Some areas of the tournament have resisted the merciless onward march of technology – and that’s a blessing
Much of the vast stream of data generated at Wimbledon has long since been digitised and the last hand-operated scoreboard was pensioned off years ago, so it is good to report that the tournament’s magnificent manual draw boards, which are dotted around the grounds to chart the progress of the main championships, are still going strong.
Sean Pontin and Andrew Billingham have overseen the operation since the mid-1980s, and were busily printing names and results on to metal bars and labels on from lunchtime on Monday. Their staff need a ladder to reach the top end of the draw in the early part of the championships, and while it remains a labour-intensive operation – and inevitably less immediate than the press of an umpire’s button which sends the outcome of every point around the world in a nanosecond – it has its advantages.