What was ‘Middle Sunday’ and why is there no longer a rest on Sunday at Wimbledon?
From 2022 onwards, play at Wimbledon will be scheduled on every day of the fortnight, including the first Sunday.
Wimbledon 2022 is a 14-day event, with the Championships set to continue through the fortnight’s “Middle Sunday”.
Wimbledon 2025 is a 14-day event, with the Championships taking place throughout the full fortnight, including “Middle Sunday.”
Previously, that Sunday had been left open on the schedule to give the grass courts enough time to recover. The chairman of the All England Club, Ian Hewitt, explained:“Thanks to advances in grass court technology and maintenance over the past five years, along with other measures, we are confident that we can take proper care of the courts—especially Centre Court—without needing a full day of rest.”
The tradition of keeping Middle Sunday free at Wimbledon wasn’t broken until 1991, when the weather was particularly bad.In fact, play has only taken place on that Sunday four times in the tournament’s history: 1991, 1997, 2004, and 2016—all due to rain during the first week.
Manic Monday scrapped
The Monday after Middle Sunday is known as “Manic Monday”, which sees all 16 fourth-round players - both men’s and women’s - in action.
This year’s Wimbledon sees play taking place on the first Sunday of the championships with the traditional Manic Monday scrapped.
From 2022 onwards, to tie in with the centenary of the Centre Court, the 16 matches of Wimbledon’s fourth round will be spread across days seven and eight of the tournament.
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“We want more of this wonderful event to be available to more people around the world to share in the joy of The Championships,” explains Sally Bolton, the All England Club’s chief executive.
“Including Middle Sunday permanently in our schedule will allow us to do just that and begin a new tradition which we hope we can become immensely proud of. It enables us to do more with the second Monday, which is known as ‘manic’ for good reason.”