling’
Those two imposters? It's quite hard to treat
them just the same. There's one I've yet to meet…

Nick Bollettieri is asked "Who are your favourite players you've ever worked with?" in his daily column for The Independent. “Monica Seles was the most disciplined player I've ever taught. Jim Courier was the finest example of a workhorse for his effort every day. Andre Agassi, who I regard with huge affection, was central to one of the great sporting moments of my life. Max Mirnyi and Tommy Haas, with me since they were young, are like surrogate sons. I've been blessed to work with so many more wonderful and interesting stars from Anna Kournikova to Boris Becker and Maria Sharapova.”

Under the headline, ‘Tennis fan's bonce-ing ball hairstyle is smash at Wimbledon’, The Daily Mirror writes about a 40-year-old taxi driver, Kai Ward, who “had heads turning yesterday at Wimbledon - by sporting a yellow tennis ball shaved into his hair. He said: "My stylist Daren Terry was joking I should have it done. He was a bit surprised when I said 'Okay'. We did consider a strawberry, maybe next summer."

A poll in The Guardian asks, “Should Wimbledon camera crews keep their eyes on the game?” Apparently, “the BBC has received complaints that its television coverage has featured too many lingering shots of canoodling couples and attractive spectators in the crowd.”

Murray Mania

Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker believes Andy Murray is playing the right game to go all the way at this year’s championships. Writing in The Telegraph, the German said: “I do not see anybody better than Murray at the moment. He is one of the few players who instinctively plays on grass the correct way: anyone who plays him is in real trouble. Of all the top four seeds, Murray has been the most impressive. It has been going perfectly for him – much better than most people expected considering that he did not have the best lead-in to the tournament. This is the best that I have seen him for some time, mainly because he is being more aggressive from the baseline."

Jimmy Connors, a two-time former Wimbledon champion, says the key to Murray’s success at The Championships is not getting caught up in the hype. “It is about more than just tennis for him now,” said Connors in The Times. “It is about not getting caught up in the swirl that is all around. Tennis is the easy bit and there are times when I’d like to see him play as if he enjoyed it a bit more. He has to show the people what this means to him and enjoy the process. When you get to this stage, you have to stay true to yourself. I suppose there is going to be more attention on him now the World Cup is over for England but when he is out on the court, that means nothing, or it shouldn’t.”

Despite the enormity of the expectation he faces at Wimbledon, Murray told The Daily Record, a Scottish newspaper, that he knows how to deal with the nerves. “People make too much of this word pressure. It isn't a valid excuse when you're playing at the highest level of sport. It's lonely as well, but in a good way. The tennis court is where I've been taught to relax. I've been schooled to understand that nerves should be channeled into a form of excitement and that there should never be fear of an opponent, no matter who he is."

Upset Of The Day

Tomas Berdych, the No. 12 seed, knocked out defending champion and six-time titlist Roger Federer 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 in two hours and 31 minutes. The loss means Federer will drop to No. 3 in the South African Airways 2010 ATP Rankings on Monday. It will mark the first time he has ranked No. 3 since 10 November 2003.

Headline Of The Day

“Berdych Rolls Swiss Masters Over” – The Daily Mail reports on Federer's shock exit.

“Andy On Tsonga” – The Sun screams as Murray reaches the semi-finals for the second year in a row.