Wimbledon diary: Halep welcomes royal approval, Pimm’s o’clock for Philippoussis
They were eating, drinking and being merry at Wimbledon on Saturday as Simona Halep put on a feast of an entertainment for the royals.
Simona Halep said seeing royalty in the crowd gave her an “extra boost” as she claimed a first Wimbledon title, while Mark Philippoussis was drinking on the job at SW19 on Saturday.
Halep thrashed Serena Williams 6-2 6-2 in less than an hour on Centre Court and was given a royal seal of approval following her majestic performance.
Philippoussis, a two-time major runner-up, was in weekend mode as he sampled an alcoholic beverage while playing in the invitational doubles.
Dylan Alcott was trending on Twitter in Australia after his historic victory at the All England Club.
Catch up on what was happening on the penultimate day of the grass-court grand slam.
If you’re going to lose a point, do it stylishly
Well saved, Mark Philippoussis…#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/i2kQW7bzRe
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2019
HALEP GIVEN ‘UNFORGETTABLE’ ROYAL BOOST
Halep picked out “Kate” as the one person she would like to see in the Royal Box for her first Wimbledon final.
The 2018 French Open champion got her wish and exchanged words with the Duchess of Cambridge after denying Williams a record-equalling 24th major singles title.
“It was an honour to play in front of her. I had the chance to meet her after the match. She’s very kind, very nice,” Halep said after becoming the first Romanian to win a singles title at Wimbledon, with Williams’ friend the Duchess of Sussex also in attendance.
“Yeah, it was an extra boost when I saw all of them there, the Royal Family. Winning in this position, it’s really nice. It’s unforgettable.”
PIMM’S O’CLOCK FOR PHILIPPOUSSIS
Philippoussis built up a thirst as he rolled back the years on No.1 Court.
The Australian unsuccessfully scurried across to try and keep a point alive in his doubles clash partnering Tommy Haas against Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra.
Philippoussis almost ended up on the front row of the crowd, but stopped himself before grabbing a spectator’s Pimm’s for an early-evening tipple.
He even posed for a selfie after sipping away casually with his legs crossed, drawing laughter from the crowd in an alternative happy hour.
ALCOTT MAKES HISTORY TO COMPLETE ‘DYLAN SLAM’
Alcott won the first ever quad wheelchair singles title at SW19 with a 6-0 6-2 thrashing of Brit Andy Lapthorne.
Australian Alcott now holds ever major singles title, a feat christened the ‘Dylan Slam’ and the top seed was delighted after his triumph on Court 12.
“I’m trending on Twitter at home,” he said.
“The AFL is on at the moment, and the NRL. I’m trending with them. People care and watch now. I love that, you know what I mean? So cool.”
He added: “My dad said, ‘Congratulations on your eighth Grand Slam.’ I said, ‘That’s nine, champion.'”
BUBBLES BURST AFTER COSTLY UNFORCED ERROR
There were no smiles outside a champagne bar when a lady knocked a bottle over earlier in the afternoon.
While not all of the bubbles were lost, it still proved to be a costly unforced error.
Thankfully the bottle did not smash, but the spillage created a racket as the women frantically attempted to limit her losses.
