Some of you may remember how difficult it was to get tickets to Queen this year (2008). Despite registering and being ready when tickets went on sale, and even getting part of the way through the process I initially was unable to get tickets.
I emailed to give feedback on my experience of the process and got no response, so went off on holiday to New York/Orlando in the belief I would not be attending this year....... while away I got an email asking me to call the ticketline (which I was unable to do due to preplanned holiday activities).
Anyway...... when I came back from my holiday I got a phonecall from the ticket agents and I was able to buy a pair of tickets for Court 1 for which ever day I chose!
I picked day 1 as I have an important exam coming up which I needed to revise for and also I guessed I would have a better chance of seeing some Brits in the early stages of the tournament.
So background over, I have finally got my boyfriend to sort out the photo's for me and am able to tell you all about my day......
We booked a hotel in London near to Queens Club for the Sunday night and made our way by train to London in the afternoon. We were able to upgrade to First Class on the train due to a promotion for only £5 each which made the journey a bit more enjoyable.
The following morning we got up and checked the OOP, quite happy with the matches on Court 1 but really hoped we would be able to see Andy's doubles match on Centre.
We got to Queens around 10.30 had to wait in a short queue and then finally got in around 11. We headed straight to the practice courts to see who was around and who should we see but Marin Cilic!
After watching the practice for a while we went to get some water and have a wander around before the first match. Headed over to Court 1 to check out our seats (row Q) which weren't too bad.
First match on court was Ginepri/Spadea (sorry no pics). We watched the first set which was described as someone nearby as a good first match but nothing exciting - which I would probably agree with. Decided to get lunch after the first set as I really wanted to see Cilic/Melzer and also thought it might be less busy!
So an exciting lunch of sandwiches and crisps (note to self, come prepared next time) which cost £15 for 2 or us!
Back to court 1 just in time for Cilic vs Melzer
Melzer was quite bad tempered throughout the match, querying calls and arguing with the chair umpire, so I was quite glad that Cilic won the match.
Next up Boggo!
So Boggo vs Sirianni - I had popped to the ladies before play started and Brad walked right past me, unfortunately I was not prepared so could not ask him for his autograph as I had no pen with me or anything I could get him to sign!
Also at this point Andy arrived - we had a good view of the cars arriving from our seats!
Boggo started the match positively but it quickly became clear that Sirianni was the likely winner all that qualifying had clearly benefitted him!
We could see at this point that the queue for Centre court returns had become quite short so decided to go try our luck in case we could see Andy and Dani, ice creams were also bought as it was very warm still!
Having joined the returns queue we were eating our ice creams and they were slowly calling people forward. We had to wait maybe 15 minutes before a pair became available and when we looked at them we had row G!!!!!!!
Decided to have a bit more of a wander around before watching some more tennis in case Andy was around. On the first practice court we saw Djokovic out having a gentle practice - there were so many people there that we didn't even attempt to take photos!
Headed down to the other end as we noticed Andy and Dani on a court but couldn't get close. Was just about to get my boyfriend to take some photos and he told me to look behind me (no not panto)..........
Yes that's right - it was Jonathon Ross just leaving! I didn't even see him till my boyfriend told me!
Anyway back to the main men.....Andy and Dani
We managed to wedge ourselves in between the gap between the courts to watch the guys for a little while and then who did we see ........Judy & Kim!!!
My boyfriend was taking some shots of the guys whilst I wondered whether to say hello or not.......
I finally decided I had to as I might not get another chance.... so over I wandered and said hi to Judy. I asked her if she was having a good day, and asked if Andy was still playing on centre as the matches were running quite long....she said as far as they were aware he was! Anyway I excused myself as I didn't want to bother her for too long!
We left Andy and Dani practicing - saying goodbye to Judy as we went, and headed to Centre Court to see if our seats were as good as they sounded.....they were!
We got in just in time to see Ward lose to Safin, but he put up a very good fight!
Next up Grosjean vs De Voest... this was a really good match, the first set was very competitive - it changed from game to game as either one could have won it.
The second set was more one sided - De Voest seemed to lose heart when he lost the first set and put up much less of a fight - although my main concern was how soon they would finish as I wanted to see Andy!
They finally finished at about 7.30 but I needn't have worried as Andy and Dani were announced as the final match on court!
Some familiar faces looking on
So the one we had all been waiting for.... and the tv cameras were covered over and left for the night.
The players arrived on court, Dani looking just a tiny bit nervous. They lost the toss and Dani would serve first....a slightly odd decision we thought.
As we all know he dropped serve and this would prove decisive in the first set. However they didn't lose hope and managed to take the 2nd set which meant we were into a Match Tie Break (oh no!)
Some photos of Andy during the match:
Anyway back to the match and the one thing which was great was how Andy was with Dani and is the reason it would have been great for it to have been broadcast. He spent the whole match telling Dani what a good shot he had just made, and nice serve and various other comments.
It showed just how different Andy is to the persona he has been given by the press, he smiled (!)even made a sarcastic comment to his bench (I believe they were telling Dani that Andy was holding him back at the time).
The MTB was nailbiting even though they got off to a good start....as you never can be sure with a Murray! But as we all know they came through it with a win and they both looked so happy at the end!
I was so pleased they had won......Dani looked thrilled and I'm sure the team were more excited for him than Andy, they seem quite a close knit group.
So the day all but over I headed for the ladies and the obligatory queue! I was standing there in a world of my own when Judy appeared behind me (I was wearing my am.com shirt now) and asked me if I had enjoyed the match......I almost couldn't believe it but managed to answer and asked her to pass on our congratulations.
We headed for the exit and I was just so excited - had a photo taken as I was leaving which we now know was taken by Mark, I gather he was amused by me looking so pleased with myself!
It was an amazing day and so long, we didn't get back to our hotel until around 9.30. We decided to walk as it was only a mile and we figured it would take just as long by tube or by bus and it was free to walk!
I'll pass the compliments on the photos onto my boyfriend - he was designated photographer with his new digital slr, he actually took around 400 but I have cut out a lot as it would take forever to resize and post them .
Link to photobucket for remaining piccys as I can't remember the order I posted them :(
http://s300.photobucket.com/albums/nn9/Lizzim_photo/Queens2008/
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