Wimbledon 2023 – Novak Djokovic helps out during Centre Court rain delay

Despite the best efforts of Novak Djokovic to dry the surface of Centre Court with a towel, there was a rain delay of 88 minutes in his first-round match at Wimbledon against Pedro Cachin on Monday.

A rain delay was called at the end of the first set just after 2 p.m. local time. The usual cheers went up greeting the ground staff as they hauled the plastic covering over the court. The roof shut, the players stayed in the tunnel expecting a short delay but what followed was a lengthy stoppage as ground staff scrambled to dry the surface.

Djokovic, Cachin and various authorities tested out the surface and it got to the point where the reigning champion took to the court with a towel to attempt to dry it.

After that failed, three staff members appeared with leaf blowers, but it proved to be a lot of hot air. All the while the crowd grew restless.

Eventually the court dried, but the delay to cover the court saw the stoppage last far longer than at other courts. During that same 88-minute spell on court No. 1, the court was covered, the roof closed, the court was then uncovered, Iga Swiatek finished her match and Casper Ruud was already a set up in his match — all by the time Djokovic and Cachin resumed play.

“It was definitely frustrating for the crowd waiting for us to come out on the court, us players we wanted to play but the conditions were not great, still slippery under the roof,” Djokovic said after the match. “Once the roof was open it was a different story, after 5-10 minutes we were out and about. This is the temple of tennis, this court is something special and every time I come out — I normally come out with racquets, not towels — but it was fun to do something different.”