Anyone for tennis? Wimbledon under way

Wimbledon is under way once again with sports fans braced for two weeks of queueing, bad weather and British disappointment.

Centre Court at the All-England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club will have a familiar look this year as the permanent roof returns after last year's open-air tournament.

The stands have been redeveloped to seat an extra 1,200 spectators and improve the scoreboard.

Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament that sells on-the-day tickets, and a new queueing system has been introduced for fans hoping to catch some world-class tennis.

A single line snaking through Wimbledon Park and golf club will replace the double queue of previous years, with organisers promising "more pleasing ambience in the park and more lavatories" for queuers.

In all, between 450,000 and 460,000 people are expected to pass through the gates over the fortnight and eat more than two tons of strawberries every day.

The weather forecast for the first week of the tournament should also bring cheer to spectators with sunshine and temperatures above 20C (68F) predicted.

British hopes in this year's men's singles tournament rest on the shoulders of 21-year-old Andy Murray.

The Scot opens his campaign against veteran Frenchman Fabrice Santoro, who is ranked more than 40 places below him, but with second seed Rafael Nadal as his potential quarter-final opponent, even matching Tim Henman's semi-final record would be an achievement for Murray.

In the other half of the draw, the Slovakian Dominik Hrbaty has the dubious privilege of being the first player this year to try to stop defending champion Roger Federer in his bid to win a record sixth consecutive title.

The Swiss maestro was last beaten at Wimbledon in the first round in 2002, since when he has been undefeated in 35 matches, winning 102 sets and losing just eight.

In all, nine Britons - five women and four men - will take part in this year's singles tournaments, though with all but two - Murray and qualifier Chris Eaton - entering the Championships on wildcards. Naomi Cavaday, a 19-year-old left-hander from Chislehurst, Kent, has the toughest draw of all the British women - a first round tie against defending champion Venus Williams.

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