Wimbledon hands out £250,000 worth of refunds after outdoor courts were forced to close amid a deluge of rain in south London
- Around 8 days of rain fell in afternoon in Wimbledon calling off tennis matches
- All England Club handed out around £250k worth of refunds for cancellations
- Latest Wimbledon 2023 news, including schedule, travel updates and results
Wimbledon has handed out a whopping £250,000 worth of refunds after outdoor courts were forced to close amid a deluge of rain in south London.
The tennis Championships suffered its biggest wash-out in 19 years yesterday as, out of a total of 77 matches, just eight went ahead as scheduled with the remainder cancelled or suspended.
In the morning, the All England Club was apologising to tennis fans who were left waiting in massive queues but by yesterday afternoon people were heading off due to around eight days worth or rain falling over just 12 hours.
The club said they would give full refunds to those with ground passes and tickets for courts except Centre Court and No 1 Court, where matches continued under the shelter of the roofs.
Technically, many ticket holders would only get a 50 per cent refund under Wimbledon’s policies, which gives a one-hour limit for a complete refund, as play on Court No 3 ran for 62 minutes, and on outside courts for over an hour on average. Only those at Court No 2 would have got a full refund as play went on for 59 minutes.
Wimbledon has handed out a whopping £250,000 worth of refunds after outdoor courts were forced to close amid a deluge of rain in south London
The tennis Championships suffered its biggest wash-out in 19 years yesterday as, out of a total of 77 matches, just eight went ahead as scheduled with the remainder cancelled or suspended
The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) confirmed that tickets bought for Courts Two and Three as well as grounds passes bought before 5pm will receive a full refund.
Returning spectators will get another chance to watch them.
This was the worst set of cancellations at Wimbledon since June 2004, when matches were cancelled for two full days due to heavy downpours.
The shop at the Championships was quick to sell out of ponchos, which cost £8, and there were seldom few mini umbrellas left at £24.
Met Office data suggests that around 12mm of rain fell around Wimbledon yesterday afternoon, which represents around eight days of average UK rainfall in July last year.
Spectators take shelter from the rain on day two of Wimbledon yesterday afternoon
Andy Murray in action against Ryan Peniston (not pictured) on day two of Wimbledon
Wimbledon fans should expect sunnier spells and fewer showers after the deluge on the second day of the tournament stopped play on outside courts,
They predict a 40 per cent chance of light rain at 11am and a 50 per cent chance at 4pm in Wimbledon, but little else besides.
The Met Office has predicted ‘scattered’ bouts of rain, a few of which may be on the heavy side, across south-east England.
The forecasting body also said it should feel slightly warmer for many.
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