The pristine grass courts typically associated with Wimbledon made an unexpected appearance in the middle of Manhattan on Friday, as tennis greats Andre Agassi and Caroline Wozniacki headlined a pop-up exhibition event at New York’s Central Park.
Agassi and Wozniacki were joined by former American player James Blake and Canadian ex-world number five Eugenie Bouchard for a series of exhibition matches aimed at generating excitement for the upcoming Grand Slam tournament, which gets underway Monday.
The four players competed in singles matches before pairing off for mixed doubles on a Wimbledon-style grass court set up at Wollman Rink at the southern tip of Central Park — surrounded by trees and the iconic Manhattan skyline.
Wozniacki described the experience as unforgettable. “Playing on a grasscourt in the middle of Central Park doesn’t happen every day,” she said. “To be part of this amazing event was something that I won’t forget.”
The grass used for the temporary court was specially cultivated in neighboring New Jersey and was overseen by Mark Ferguson, the head agronomist at the All England Lawn Tennis Club.
“I think it’s a fantastic kind of juxtaposition of Wimbledon and New York together,” Ferguson said of the unique setup.
Beyond the on-court action, the gathering gave the former players a chance to weigh in on a major storyline heading into Wimbledon — the surprise singles comeback of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, who has been away from singles competition for four years.
Wozniacki expressed enthusiasm about seeing Williams return to the court. “I’m very excited to see her back,” she said. “It’s always great to see some of the best players ever come back and play. I’ll be watching, I’ll be supporting and it will be great.”
When asked if she herself might consider returning to professional play, Wozniacki smiled and offered a playful non-answer: “I don’t know. That’s a good question.”
Bouchard acknowledged that Williams faces a steep challenge by jumping straight into Wimbledon without playing any warm-up events first. “I think it’s bonkers — in a good way,” Bouchard said. “The fact that she hasn’t played a singles match in four years is pretty crazy to play the first one at Wimbledon. But if there’s anyone that can handle it, it’s Serena.”
