Preamble: Good morning and welcome to day seven of our live coverage from Wimbledon. It promises to be an even hotter one than Saturday's, both on and off the court, with Robin Soderling v Roger Federer, Venus Williams v Ana Ivanovic and, inevitably, Andy Murray v Stanislas Wawrinka looking the pick of the matches on a day where the temperature will push into the stratosphere.
I'll be here from about 11.30am with regular updates. But if you have any questions of your own in the meantime you can put them to me and the rest of our readers by posting them in the comment section below.
You can follow all the latest updates and gossip from the wider world of sport with our Twitter feed.
And if you're still bored, you can catch up with reports, analysis and much, much, more in our Wimbledon special report.
10.30am Hello and welcome to Wimbledon day seven. That previous eerie voice claiming to be me wasn't in fact me, but an anonymous voice at the office (love that "I'll be here" - spooky!) bent on giving the impression I start work really early and deserve some kind of pay rise.
So thanks for that.
It's well hot here. The kind of hot where you stop going around grinning about it and instead start frowning and muttering about rain. Forecast is 20% chance of rain, which still sounds like an odd wya of putting it to me. And tomorrow it;s going to be 32C! We'll melt!
As I cycled past the queuing lunatics in Wimbledon Park this morning I heard a steward say "you can join the back over there but you won't get in until late afternoon at the earliest". But still they come. In their hundreds.
And why not? Today is where it all starts to kick off for real.
10.35am We've got the lot today: Roger Ferderer and Andy Murray. Venus against Ivanovic. The Fabulous And Not At All Creepy Bryan Brothers in the doubles.
Roddick's back.
Magnificent snorting Amelie Mauresmo will be up against No1 seed Dinara Safina.
Novak Djokovic is out there against the incredibly laid-back, ten pin-bowling, hugely stoned and incoherent Dudi "just The Dude" Sela.
And there's even Laura Robson later, on playing against another child this time so she'll probably win.
10.40am I'm off to blow my daily £3.50 press pass food allowance on an SW19 Breakfast Bap - three rashers, or two and an egg. Think I'll go with the egg. Not cheap here. A Kit-Kat costs 90p. As does a Drifter, but somehow that doesn't seem so bad for a superior piece of confectionery.
In the meantime please do send your usual insights, quips, Murray predictions - prize for the winner - to me at barney.ronay@guardian.co.uk.
I'll be back in the time it takes to shove high fat food into my face alongside the nation's finest red-faced, sherry-stinking, linen-suit wearing small ball Fleet Street eminences.
11.10am Heather Watson, British 12th seed in the Girls is out on Court 19 and she;s won the first game against a Russian called Solovieva. Big hefty girl that Russian, reminds me of the kind of hulking kid who gets in the England Under-15, 17 and 19 teams at football before disappearing completely because suddenly everyone else has got muscles too.
11.18am Gary Naylor remakrs: "Venus to show Ana up as the next faker unfit to get close to the (maddeningly still unacknowledged) majesty of the Williams sisters. (Justine Henin excepted)."
I acknowledge it. So does Jon Henderson. And assorted other tennis sages. Agree, though, Venus too tough and gnarly for Ivanovic, despite what Ana might be saying off court about "staying in the rallies". Easier said than done. But she is jolly nice.
11.23am Talking of The Guardian and Observer's ace scribe Jon Henderson, just noted that most of the daily newspapers have aped his story about only foxy female players getting a game on centre court, while better players are banished to the outer. With, needless to say, lots of leery pics of said foxy female players (your Giselas, Anas etc).
The Telegraph seems to be the worst for this. Female tennis player on the front every day. Either that or Foxy Knoxy. If only foxy Knoxy could at some point get herself implicated in some kind of scantily-clad sexual role play murder actually on centre court. Front page for the next five years, that one.
11.27am Guy Hornsby muses at some length:
"Or no doubt some other daft moniker that we'll come up with for today's proceedings.... 'Magic Monday'? 'Blue Monday'? 'I wish I was at home on my sofa with a Pimms and not sat here at my desk Monday'? I'm sure, like many others, we're hoping for an epic five-setter between Federer and Soderling - I don't think it'll happen on grass but you never know - and Safina and Mauresmo to eke out a closely-fought three set match so that Murray will be on about 5.50, just in time to fall through the door and switch the TV on."
It's certainly Very Busy Monday. It's a blur of activity here. All these top fourth round matches going off.
11.30am By the way Margaret from the Apprentice is knocking about the place. Royal Box maybe?
11.39am Heather Watson is 4-1 down in the first. Still a way to go yet. But good news on Court 11. Another young Brit Tom Farquharson is 3-1 up against Alessandro "Lou" Bega who just wants a little bit of Monica in his life. Farquharson appears to have briefly swapped his boater and Drones Club tie for a white cap and T-shirt. Butler hands him a towel. Cripes!
What? It is the Guardian you know.
11.45am Incidentally Gary Naylor also asks: "Where do you leave your bike? I'd have thought that locking it anywhere in SW19 would provoke its demise by controlled explosion."
The thing is, it's actually not like that. There are rows of bike racks just by the entrances. The stewards all incredibly nice, even the male ones. The place just ticks along. Very low jobsworth count. Loads of Dutch, Belgian etc journos in orange trousers knocking around the place and it makes you feel quite proud how well run and pleasant it all is, certainly compared to any football match anywhere in Europe I've ever been to. But then, this is a crowd made up entirely of retired surveyors, well-to-do students and Surrey housewives.
11.50pm I see some comments on the blog about the Murray guff spouting out of the BBC - the fawning, the frothing, the all-round obsession. Let's not forget the Corporation has a commercial imperative to hype these championships and to hype the British angle. Murray is a gift from the gods. It is embarrassing in the press conferences. Even Roger Federer seemed a bit bored of answering all the Murray guff the other day.
11.52am The Guardian's top roving news-sniffer Peter Walker is predicting disaster: "It really is getting extremely hot out there. Security guards are pressing themselves into tiny corners of shade and people queuing up are using their umbrellas as parasols. But over on Henman Hill, other people are settling into an early Pimm's in the full glare of the sun, where they clearly plan to spend the entire day. I'd predict a busy afternoon for the St John's Ambulance."
11.55am Both the Brit kids are 5-3 down in their first sets. Oops Heather Watson has just pegged it back to 5-4. She can really bang that forehand. Go on Heather! Go Heather! Heather-ch-ch-cha. Next 15 years just you wait.
Farquharson has now lost the first set 6-3 to Lou Bega. Maybe he needs to adjust his monocle.
12.04pm Andreev and Haas are warming up. Again Haas has the backwards baseball cap, combined with squint into the sun. Not only looks a bit silly on mature man. It also doesn;t make any sense.
12.10pm Today in the royal box we've got The Duke of Kent, Margaret from the Apprentice, Roger Bannister, Ian Hislop, Derek Underwood and Clive Woodward.
A rag-tag bunch, but might make a decent run of Celebrity Big Brother.
There has been some criticism of the calibre of VIPS (Brucie etc), but who would we really rather see?
My dream team: Chris Eubank, Tony Benn, Both the sad looking blokes who stood at the back in East 17, Howard from the Halifax ads, Gladstone Small, Jordan and a really drunk and screeching Tracy Emin.
12.15pm Right, kicking off here right now we've got Dementieva v Vesnina, Azarenka v Petrova, Radwanska v plucky CAAAMAN!-yodelling teen Oudin and Andreev v Haas in the chaps.
I'm tipping Oudin to keep her shock run going. She was the great against Jankovic the other day.
12.19pm The Guardian's Owen Gibson notes:
"Expect to see lots of newspaper hacks running around SW19 looking very industrious as today appears to be editor's day in the Royal Box. Independent editor Roger Alton, FT editor Lionel Barber, Express editor Peter Hill, and Sunday Times editor John Witherow are among those down to attend. Intriguingly, next to Hill on the list is Private Eye editor and Have I Got News For You stalwart Ian Hislop. We can only hope they also sit alongside one another so the latter can explain to the former his title's long standing convention of referring to him as Peter "Mentally" Hill."
It' a hack-boss beano up there. Nobody swear. Too much.
12.22pm Azarenka and Petrova is probably the game of the moment, 8th seed v 10th. But it still seems oddly unengaging. Two baseline whumpers from the CCCP hnnnging it out. It's 1-1 in the first.
Andreev and Haas are 2-1 Haas, no breaks. Let's watch that for a bit.
Ian Copestake suggests: "Perhaps the top tennis players should take a leaf out of British MPs' books and perfect the art of flipping their properties ... no, I mean deal with repeated questions about Murray by referring the honourable members of the fourth estate to the answer given ten minutes ago." Or just yell abuse in a loud roaring voice until someone says "OOOORDAAA!!"
12.25pm Peter Walker sends news Heather Walker lost the first but is 4-1 up in the second and also "places it beautifully", as well as yelling "Come on!" a lot.
12.28pm On potential royal box liggers Jimmy Lloyd notes: "I got Tracy Emin all cross in a pub once when a group of us started singing the Grandstand theme. Luckily, as she lunged towards us, a sober mate of Tracy's was on hand to restrain her. To this day I still imagine the mate squealing, "Leave it Trace! It's not worth it!", although in hindsight it seems more likely that she didn't."
Eh? Why did that make here cross? I don't get it.
I also saw Emin in the pub once. She danced on my table. Was absolutely off it. But I kind of liked her.
Azarenka is 3-1 up in the first set against Petrova. And she looks well up for it too.
12.33pm The busy Andreev, who looks pleasingly pensive and sombre, and just a bit like Brat Pack star Andrew McCarthy in his mid-1980s pomp, is stretched on his serve at 2-3. Several deuces and eventually a break point to Haas. He nets. Big game in the first set here.
Here's Gary Naylor's royal box: "In the second row clearly supping pints of lager and just beginning to heckle: Ricky Hatton; Charlie Sheen; Germaine Greer; Borat; Peaches Geldof; and Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice. In the front row sipping Pimms: ex-Speaker Mick Martin; Simon Cowell; Graham Poll; Will Carling; Kate Winslet; Esther Rantzen; and Princess Michael of Kent."
12.39pm Andreev holds his nerve and makes it 3-3. Haas was all over his serve there for a bit. He looks in good nick. And also a bit like a 17-year-old Californian skateboarder. But with the eyes of a 30-year-old German man who spends a lot of time in the sun. 4-3 to Haas now, holding serve with ease.
12.43pm Ian Copestake suggests perhaps Tracey Emin preferred World Of Sport. Dickie Davies and his little curl of white hair. What's not to like?
Andreev holds his serve a little easier to go 4-4.
Elsewhere Azarenka is at 4-3 against Petrova, both having dropped serve. Azarenka looks busier at the moment.
Dementieva is doing Vesnina 5-0 on Court 2.
And Radwanska is at 3-3 with the spunky Oudin.
12.47pm Peter Walker notes on the Bryan Brothers, faintly odd-seeming kings of doubles, "Up close, the Bryan brothers really are quite unnerving. They have identical outfits and rackets, even down to the same sweatbands, except these are worn on opposite wrists (Mike is right handed, Bob left). They stand close between points but don't appear to talk, which would indicate they communicate tactics via telepathy. They are nonetheless a break down to their far less sinister Czech opponents, Friedl and Skoch."
12.54pm Petrova is wearing a really odd decorative ruffle. It looks like she's being attacked by a snake. Bit market stall. Azarenka is making noises on every shot. Not a screech or a shriek, but a weary sigh, a kind of "ooooooooooaaaaaahhhhhhh". It's a rubbish noise. Stop it. Many deuces between the two at 4-4, Petrova hitting the ball very hard but staying back. "Ooooooooaaaaaaggh!" and it's a break point! Double fault and Azarenka will serve for the set.
12.57pm Quick round-up:
Dementieva has rushed through the first set v Vesnina, winning it 6-1.
Radwanska is at 5-4 v Oudin
And Haas and Andreeev are in a tie break for the first set, currently 1-1. Let's follow that one. Quick....
12.59pm Haas is forced back by Andreev's powerful ground strokes. 4-3 Andrrev. The German is not in the best of health. He's wincing a little too.
1.02pm But "Achtung!" Tommy is volleying really well out there. He's at 6-4!
1.04pm A mis-hit off a bad bounce rescues McCarthy/Andreev. Ally Sheedy will be pleased. Then Haas double faults and it's 6-6!
1.06pm Haas blows a set point with a wild forehand at 7-6. Andreev aces him to get a set point of his own against the flow of things in this tie break. But he blows it with a really weak blocked return that Haas gobbles up like it was the tenderest of breakfast Bockwurst. 8-8.
1.07pm Haas wins the first set, 7-6. And 10-8 in the tie break. Wins it in the end with a net bobble that he apologises for even while pumping his fist in triumph.
Petrova won the next two games against Azarenka, so that's now at 6-5 Petrova, first set.
1.12pm Soderling 1-0 Federer The Swede serves out the first game on Centre Court, with just one zinging backhand return winner from Ro-Fed. This will be a proper test for the big man.
1.16pm It's now Federer 1-1 Soderling, Federer winning his service game in about nine seconds.
Elsewhere Demntieva is at 6-1 3-2 with a break against Vesnina.
Azarenka and Petrova has gone to a tie-break in the first set.
and Radwanska took the first set 6-4 against Oudin.
1.20pm Set point to Azarenka at 5-6. She's still yelping and howling. The crowd don't like it much. She had a big strop earlier too. But she's weee-haaaa'd her way to the first set here against Petrova, who nets on here own serve. That's it, 7-6 Azarenka.
1.25 Also, a quick nod towards the Brit youngster previously characterised on this blog as swanking, monocled, pinstripe-clad Tom Farquharson, who has just beaten Alessandro "Lou" Bega 3-6 6-4 62. Top hole. And Petrova has called a medical time out. She looks absolutely knacked, having her blood pressure taken etc.
1.28pm Vesnina is serving to stay in the match against Dementieva. It's 3-5 in the second set. Backhand into the net leaves match point. And that's it. Dementieva wins 6-1 6-3. A bit of a stroll, one Russian overpowering another. Vesnina basically didn't turn up there.
1.32pm It's Soderling 4-3 Federer. And on Court 1 Venus Williams is absolutely turning over Ana Ivanovic in the early stages. It's now 5-0 in the first set. She's walloping her about ll over the shop. Ivanovic looks a bit shocked the poor wee little thing. She getting a shellacking out there.
1.38pm And Heather Watson has lost 6-4 1-6 6-4 to Solovieva. Shame for her. She slams her racket down into the turf. To be honest, she looks a bit lightweight on grass. Nice player, but where are the weapons?
And An-Iv has won a game. It's 5-1 now. Huge hearty cheers.
1.40pm I'm off to trough out on strawberries, Pimms, ice cream, Chardonnay, a Devon cream tea, cucumber sandwiches and fine Early Grey tea. I'll leave you in the supremely capable hands of Peter Walker for a bit.
1.47pm And here I am. Comments, suggestions, the usual, to peter.walker@guardian.co.uk please.
1.48pm A brief round-up: Federer now a set up against Soderling, Williams one up against Ivanovic. Haas now two up on Andreev. It's actually very pleasant to be back in the cool of the press corral. While I realise the one thing more tedious than British people whining about bad weather is when we whine about it being too hot, but it really is very sultry out there. It reminds me of Hong Kong, which would presumably indicate there's a thunderstorm looming and the officials can finally use their shiny new roof.
1.59pm Venus Williams is going through to the quarter-finals even quicker than she expected. While a set up and 0-1 down against Ivanovic, the Serb has had to retire. I didn't see what happened, but Ivanovic looked tearful as she left the court.
2.05pm The affable Australian radio journalist at the desk next door is paying more attention and says Ivanovic apparently pulled up with what looked like a thigh or groin strain.
2.09pm Guy Hornsby writes with an intriguing thought: "Watching the match at *cough* lunch, is it me or does Robin Soderling look like the distant brother of Peep Show's own legend Super Hans?" I'm not a Peep Show regular, but Guy helpfully provided a link to a pic, and he's right. I wouldn't even say "distant" brother.
2.12pm Meanwhile, David Hodgson has been roused into action by Barney's 10.40am item: "Good on Barney for bigging up the Drifter, oft overlooked, always-the-bridesmaid in the world of confectionery. Tennis coverage is ok as well." Thanks, David. Your praise might be faint, but it's praise nonetheless.
2.19pm Barney's 12.15pm tip for Oudin to continue her run has proved the predictable kiss of death. She's lost in straight sets to Radwanska. Meanwhile, Federer and Super Hans are fighting out the second set in a tie break.
2.22pm John Caradoc is taking a cynic's view of players retiring injured: "Of course sad to see Ivanovic go, but it's interesting that players ahead in games very rarely retire injured. I wonder what the stats are." It's an interesting point, but to be fair to Ivanovic she looked extremely upset.
2.25pm Meanwhile, swine flu has arrived at Wimbledon. Maybe. The All England Club has issued a statement saying that a "small number" of Wimbledon staff have reported flu-like symptoms, and people should report to the St John's Ambulance if they feel a bit peaky. Venus Williams is asked about this at her press conference and could hardly seem less concerned.
2.29pm Federer has taken the tie break. Afraid I was watching Venus Williams answer some dull questions about Twitter, and why she doesn't use it, so I missed the tie break score.
2.31pm And Tommy Haas breezes through in straight sets. At 31 I'm guessing he's the oldest player left in the draw. The same ATP handbook which confirmed his age tells me Haas enjoys "golf, waterskiing and driving fast cars". Good for you, Tommy.
2.34pm Within seconds of each other, Tom Bowker and Andrew West email in more or less the same response to John Caradoc's 2.22pm point – it's not so much that players retire because they're behind, but that if they're carrying an injury the chances are they'll be losing. Makes sense to me.
2.38pm Barney, roaming free in the heat, sends in this topical observation: "The queue for Djokovic on Court Three is already right round two corners. If he looked good in a little skirt he would be on Court One. Odd for number four seed." Who says Djokovic doesn't look good in a little skirt, or is this not a conversational avenue we wish to explore?
2.45pm Azarenka joins the women's quarter-final draw. The tenth seed beat Petrova in three sets in the end.
3.00pm Serene Williams has joined her sister in the next round, with only marginally more effort. She beat the decidedly lanky Daniela Hantuchova 6-3 6-1, at one point taking seven games in a row.
3.07pm Soderling is running Federer very close in another tie break. Federer, in a concession to the conditions, has broken out in a very slight sweat.
3.08pm Oh dear. Soderling/Super Hans messes things up with a double fault and Federer serves out to take his fine tailoring into the quarter finals.
3.14pm Hello. It's Barney Ronay back again, and available as always on barney.ronay@guardian.co.uk. Been watching a bit of Federer. The usual prowling excellence. Also caught the end of Azarenka v Petrova. Funny really, I'd been irritated by Azrenka's diva stuff - the strops, the weeehaaa's, the strutting - on the telly. But in the flesh she's really quite good fun, and charismatic too. She could be the next big thing. Great athlete too and a big girl. She could definitely beat you up.
3.20pm The very personable Sabine Lisicki is serving to take the first set against Wozniacki. She's at 30-15 already.
3.21pm Also stayed on Court 3 to watch a bit of Djokovic. There were huge cheers for his opponent, laid-back Californian stoner Dudi "The Dude" Sela. But it looks a bit of a mismatch at first glance. Dudi's a capering little elf of a tennis player. Novak is a hulk. He hits a heavy ball all right.
Lisicki has a set point. And she aces it! She's on fire here. Lisicki wins the first set 6-4.
3.24pm It's a tie break for the first set in Verdasco v Carlovic. 4-4 already with both men serving heavily.
Tim Jones has a prediction: "Murray wins 6-3, 6-7, 6-4, 6-1." He also notes, very kindly, "Tough gig you've got there by the way!". Yes, it is a little busy at times. And the heat... terrible.
3.27pm It's first set Karlovic, 7-6 as he edges it in the tie break with some ferocious hitting from the back.
Jonathan McCauley-Oliver meanwhile has all the facts at his fingertips: "Courtesy of the coverage on the wireless I heard an excellent couple of stats the other day that I'd like to share with you and your tennis collective. At 5'11" Leyton Hewett is the last person under 6 foot to have won win Wimbledon and Michael Stich is the last person to have won the title with his shirt tucked in." He has his shirt tucked in all the time? Like a Victorian urchin sewn into his underwear? Amazing.
3.30pm Mike Hatcher asks re: Sabine Lisicki: "Barney, when you say personable - do you mean * adequate replacement for Ivanovic photo in next live blog *?"
Look here. This is the Guardian. Just seems like a very jolly person. She's also just gone 2-0 up and with a break in the second against Wozniacki.
3.35pm Now it's a tie-break on Court 18 between Razzano and Schiavone. Schiavone took the first set. Now it's 4-1 to her in the TB. Very hot and close out there. Plenty of towel-mopping going on.
3.38pm And crikey, Djokovic has already marmalised his way to the first set against Sela on Court 3. He's won it 6-2. Meanwhile, hyyeeeeeng!! That's the sound of Schiavone scuttling her way to a straight set win against Razzano, 6-2, 7-6. Wins it with a lovely drop-shot-volley combo. And she's on her knees giving it the fist-pump. She's in the quarters.
3.40pm Now let's have a look at the match on Centre Court, Magnificent Snorting Amelie Mauresmo against the strangely anonymous No1 seed Dinara Safina. It's 3-1 to Dinara right now. She looks in the mood.
Meanwhile Will Carver has a Bruno-style beef: "Good lord, how is it that no-one passed comment on that bloody great gold and white manbag Lord Federer was carrying off the court. First RF logos on his cellophane, then a smoking jacket and now this. The man is a tennis genius but a fashion moron."
I think it looks quite good. I never know where to put my fags and stuff either.
3.45pm High quality stuff this. Safina who, it has to be said, still looks to me to be carrying a bit of timber is being moved around the court nicely by Mauresmo. "Byoourng!!" she says. Huge wind-up on the forehand by the Russian. She saves a break point with a pinpoint backhand down the line. But Mauresmo breaks her to go 2-3. She's right back in it. Could be a cracker here.
3.51pm Back on Court 4 the agreeable Lisicki is jolly hockey-sticking her way through to the quarters at the rate. She's a set and 4-2 up against Wozniacki. When I was over there just now some blokes started up a slightly embarrassed chorus of Sweet Caroline. It was not that great. And she's being done by the German here at the moment. Double faults to go to deuce. Then scrabbles two more rallies the hard way to get back to 4-3 down.
Meanwhile oliver Lea-Wilson has a weird one: "My girlfriend is a massive Roger Federer fan, so much so I'm thinking of giving up and selling her on to him; I know she reads your updates and she is at work, struggling to stay awake after having Virgin lose all her airline luggage at Heathrow the night before. A simple "wake up Olu!" would more than put a smile on her face and maybe cheer her up (and make my life easier) should Federer lose later today."
Er, Wake up Olu.
He has already won by the way. But I do feel we shared something there and I wish you both all the best for the future.
3.55pm And Mauresmo has broken Safina to go to 4-3. She was 3-0 down in this first set. Safina is falling to bits. She's got the yips on her serve here. Mauresmo is sniffing something here.
3.58pm Feel like I've neglected No2 Court where Radek Stepanek has taken the first set 6-2 against Leyton Hewitt and is 2-1 up with a break in the second set. Bad news for loud, drunk men in yellow T-shirts everywhere. But we know Hewitt likes to take it all the way so don't write this one off. He's doing a lot of frowning out there. And tugging at the knees of his shorts. And there we are, Hewitt instantly earns a couple of break points against the heavily-browed, vaguely simian Stepanek.
4.03pm But he's blown them both. Stepanek ruthlessly serves out and he does look to have Hewitt's number right now at 3-1 in the second. Much scampering from the little Aussie but where does it get him really? Where is he going with all this?
4.05pm There it is. Lisicki has beaten Wozniacki 6-4, 6-4. She's the seventh of the eight quarter finals. And could Proud, snuffling Amelie Mauresmo be the last? She's just taken the first set 6-4 against Safina, who was 3-0 up. She's absolutely bossing her out there.
4.07pm Sorry Australians. Hate to be the bearer and all that but Hewitt is now 4-1 down in the second. He's also suffering some kind of groin-hyyyung. He's certainly feeling it a lot. And he's called for the doctor to have a rummage. Huge problems for the lovable scamp.
4.10pm Out on Court 3 the scurrying "Cool" Dudi Sela is serving to stay in the second set at 4-5. He's saved two set points against Djokovic. But he can't save the third. Djokovic leads two sets to love.
Now, has anyone got any questions for Roger Federer, man-bag-related or otherwise? I'm going to go down to his press conference in a bit.
4.13pm Simon Frank wants to pick me up on my comments on the Drifter bar, king of chocolate. "I want to know why Banjo (the thinking
man's drifter) and Texan bars (bite through the chocolate and chew,
real, slow) went the way of the dodo. Perhaps Cadbury's or whoever can
do a revival?"
4.40pm Sorry for the slight delay. The news is:
1. I've just been down to the Roger Federer press conference; and
2. It's raining. Only slightly, but the Centre Court roof is closing. Yes. Here it comes. Fascinating stuff.
4.43pm Fascinating stuff, the roof coming on and play suspended for 40 mins or so with Mauresmo 4-1 down in the second set and one set up against Safina. They get first go on the roof then.
Elsewhere Hewitt is two sets down to Stepanek but 4-0 up in the third.
Verdasco and Karlovic are 1-1 in sets and 3-3 in games.
And Novak Djokovic has beaten Dudi Sela 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 as you kind of always knew he would.
4.50pm As for Roger, he seemed a little downbeat to be honest. Described his game against Soderling as "a serving contest". He thinks the swine flu scare is "not such good news". He remembered his first match against Pete Sampras on centre court ("cold hands, pulse racing, disbelief I was playing my hero"). And he said he spent his time off the court "hanging around Wimbledon. It's nice." And indeed it is. He should try Sylvie's Cafe on Merton Road. Or the Centre Court shopping mall for all his fat-blokes-eating-KFC and aggressive hoodies needs.
4.57pm So, some down time. Paul Jess writes on Sabine "Personable" Lisicki: "You are right about Lisucki. We had front row seats by the baseline on no 1 court on Saturday and I agree Lisicki did seem 'very personable' when ever she made a mistake she just laughed to herself and seemed to be enjoying the moment, she was genuinely moved when she won. It was a complete difference from Svetlana Kuznetsova who just shouted at herself all match."
5.02pm So, a bit of a wait here. I'm not sure it;s actually raining right now, juts a bit dark. We will be back shortly on Centre Court once the atmosphere in there has "regularised". And I guess they'll leave it up for Murray too, who could be on about 6.30 now. I'll be down there with the inside track on what it feels like to sit under a roof.
5.08pm Peter Walker points out that it;s stopped raining and the covers are coming off elsewhere. "Did they jump the gun with the roof?" he wonders. And the agreeable Sabine Lisicki is being interviewed right now. She hasn't met Boris Becker yet. She knows Steffi Graf well. She's generally quite cheerful. The incident where she bumped into her opponent walking past for a changeover was no big deal. She moved to Berlin when she was a kid to find a school with a proper tennis court. And now she's off in German. "Dann zee ganxen knock were in Deutchen auf der gan han" All right.
5.15pm The good news here is that the players are out on both covered and non-covered courts knocking up and getting ready to resume. And here's Ana Ivanovic talking, in a shaky little voice, about the knee-knack that forced her off today while she was being absolutely beasted by Venus Williams. "I felt some sharp pain" etc etc.
5.18pm Mauresmo and Safina are about to start again and everyone's going on about the different light, different temperature, weird echoes, the "intimacy" etc. This is a historic moment you know.
5.24pm Here we go. 4-1 Safina in the second set, one set down. Mauresmo to serve the first ever point under the roof. And Safina takes it with a lovely little dinked pass shot at the net. Mauresmo wangs in a slashing backhand winner then plays an elegant wrong-footing forehand, moving her about the court and working that iffy knee. Goes to deuce though. Ace to get to game point. Then another to win the game. She's back in it at 4-2. And Peter Walker is out there under the roof. "It's almost moving," he says, I think meaning emotionally moving, rather than waggling about in the wind.
5.27pm Giant lumbering Frankenstein's monster Ivo Karlovic is serving for the second set, already 2-1 up in sets. Goes 40-0 up with three aces. Then sends down a sere Verdasco can only just get a racket on. Third set to Karlovic 6-3. This man is awesome. 6ft10in tall with an arm like a piston hammer. Classic macho grass court tennis.
5.34pm Back in the big steamy tent, Mauresmo is serving to stay in the second set at 2-5. These two are hitting the cover off that ball out there. Mauresmo holds with some bicep-flexing stuff, running Safina about when she can. But double fault brings a deuce. Lovely angled volley gives game point. And then a fairly simple forehand fizzes past a stationary Safina, who will now serve at 5-3 for the set.
On Court 3 wily Frenchman and likely future Andy Murray opponent Gilles Simon has taken the first game against Juan Carlos Ferrero.
And Safina has just served out to take the second set 6-3.
5.37pm Something has happened to Leyton Hewitt. Previously on the verge of being scrapped for parts, he's now leaping about like a lunatic against the glowering Stepanek. He's 5-1 up in the third set. You get the feeling this one's going all the way to five sets and lots of roaring, fist-pumping, yellow-T-shirt-blokes-yelling stuff.
5.42pm Endearing, backwards-hatted, spunky little never-say-die scamp Leyton Hewitt has taken the third set 6-1. Stepanek looks extremely gloomy, but then you suspect he'd look extremely gloomy while riding on a magic carpet made of rose petals through the fields of Elysium, eating a Drifter, in the company of Sabine Lisicki.
5.47pm good news for Mauresmo fans. She still looks like she's got a bit in the tank out there. It's now 2-0 in the third set as Mauresmo takes Safina to deuce on her serve three times, before breaking her with a leaping overhead. She's skipping about like a frisky young foal. And, it has to be said, sweating like a really fat man you find asleep in a sauna at the gym (I speak from experience). She's got the whip hand on the No1 seed.
5.50pm Safina is all over the shop out there. She looks really ragged, yelling, sweating, whirling about like a very drunk man falling out of a third rate chain pub some time close to midnight. It's now 3-0 Mauresmo and at the moment Safina is going out.
5.54pm Look, look, look I told you. Hewitt is 2-0 up with a break in the fourth and Stepanek is playing like a drain. Plus, the Aussies in the crowd are about to get it from a ridiculous jobsworth steward who has called in some soldiers to help him. For God's sake get a grip. They're just cheeky Aussies. Leave them alone. Someone sack that steward. Or humiliate him in some fundamental way. Strip him of his high-viz vest.
5.59pm Here's a round-up:
Mauresmo has now been pegged back by Safina. She's 3-2 up but Safina is serving.
Hewitt is 3-0 up and serving in the fourth set. And absurdly two Aussie spectators are now being threatened by some members of the armed forces and some firemen too. On the say-so of a steward. And, wait... ha ha take that, that steward. The marine has defused the situation! The Aussies stay on court! Well done that peace-keeping soldier. In your face pernickety steward!
And Verdasco is 6-5 up against Karlovic in the fourth set, Karlovic will serve to stay in it.
6.03pm It's 3-3 now between Safina and Mauresmo. And a tie-break between Karlovic and Verdasco. Karlo 2-1 up in sets.
Marcus Geary sends us:
the following description by Clive James which I invariably recall when said hyperventilating Oz star is hurtling across the court in a grimacing, white blur: "As science has now established, wearing a peaked cap backwards is the universal sign of the international idiot. No matter how handsome, no young male tennis player looks good that way and Lleyton looked worse than most, especially when seen in close-up with his fist in the air pulling the intestines out of an imaginary opponent while he yelled silent abuse at his girlfriend in the grandstand, a tirade which apparently meant that he was doing well instead of badly." I suspect your tongue is gouging a lump out of your face when referring to him as a scamp though, yes?
Isn't he a scamp?
6.06pm The giant, pummeling Karlovic is absolutely hammering it down in this tie break. He's 3-1 up with a mini-break already as Verdasco serves a double fault... tragedy really. You can't do that with this serving machine at the other end.
6.08pm Verdaso mini-breaks back with a great hooked pass down the line. He's wa-hooing like a man who's just won all four Grand Slams at once. Huge moment for him. But Karlovic aces the next point to go 4-3.
6.10pm Verdasco claws it back to 5-4 after Karlovic breaks him again. Then hits a clean winner off a Karlovic second serve!! This is a great tie break. 5-5.
6.11pm Karlovic has started missing his first serve. Another mini-break for Verdasco! This time scurrying up to the net to put it away. Verdasco has a set point but Karlo nails a deep forehand return to save it. Great stuff. 6-6.
6.15pm Set point to Verdasco again, but Karlovic aces it magnificently. Spiderman couldn't have returned that one. Another huge serve brings match point. But Verdasco saves it on his serve. It's 9-8 Verdasco and another set point for heaven's sake. Karlovic aces it again brilliantly.
6.17pm By the way Safina is now serving for the match at 5-4 v Mauresmo. And Hewitt is running away at 5-2 with the fourth against Stepanek. On No1 Court the tie-break goes on. It's 10-9 Karlovic.
6.18pm And there it is. Karlovic wins 7-6 6-7 6-3 7-6. Verdasco sends a forehand long to finish it. Amazing display of power-serving and a proper upset too. Well played that giant physical specimen.
6.20pm Safina beats Mauresmo 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. In the end the Russian served that out quite comfortably, looking like a proper world No1. Mauresmo looks rather sad as she walks off.
6.21pm Meanwhile here's Peter Walker's verdict on that roof:
After a 15-minute spell watching the very first roofed-over Wimbledon action, my instant verdict is – it's actually pretty good. Despite the translucent cover and the non-direct lighting, there's no escape from the fact it feels very indoors, and a lot different from usual. But the sound resonates and makes everything feel more intimate. It was a good match anyway but the crowd seemed to be buoyed into cheering more loudly. They were so excited before play resumed that even the royal box was (half-heartedly) joining in the Mexican wave. Who knows, maybe every single player will hate the roof, but for spectators it works very well.
6.23pm And here's world class news-hound Owen Gibson's view on it:
My two penneth on the roof - the lighting gives things a slightly hyper real quality, like watching a match in high definition for the first time. Volume of the crowd seems louder too - perhaps because they're more comfortable and don't have to spend all their time doing that annoying fanning, maybe because this is a much more engrossing match than the federer one.
Either way, the roof definitely keeps the sound in - atmosphere for murray should be good.
6.25pm The other big news here is that Hewitt has taken the fourth set 6-2 to make it 2-2, and he's 1-0 up with a break. Stepanek needs to pull something out here. What a comeback.
6.30pm Another tie-break out on Court 3 between Simon and Ferrero. First set, this. It's 5-4 to Ferrero and he's got two serves to win it.
6.32pm Ferrero has a set point on his serve. And Simon nets. Ferrero wins the first set 7-6 against the 8th seed, not bad going for a wild card.
6.34pm By the way out on Court 18 the Williams sisters are absolutely caning Yan and Zheng in the doubles. They've just taken the first set 6-0, to the dismay of the many gathered Chinese journalists. It's all gone a bit quiet over there.
6.37pm And on that note I'm going to point you in the direction of Scott Murray's game by game blog on Murray v Wawrinka on Centre Court. Stay here for updates on the other matches, but I'm off down there now.
Thanks for reading. We will be back for more from Wimbledon tomorrow, of course.
