For the first time since the Championship began in 1877 there will be no English player in the main draw of the men's singles. This year’s draw is creating history by including seeded players from a dozen different countries with the exclusion of England.
Questions have surfaced regarding why James Ward was not offered a wild card by the Lawn Tennis Association, since Ward met the requirement of being ranked inside the top 250. Toward the end of last year, the 23-year-old fell ill, with his rankings subsequently dropping. Meanwhile, Jamie Baker from Scotland was offered an invitation by the LTA, overlooking his ranking at Number 254 at the time when the wild cards were named. Criticisms surfaced, with inquiries asking for explanations as to the discrepancy in fulfilling the criteria for making it into the Championship. How is it possible that a player ranked outside the top 250 in the world receives an invitation for a wild card, while a player who is inside the top 250 gets snubbed?
The LTA's head of player development, Leon Smith, came forward to defend the situation regarding wild cards, stating: "There are fewer British men in the main draw because fewer wild cards have been handed out. We accept that this is where we are in the men's game, but what I saw in qualifying this week was British players fighting for every point, battling for a place in the Championships.
"That's what we need to concentrate on – creating an environment where more British players aren't just in the first round because of a wild card, but on merit, and not just in the first round, but fighting through to the later stages of the tournament."
Ward is now ranked 252 in the world, and decided instead to compete in the Aegon international at Eastbourne. Today, the 23-year-old defeated Rainer Schüttler to reach the quarter-finals. Schuttler was himself a semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2008. Ward also defeated Feliciano López, the top seed at Eastbourne, in the previous round. These would be the two best results of Ward’s career.
What the word is on Ward
Regarding the refusal of a wild card, Ward said: "It's a little bit disappointing because I was out for six months. I wish that had been taken into consideration because I have been in the top 250 for the last 18 months. It is only that I dropped off points in the week before the cut-off for wild cards."
Losing in straight sets to Alexandr Dolgopolov, the Ukrainian ranked 47th in the world, James Ward completed a disappointing day at the Aegon International for the two remaining Britons.
Ward proceeded to express his frustration with the All England Club for not offering him a wild card into next week's Wimbledon.
Speaking after his 6-3, 6-4 defeat by Dolgopolov, the Ukrainain ranked 47th in the world, Ward said of his absence: "It's very frustrating [with] obviously beating two good guys here [Feliciano López and Rainer Schüttler] who are going to go on and do very well at Wimbledon in the next two weeks. But it's not in my control."
Ward stated that he is indeed disappointed with the All England Club: "Yes it's disappointing. They offered me a wild card into the qualifying which is great. But I picked this tournament because of the chance of playing good players in a top 250 event and get some good ranking points, which I've got and will get my ranking up for the rest of the year."
A total of eight wild cards can be issued of the 128-man field at Wimbledon. Of the remaining 120, 104 are automatically invited, while 16 places are gained via qualification.
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