Oldgrey travel made his annual visit to the tennis championship at Eastbourne recently and was struck, as usual, about how wonderful and easy-going the whole event is. It has the sense of how Wimbledon must have been in the 1950’s, easy access, small crowds, great tennis and lots of close-up contact with the players – all so very different to the Wimbledon of today.
So, what makes Eastbourne so special on the tennis circuit. For a start, it must be one of the few major sporting events in the UK where you do not have to buy tickets well in advance. Leave Centre Court out of the equation, and I will return to this later, and you can book your ticket one or two days in advance when you will be more certain of the weather forecast. Last year (2016), I ignored my own advice and booked tickets several weeks in advance – it rained all day, and there is no cover at Eastbourne. This year I booked Court 1 tickets on Sunday for the Monday, ie the following day. The weather was perfect, sunny but with a cooling breeze. Friends had pre-booked Centre Court tickets for the Tuesday well in advance – it rained all day with no play at all.
Ok, so I hear you say the best players and best matches are going to be on Centre Court. Well, not necessarily. This early in the tournament, the matches have to be spread around and with the more established British players normally allocated to Centre Court, it means that there are plenty of world class tennis players on Court 1 and the outside courts. On Monday 2017, I saw Naomi Broady (a Brit) take Kristyna Pliskova to 3 sets, Thomas Belluci take on Kevin Anderson, Nicolas Mahut and Robin Haase and, finally, Jelena Ostapenko (the world no.10 and current French Open champion) in a 3 set battle with Carla Suarez Navarro, one of the best grass court exponents in the women’s game. Not bad for £30.
But there is more. The best seats at Eastbourne are an insider’s secret. Book any of the seats at the east end of the South Stand on Court 1 from around halfway back (the higher the better) and you also have a perfect view of Court 2 (as below). You get two courts for the price of one, though the experience can be a bit schizophrenic at times. The matches on Court 2 can be every bit as good, often better. The proximity of the crowd on these outside courts seems to bring out the streetfighter instinct in most tennis players and the matches just seem that much more competitive. I saw two ultra competitive 3 set matches between Donaldson (USA) and Schwartzman (Arg) and then Eugenie Bouchard and Barbara Strycova.
Getting to Eastbourne could not be easier, the train station is within easy walking distance with direct trains from London Victoria taking around 1 hour 30 minutes. By car, the roads are generally uncongested and the best place to park is the cricket club off Saffron Road (signposted), a mere 10 minute walk away, where you can park all day for £6.00. Prices for food and drink are at high street prices, indeed the High Street is just outside the ground, so you could easily walk outside for refreshment if preferred.
The whole experience is relaxed, well-organized and low cost. What is not to enjoy?
