A new take on New Zealand wine

‘The doors clap to, the pane is bright with showers.’ With ‘summer’ determined to do its worst, there is one obvious question. How were the English able to invent cricket and tennis? Apropos tennis, there is another obvious question. How long will Wimbledon remain mired in sexism? It has now been established beyond peradventure that women are at least as good as men at everything. Anyone who claims that those who were born female — an increasingly irrelevant criterion — are not as strong as men is likely to encounter the wrath of the criminal law. Quite right too: supposed free speech must not be allowed to trump common sense.

So how dare the Wimbledon authorities continue to have separate tournaments for — to use anachronistic language — gentlemen and ladies? There should be an immediate merger with, of course, everyone playing five sets. There might be some transitional concession to sexism.