Letter: Mere players

Sir: On Tuesday I attended the Lawn Tennis championships at Wimbledon, and as the inclemency of the weather denied the pursuance of any Lawn Tennis I was obliged to seek other diversions. Having exhausted the possibilities of the catering facilities, I found myself reduced to reading the official programme.

I noticed that what I took to be the men's singles event was actually designated as "Gentlemen's Singles Championships". May I suggest this is a misnomer, as page 25 of the programme enumerates the considerable prize money on offer. Surely any "gentleman" would be sufficiently embarrassed by the prospect of making any financial gain from his prowess on the field of play, beyond that of a sporting wager perhaps, never to enter.

As for the "ladies", even a sporting wager would be most unseemly!

RICHARD SANDERS

Steeple Aston, Oxfordshire