Final start time change for Anisimova vs Swiatek, Sinner vs Alcaraz at Wimbledon

Wimbledon enthusiasts can mark a new beginning time in their calendars as Amanda Anisimova and Iga Swiatek, along with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, will now dazzle Centre Court crowds from 4pm for the singles finals after organisers decided to shift the traditional 2pm start by two hours this year.

The tournament schedule has been reshuffled, moving the doubles finals to a 1pm start rather than following the singles finals and trophy ceremonies as it has in the past. Sally Bolton, All England Club chief executive, cited the motive behind these changes was to rope in the "largest possible worldwide audience".

She said: “We have adjusted the provisional schedule for the final weekend of The Championships with the ambition of improving the experience for all involved.

"The doubles players competing in the finals will have increased certainty over their schedule and fans will enjoy each day's play as it builds towards the crescendo of the ladies' and gentlemen's singles finals, with our champions being crowned in front of the largest possible worldwide audience."

BBC executives are undoubtedly crossing fingers that the later starting hour for the blockbuster matches could be just the ticket to reverse last year’s dip in TV viewership numbers, reports the Express.

In a worrying trend for broadcasters, a stark comparison revealed that Barbora Krejcikova's triumph against Jasmine Paolini at Wimbledon saw a drop of 400,000 viewers from the women's singles final the previous year.

The men's final last year featured Carlos Alcaraz defeating Novak Djokovic in straight sets to retain his title, yet 3.8 million more people had watched Alcaraz triumph over Djokovic the year prior. Concerns have been raised about the later start time potentially causing disruption, especially if the best-of-five set men's final extends for a lengthy period.

This was highlighted by the recent French Open final, where Alcaraz fought off three championship points to overcome Jannik Sinner in an epic battle lasting five hours and 29 minutes. The two are set to face each other again in Sunday's championship match.

At the All England Club, there is a risk that play may need to be halted to close the roof and activate the floodlights if the match goes on into the late evening. However, <s Bolton said: "We spent a lot of time considering the data and information in front of us from history and length of matches."

Additionally, in an extreme case, the 11pm curfew also poses a potential concern.