Author Description

Published with The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, who managed the prestigious Grand Slam event jointly with the Law Tennis Association, this annual has been providing in-depth analysis and day-by-day reports from SW19 since 1983. With stunning images, generated by the exclusive court-side access of some of the sport's leading photographers, and clear format, this record of The Championships has become a genuine collector's item. The 2004 Championships provided the usual unparalleled action, drama that only the green lawns of the All England Club seem able to conjure, and, on the final Saturday, a rags-to-riches fairy tale that encapsulated the magic of Wimbledon. Maria Sharapova's family had abandoned their daughter, then just 7 years old, to Nick Bolleteiri's tennis academy in Florida. Ten years later, her shrieks of delight rang around an enchanted Centre Court as the princess became a queen. In the men's side of the draw, the birth of a new era was witnessed a year earlier when the peerless Roger Federer elevated the grass-court game to heights even Pete Sampras may have struggled to reach. His opponent in the final, America's exuberant and highly popular Andy Roddick, contributed enormously to a match that, between showers, had threatened to achieve Borg-McEnroe proportions. The Times' tennis correspondent Neil Harman authored the book for the first time this year, and he was ably supported by the superb photography from Clive Brunskill, Mike Hewitt, Phile Cole, Clive Rose and Scott Barbour of Getty Images.