LONDON — Andy Murray ended 77 years of British torment in 2013 when he became the first British man to win Wimbledon since 1936. But as this year’s tournament approaches, a drought still persists for Murray’s compatriots.
While wild cards are seldom expected to make a significant impact at the Grand Slam events, given that they are often ranked well outside the top 100, the British lagged well behind the Australians, the French and the Americans in collecting victories as wild cards at their home majors in the past five seasons.
“I don’t really look into what wild cards have or haven’t done, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me something interesting,” James Ward, a regular British wild-card recipient at Wimbledon, said before he was given a numerical summary.