Officials at the All England Club have finally bowed to years of pressure and given the green light for a retractable roof to be built on the centre court at Wimbledon.
Organisers of the grasscourt grand slam finally agreed it was necessary to shield one of the most famous venues in tennis from rain, in order to satisfy the demands of television.
The roof should be in place for the 2009 championships after a redevelopment plan which will also increase the show court's capacity to 15,000 from 13,800. Club chairman Tim Phillips said: "Centre Court is the jewel in our crown and what we are trying to do is to make it more precious than it already is."
Filed by Rob Wright
