Two Together? No Problem

Something unheard of in living memory happened on Thursday - they could not fill the Center Court seats. The Wimbledon website urged people to come to the grounds to buy tickets that were available for the women's semi-finals. The probable explanation is that there were returns because of the likelihood of the Williams sisters having easy victories (they won in straight sets, though both were taken to tiebreakers in the second). The BBC Sport website and Ticketmaster helped to push the tickets, but there were always some empty spaces in the stands.

One champ went to mow

Most summer weekends in Prague, a fit-looking 62-year-old gentleman goes in to his garden to mow, lovingly, a small area of lawn that in the 1970s became the most famous lawn in Czechoslovakia - even, arguably, in the whole of eastern Europe. It is the legacy of an unlikely Wimbledon triumph, when the man who now pushes the mower, Jan Kodes, became that rarity in the Cold War years - a grand-slam champion from the Communist Bloc.

Not a single grass court existed in Czechoslovakia when Kodes won Wimbledon in 1973 by taking advantage of a boycott by most of the leading men from the West. Kodes liked to say before his triumph 'this joke tennis, this grass', but the joke became the reason he laid the grass court in his garden, marking his victory over the Soviet player Alex Metreveli in the first final on Center Court to contain a tie break.

Far from being a mere monument to Kodes's Wimbledon win, the court has been used frequently - including in 1978 by Czechoslovakia's Davis Cup team to prepare for a tie on grass. Kodes still tends it as caringly as if it were the patch on which he won. 'I like to mow it,' he tells Cyclops. 'It's nice-smelling, freshly cut grass.'

Winning Wimbledon was not the only reason Kodes was particularly liked in Czechoslovakia. Unlike other Czech tennis stars, such as Jaroslav Drobny, Martina Navratilova and Ivan Lendl, Kodes stayed in his oppressed country and has now written a book about this aspect of his career. It is being translated into English.

Fed to lose - you bet

Harry Findlay is a winner. The professional gambler landed 'the coup of all time' when Roger Federer won Wimbledon in 2003, and says: 'I love the Fed, he's won me more millions than anyone - and he's changed my life.'

So it's bad news for Federer that Findlay, who part owns the Cheltenham Gold Cup-winner Denman, has deserted his man this year. 'I haven't had a dollar on,' he tells Cyclops. 'In all five of his winning years I backed him very heavily, and never more than last year. But it's a long, long time since we've seen the best of Roger Federer.'

Findlay has not backed Rafael Nadal, but thinks he will win, just as he did at the French Open in Paris.

The day that golden girl's pant split

As the Good Book (nearly) says: 'There ain't nothing new under the sun' - and it might have added, 'particularly newspapers' obsession with what female competitors wear at Wimbledon'. It's nonsense that the media never used to be interested in hemline follies and concentrated solely on baseline rallies. Even 80 years ago they were at it. The Evening News of 1928 ran a full-page picture gallery of 'The Smart Girl Stars of Wimbledon'. It included a fetching photograph of a very camera-conscious Lilí de Alvarez of Spain, who was three times the women's runner-up. Her picture was captioned: 'After a match, Senorita de Alvarez puts on a warm, white, well-cut coat.'

So, Serena, someone beat you to it - by nearly a century. Fifty years ago the coverage was roughly the same as what is on offer today. Illustrated magazine ran this story in 1953, after Wimbledon told the American 'golden girl' Karol Fageros that she could not wear her speciality underwear: 'In Florida her solid gold panties split during an important game. She had to have bigger ones made for Wimbledon. "I spent £27 on them," she says. "It never entered my head that officials would disapprove. But if that's the way they want it, I'll leave them off."' Er... really?

Garcia loves tennis

Sergio García's appearance at the European Open golf, which is taking place in Kent, delighted the organizers, who were only too happy to meet his very specific request: to have an early start on Friday so he could make it to Wimbledon to see close friend Rafael Nadal's semi-final. Nadal planned to return the compliment by watching García yesterday at the London Club.

It has been a hectic few days for García, spectating-wise. Last Sunday he was in Vienna supporting Spain against Germany in the Euro 2008 final; then he made a first visit to Wimbledon for Nadal's Monday match. 'I've known Rafa a long time,' García says. 'I love tennis and know a lot of the players. Most of them love golf, too.'

García's best-known association with tennis was previously through the female side and his romance, now over, with Martina Hingis.

Still the chief Barker

Sue Barker has ended speculation by signing a new contract with the BBC. It will last for a year, but Beeb sources say they hope she will continue for the foreseeable future.

All the talk last year was that Barker might make room for someone younger, but Roger Mosey's appointment as the head of sport seems to have led to a rethink and La Barker has bucked the trend of - how to put this - more mature female presenters being replaced.