Wimbledon: Top four dramatic moments in the tournament's history

#1 Tim Henman and Jeremy Bates’ disqualification at Wimbledon 1995

Tim Henman with the ball girl he hit

23 years have passed since Tim Henman made Wimbledon history, as he and Jeremy Bates became the first pair ever to be disqualified from a match at the All England Club. The British pair had two sets to one lead over Jeff Tarago, of the United States and Herik Holm, of Sweden. Henman’s disqualification came in the fourth set tie-break when he accidentally hit a ball towards a ball girl.

His frustration came after he left a shot which he should have volleyed. Henman desperately tried to plead his innocence and said to the chair umpire,

“There is hard and very hard and I hit the ball hard, it was not as if I bulleted it at her”. His best efforts were not enough, as the British duo became the first and only pair ever to receive a disqualification in a Wimbledon match; a record Henman carried for the rest of his career.

The former world number four endured further heartbreak at SW19, as he reached the semi-finals on four separate occasions.

Two of those defeats came to Pete Sampras; a man regarded as one of tennis’ greatest ever players. However, the most heartbreaking loss came against Goran Ivanisevic in 2001. It looked as though Henman was heading for the Wimbledon final, as the Brit led the Croat by two sets to one.

Henman won the third set 6-0 and had all the momentum, but a rain delay in the fourth set put a halt to Henman’s charge and allowed Ivanisevic to regroup.

Although the disqualification came six years before the defeat to Ivanisevic, having to deal with such an unwanted record must have been difficult.

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