With its pine benches and lockers, there is an understated elegance to the dressing-room at the All England Club for men's seeded players. That is where Andy Murray will sit with his coaches Ivan Lendl and Jamie Delgado before stepping on to Centre Court on Tuesday.
And yet, as one insider in British tennis told the Wimbledon Diary, Murray and Delgado certainly haven't always prepared for matches in such stylish surroundings. One of the two occasions that the pair played doubles together in the Davis Cup came 10 years ago at a tie against Ukraine in the Black Sea resort of Odessa.
All weekend, the British team changed for their matches in a room at the tennis club which they suspected was normally used as a brothel. "There were mirrors on the ceiling of the team room, it had pink walls and decor, and there was at least one bed in there," said the source. "At first, the players had some questions about the room, and then it was explained to them."
Haase confident of coach's innocence
On the same day that Robin Haase won his opening round match at Wimbledon, the Dutchman's coach Mark de Jong made a different sort of court appearance -- his murder trial started in Utrecht in the Netherlands.
Haase, who came through a five-setter against Argentina's Diego Schwartzman on Monday, has told Dutch publication Volkskrant he believes his coach is innocent of the murder of businessman Koen Everink, who was found dead at his home in March. De Jong has denied murder -- he has claimed he was kidnapped on the day that Everink was killed.
Haase said in an interview with Volkskrant: "We don't know anything. He is the main suspect, but that's not unusual because he was the last person in Koen's house. That's never been a secret. Obviously, I hope that he didn't do it. I think only Koen's family hope that, because then the killer has been caught. Everybody else wants Mark to be innocent. They know him as a person and he's not the type."
Dimitrov's defiance
Dimitrov in #Wimbledon presser: "I'm not fearing anyone."
— Nicolas Atkin (@natkinESPN) June 27, 2016
Djokovic pops head in door. "You sure?"
Dimitrov: "No. Especially you."
It's just as well for Grigor Dimitrov that the All England Club doesn't play music during the changeovers, as happens at other tournaments. On an appearance at a grass-court event in Stuttgart this month, the tournament DJ had some fun at the expense of the Bulgarian, who has been romantically linked to Nicole Scherzinger, formally of the Pussycat Dolls. During one changeover, the DJ played one of their tracks.
Dimitrov then lost a run of games. Thankfully for the 25-year-old, he can be alone with his thoughts when sitting down on his chair at Wimbledon, and the former semifinalist had no difficulties in his first-round match against American Bjorn Fratangelo, beating the qualifier in straight sets.
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Berdych dressed to thrill on court
While Murray won't waste a moment in the locker room thinking about his appearance, his colleague Tomas Berdych had told the Wimbledon Diary how he plays better tennis when he likes the way he looks. "Feeling good about your clothes does help you to play tennis, that's a part of it. Every player is different, but that's definitely the case with me," said the former Wimbledon finalist, whose interest in fashion has been encouraged by his wife Ester Satorova, who is a model.
"For me, the most important thing is the quality of the product, and how it fits, as you're sweating and moving. The design is important. Playing tennis is like assembling a huge puzzle -- you need to put together every single piece. And fashion is a part of that. When you feel good in what you're wearing on the court, and it fits well and it looks good, then that's great."