Jamie Murray has expressed serious reservations about today's rescheduled Wimbledon men's final, warning that the new 4pm start time could force an unwelcome interruption to play.
The former doubles champion fears the later scheduling may result in deteriorating light conditions that would necessitate closing Centre Court's roof mid-match.
The championship clash between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner marks a departure from Wimbledon's traditional 2pm final start time.
Murray voiced his apprehensions about the potential for dimming light to affect the match, describing such an outcome as "not right".
Jamie Murray has expressed serious reservations about today's rescheduled Wimbledon men's final, warning that the new 4pm start time could force an unwelcome interruption to play
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The scheduling adjustment represents a significant break with SW19 tradition and has raised concerns about maintaining the integrity of the showpiece event.
Murray explained his concerns to Metro, stating: "They've obviously moved the final to 4pm for TV. I guess for the [United] States, I guess for the BBC getting a primetime audience or peak audience. That's a big change."
The Scotsman and Wimbledon mixed doubles champion highlighted the precedent set by Alcaraz and Sinner's previous encounter at a Grand Slam final in Paris, which lasted five hours and 29 minutes.
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Carlos Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in a thrilling French Open final showdown last month
REUTERSHe warned that a similar marathon match at Wimbledon could become problematic as daylight fades.
"I think what would be sad about that would be if they had to stop the match to close the roof because of light and stuff. It's not right that I don't think. But hopefully that doesn't happen," Murray said.
All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton defended the timing change, maintaining it was implemented "with players in mind" despite the risk of disruption to the men's final.
Bolton stated: "We have adjusted the provisional schedule for the final weekend of The Championships with the ambition of improving the experience for all involved. The move has also been designed with players in mind."
She added that the new schedule would provide "increased certainty" for doubles players competing in finals.
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The chief executive emphasised that fans would benefit from each day's play building "towards the crescendo of the ladies' and gentlemen's singles finals, with our champions being crowned in front of the largest possible worldwide audience."
The scheduling change comes as the women's final proceeded without incident, with Iga Swiatek claiming her first Wimbledon title with a commanding double bagel victory over Amanda Anisimova on Centre Court.
Wimbledon chiefs could be forced to shut the roof during today's final showdown between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner
PAToday's men's final features a rematch between Alcaraz and Sinner, whose previous Grand Slam final meeting has gone down as the stuff of tennis folklore.
Murray acknowledged that whilst the 4pm start time benefits American television audiences, with the match beginning at 11am in New York, it could negatively impact both spectators and players if play must be suspended to close the roof.