2000 Wimbledon Championships
The 2000 Wimbledon Championships was a Grand Slam tennis tournament held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, from 26 June to 9 July 2000.[1] It marked the third major of the year, featuring elite players competing on outdoor grass courts in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles events.[2] In the men's singles, American Pete Sampras secured his seventh Wimbledon title—and a then-record 13th Grand Slam singles crown—by defeating Australia's Patrick Rafter in the final, 6–7(10–12), 7–6(7–5), 6–4, 6–2.[2] The victory was particularly poignant for Sampras, who overcame foot tendonitis and celebrated with his parents in the stands after defeating Rafter.[3] Rafter had advanced to the final by edging out Andre Agassi in a thrilling five-set semifinal noted for its extended rallies and dramatic momentum shifts.[2] The women's singles saw American Venus Williams claim her maiden Wimbledon title, defeating compatriot and defending champion Lindsay Davenport 6–3, 7–6(7–3) in the final.[4] En route, Venus overcame her sister Serena in the semifinals—the first time siblings had met in a Grand Slam semifinal during the Open Era—before teaming with Serena to win the women's doubles title against France's Julie Halard-Decugis and Japan's Ai Sugiyama, 6–3, 6–2.[2] This tournament launched a dominant era for the Williams sisters at Wimbledon, with Venus's win highlighting her powerful serve and baseline game on grass.[4]Overview
Dates, Venue, and Format
The 2000 Wimbledon Championships, the 114th edition of the prestigious grass-court Grand Slam tournament, were held from 26 June to 9 July 2000.[5][6] The event took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, located in Wimbledon, a suburb of London, England. The primary venues for matches were Centre Court, which had a retractable roof installed later but was open-air in 2000, and No. 1 Court, both seating thousands of spectators. All courts were constructed with grass surfaces, utilizing a blend of 70% perennial ryegrass and 30% creeping red fescue for durability and playability; they were meticulously prepared by being mowed to approximately 8 mm in height before play and watered to maintain optimal conditions. Court dimensions followed International Tennis Federation standards, measuring 23.77 meters in length and 10.97 meters in width for doubles, with singles lines narrowing the playing area to 8.23 meters wide.[7][8] The tournament encompassed 9 competitive events across senior and junior divisions, including singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. In singles draws, 128 players competed in both men's and women's events; men's matches were contested in a best-of-five sets format, while women's were best-of-three sets. Men's doubles featured 64 teams in a best-of-five sets format, whereas women's doubles and mixed doubles involved 64 and 48 teams respectively, both in best-of-three sets. Tie-breaks, played to seven points with a win-by-two margin, were implemented at 6–6 in non-deciding sets, but the final set continued without a tie-break until a two-game lead was achieved.Qualifying and Entry
The qualifying rounds for the 2000 Wimbledon Championships were held from June 19 to 24 at the Bank of England Sports Ground in Roehampton, serving as a gateway for lower-ranked players to enter the main draw.[9] Entry into the main draw was primarily determined by ATP and WTA rankings as of the entry deadline six weeks prior to the tournament, with the top 104 men and 108 women gaining direct acceptance based on their standings.[10] Eight wild cards per singles event were awarded by the All England Club, often prioritizing British players to enhance home interest, alongside promising juniors or returning players.[11] In the singles qualifying competitions, 128 men and 128 women each competed in a three-round knockout format for 16 main draw spots per gender, with the successful qualifiers joining the seeded and direct entrants in the 128-player fields.[10] Doubles events featured direct entry for the top-ranked pairs, bypassing a separate qualifying process to streamline the tournament schedule.[10] Overall, more than 300 players participated in the qualifying across singles and junior events, underscoring the event's global appeal and competitive depth.[10]Special Events and Features
Millennium Celebrations
The 2000 Wimbledon Championships were branded as the Millennium Championships to mark the turn of the century, featuring a series of ceremonial events that highlighted the tournament's rich history. A centerpiece was the Parade of Champions held on Centre Court during the middle Saturday, July 1, where 64 former singles and other champions were honored with presentations of Waterford Crystal Plates by H.R.H. The Duchess of Gloucester.[12] The event included a performance by the Band of the Royal Scots Guards playing "Purple and Green," evoking the tournament's traditional colors, and drew one of the largest gatherings of Wimbledon legends, including Björn Borg in his first appearance since the 1981 final, Martina Navratilova, and John McEnroe.[13][14] This parade served as a nostalgic retrospective, with champions parading on a red carpet led by Bunny Austin, the 1932 and 1938 runner-up, and receiving resounding ovations from the crowd, particularly for Borg, Navratilova, and McEnroe.[13] The BBC broadcast the ceremony live as part of its comprehensive coverage, incorporating historical highlights to celebrate Wimbledon's legacy amid the millennial theme.[14] Commemorative elements extended to special philatelic covers featuring a unique Wimbledon handstamp for the Millennium Championships, produced in collaboration with Stone & Soil, allowing collectors to mark the occasion.[15] The festivities also underscored infrastructural advancements, with the completion of the Millennium Building providing enhanced facilities for media, players, and broadcasters, symbolizing the tournament's forward-looking spirit.[12] These events contributed to heightened global interest, resulting in a record total attendance of 457,069 over the 13-day tournament, with gates closed on seven days due to full capacity and favorable weather.[12]Prize Money
The total prize money for the 2000 Wimbledon Championships amounted to £8,056,480, marking a 6.1% increase from the £7,595,330 distributed in 1999. This purse represented a record at the time and reflected the tournament's growing financial scale, funded primarily through ticket sales, broadcasting rights from major networks, and sponsorships including Slazenger as the official ball supplier.[16][17] The distribution emphasized near parity between men's and women's events, with women's prize money rising by 7.9% overall—higher than the 4.8% increase for men—to address earlier rounds and promote equity. The singles champions received the largest shares, as shown in the breakdown below, while doubles and mixed doubles teams split awards per pair. Wheelchair events also offered cash prizes, though scaled smaller than able-bodied competitions, and junior champions received vouchers rather than monetary awards to maintain amateur status.[16][18]| Event | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|
| Men's Singles | £477,500 | £238,750 |
| Women's Singles | £430,000 | £215,000 |
| Men's Doubles (per team) | £195,630 | N/A |
| Women's Doubles (per team) | £176,070 | N/A |
| Mixed Doubles (per team) | £83,100 | N/A |
Champions
Senior Singles
The men's singles event at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships was won by top seed Pete Sampras of the United States, who defeated 12th seed Patrick Rafter of Australia in the final, 6–7(10–12), 7–6(7–5), 6–4, 6–2. This victory marked Sampras's seventh Wimbledon title and his record-breaking 13th Grand Slam singles crown, surpassing Roy Emerson's long-standing mark of 12. As the three-time defending champion, Sampras navigated a challenging draw hampered by tendonitis in his right knee that required painkilling injections before matches; he advanced past Jan-Michael Gambill in the quarterfinals and qualifier Vladimir Voltchkov in the semifinals, dropping just one set in the latter to reach his sixth consecutive Wimbledon final.[2][19] Rafter, returning from shoulder surgery and ranked outside the top 10 entering the tournament, produced one of the event's notable underdog runs by upsetting higher-seeded players en route to his second consecutive Wimbledon final. He eliminated eighth seed Tim Henman in the quarterfinals and second seed Andre Agassi in a five-set semifinal thriller, 7–5, 4–6, 7–5, 4–6, 6–3, showcasing his serve-and-volley prowess on grass despite entering as an underdog in the decider against Sampras. The men's draw featured 127 matches in total, with several straight-sets victories underscoring the dominance of top players early on, though upsets like Rafter's added unpredictability to the later rounds.[20][21] In the women's singles, top seed Venus Williams of the United States claimed her first Wimbledon title—and her first Grand Slam singles crown—by defeating defending champion and second seed Lindsay Davenport, also of the United States, in the final, 6–3, 7–6(7–3). Williams, who had missed much of the early season due to wrist tendinitis, powered through a tough bracket that included a quarterfinal victory over world No. 1 Martina Hingis, 6–3, 4–6, 6–4, and a semifinal win against her sister Serena Williams, 6–2, 7–6(7–3), marking the first all-Williams Grand Slam semifinal. Davenport, seeking to become the first American woman to defend a Wimbledon title since Billie Jean King in 1975, reached the final after dispatching qualifier Jelena Dokic in the semifinals, 6–4, 6–2, following a quarterfinal triumph over Monica Seles. Like the men's event, the women's draw consisted of 127 matches, highlighted by Williams's four straight-sets wins in the opening rounds—including a first-round 6-3, 6-1 victory over Květa Hrdličková on Court 2, marking the start of her historic 35-match winning streak that lasted until October—that established her momentum on the grass courts.[22][23][24][21]Senior Doubles
The senior doubles events at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships featured 64-team draws for both men's and women's competitions, with matches played in a best-of-five sets format for men and best-of-three for women on grass courts.[25] The mixed doubles draw also consisted of 64 teams, conducted as best-of-three sets, contributing to the tournament's emphasis on team play alongside the individual singles events. In the men's doubles, top seeds Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde of Australia, known as the "Woodies," secured their third consecutive Wimbledon title by defeating third seeds Sandon Stolle (Australia) and Paul Haarhuis (Netherlands) in the final, 6–3, 6–4, 6–1.[26] This victory marked the duo's ninth Grand Slam men's doubles title together and highlighted Australian dominance in the event, as both the champions and one runner-up hailed from Australia. The pair's straight-sets win underscored their mastery on grass, having lost only one set en route to the final. Early rounds saw several upsets, including unseeded pairs like Ellis Ferreira and Wayne Ferreira advancing past higher seeds, adding unpredictability to the draw.[27] The women's doubles crown went to unseeded sisters Serena Williams and Venus Williams of the United States, who triumphed over fourth seeds Julie Halard-Decugis (France) and Ai Sugiyama (Japan) in the final, 6–3, 6–2.[28] This marked the Williams sisters' first Wimbledon doubles title together and made them the first siblings to win the event, coming just days after Venus's singles victory. Their path included a semifinal win over Anna Kournikova and Natasha Zvereva, showcasing their emerging synergy in doubles despite being relative newcomers to the format at the major level.[29] Mixed doubles was claimed by Americans Donald Johnson and Kimberly Po, who overcame the young unseeded pairing of Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) and Kim Clijsters (Belgium) in the final, 6–4, 7–6(7–3).[4] The champions, entering as underdogs, navigated a competitive draw that featured Australian influence through Hewitt's strong performance, though they ultimately fell short in a tight contest decided by a tiebreak. This result emphasized the event's blend of established pros and rising stars, with several unseeded teams causing early disruptions among the seeds. Overall, the doubles competitions reflected a mix of veteran prowess and youthful challenges, with Australian players prominent in the men's and mixed finals.[30]Junior Events
The Junior Events at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships provided a competitive platform for emerging tennis talents under the age of 18, featuring boys' and girls' singles and doubles tournaments held concurrently with the senior competitions on the grass courts of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. These events emphasized youth development, with eligibility limited to players born on or after January 1, 1982, ensuring participants were no older than 17 during the tournament week of June 26 to July 9. The singles draws each comprised 64 players, while doubles featured 32-team fields, following a best-of-three-sets format similar to the senior events but without any prize money; winners received trophies and valuable ITF junior ranking points to aid their progression toward professional circuits.[18] In the boys' singles, top-seeded Nicolas Mahut of France overcame a first-set deficit to defeat fourth-seeded Mario Ančić of Croatia in a tightly contested final, 3–6, 6–3, 7–5, securing his first and only junior Grand Slam title.[31][32] Mahut's victory highlighted his resilience, a trait that would define his later professional career, including reaching the Wimbledon men's singles final in 2015 against Roger Federer and participating in the record-breaking 2010 first-round match against John Isner that lasted over 11 hours across three days. The girls' singles final saw fourth-seeded María Emilia Salerni of Argentina edge out second-seeded Tatiana Perebiynis of Ukraine in straight sets, 6–4, 7–5, with Salerni converting key break points to claim the championship and complete a strong tournament run that included a doubles final appearance.[33] Salerni, who turned professional shortly after, enjoyed a brief WTA career marked by moderate success in doubles but limited singles impact, retiring in 2008 after reaching a career-high singles ranking of No. 65.[34] The boys' doubles crown went to the seventh-seeded Belgian team of Dominique Coene and Kristof Vliegen, who rallied to beat the unseeded British pair Andrew Banks and Benjamin Riby, 6–3, 1–6, 6–3, in a match that showcased their net play and serving prowess on grass.[31][35] In girls' doubles, second seeds Ioana Gașpar of Romania and Tatiana Perebiynis of Ukraine dominated the top-seeded duo of Dája Bedáňová of the Czech Republic and María Emilia Salerni of Argentina, winning 7–6(7–2), 6–3, after saving set points in the tiebreak to cap a successful week for Perebiynis.[36]Participants
Men's Singles Seeds
The seeding for the men's singles at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships was based on the ATP rankings immediately following the French Open, incorporating adjustments for grass-court performance and protected rankings for players recovering from injuries, such as Patrick Rafter who was seeded 12th despite being ranked 27th.[37] This process aimed to reflect players' form on the event's grass surface while adhering to the standard 16 seeds for the 128-player draw.[38] The seeds were distributed across the draw to prevent early clashes among the top players, with seeds 1-4 placed in separate quarters, seeds 5-8 in the second round of each quarter, and the remaining seeds positioned to balance potential matchups.[38]| Seed | Player | Country | ATP Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pete Sampras | USA | 3 |
| 2 | Andre Agassi | USA | 1 |
| 3 | Magnus Norman | SWE | 2 |
| 4 | Gustavo Kuerten | BRA | 4 |
| 5 | Yevgeny Kafelnikov | RUS | 5 |
| 6 | Cedric Pioline | FRA | 6 |
| 7 | Lleyton Hewitt | AUS | 7 |
| 8 | Tim Henman | GBR | 14 |
| 9 | Thomas Enqvist | SWE | 8 |
| 10 | Mark Philippoussis | AUS | 17 |
| 11 | Richard Krajicek | NED | 25 |
| 12 | Patrick Rafter | AUS | 27 |
| 13 | Nicolas Kiefer | GER | 12 |
| 14 | Greg Rusedski | GBR | 21 |
| 15 | Marat Safin | RUS | 9 |
| 16 | Nicolas Lapentti | ECU | 10 |
Women's Singles Seeds
The seeding for the women's singles at the 2000 Wimbledon Championships was determined by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club using the WTA Tour computer rankings from the week ending June 19, 2000, following the French Open, with the committee reserving the right to adjust based on grass-court performance where necessary. This resulted in 16 seeds drawn from the top-ranked players, positioned across four quarters of the 128-player draw to ensure balanced competition and prevent early matchups between top contenders; top seed Martina Hingis was placed at the top of the draw, while second seed Lindsay Davenport headed the bottom half. Local wild cards, such as those granted to British players like Samantha Smith and Elena Baltacha, provided entry opportunities but did not affect seeding allocations. The full list of seeds is as follows:| Seed | Player | Country | WTA Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Martina Hingis | Switzerland | 1 |
| 2 | Lindsay Davenport | United States | 2 |
| 3 | Mary Pierce | France | 3 |
| 4 | Conchita Martínez | Spain | 4 |
| 5 | Venus Williams | United States | 5 |
| 6 | Monica Seles | United States | 6 |
| 7 | Nathalie Tauziat | France | 7 |
| 8 | Serena Williams | United States | 8 |
| 9 | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | Spain | 9 |
| 10 | Sandrine Testud | France | 10 |
| 11 | Anke Huber | Germany | 11 |
| 12 | Amanda Coetzer | South Africa | 12 |
| 13 | Amélie Mauresmo | France | 13 |
| 14 | Julie Halard-Decugis | France | 14 |
| 15 | Barbara Schett | Austria | 15 |
| 16 | Dominique Van Roost | Belgium | 16 |