WIMBLEDON : THE REAL WORK BEGINS NOW.

The first week is over and it is, indeed, a usual British Wimbledon. Although it was in some respects marginally more successful than most years, only one British player, Andy Murray, will be appearing in the singles competitions in the second week.

Of our other male competitors, Jamie Ward gave a decent account of himself before going down to defeat at the hands of the tenth seed, Mardy Fish, but none of the others made it passed the first round. Our women fared slightly better with Anne Keothavong, and Elena Baltacha getting into the second round and Heather Watson becoming the first Britsh woman to reach the third round for a decade. Sadly, all 3 were eventually dumped out unceremoniously and with no regard for their 'home team' credentials. Baltacha was no match for number 4 seed and current champion, Petra Kvitova, Keothavong went out to French Open finalist Sara Errani, and Watson was blown away by the third seed, Agnieszka Radwanska.

Baltacha and Keothavong are now both nearer to the ends of their careers than the beginnings; both will be 29 later this year and seem unlikely to improve further. Watson, on the other hand, is a mere 20 and seems to have the makings of a decent player. Despite her thumping by Radwanska, her showings in the first 2 rounds provided real hope that she will progress further in subsequent years and, together with 18 year old Laura Robson, might even get in amongst the world's better players in a year or 2.

For the rest, the men's tournament now looks like a straight fight between Djokovic and Federer in the top half of the draw, all the other top-16 seeds in this half having been eliminated. In the bottom half life has been made more complicated by the dramatic defeat of Rafael Nadal and any of several could yet come through. While Murray is the home favourite, he will first have to deal with Marin Cilic, followed by either David Ferrer or Juan Martin Del Potro, either of whom could easily prove a step to far. If he does make it passed this formidable array, his probable semi-final opponent will be Jo-Wilfred Tsonga, though Mardy Fish could still get in his way. It's perm any 1 from 6 here.

In the women's event, it's hard to see passed Sharapova and Radwanska in the top half of the draw, while the bottom half seems to be heading for a Serena or Kvitova versus Azarenka semi-final. Who will eventually lift the title is anyone's guess.