Meet Wimbledon's unsung heroes, without whom this famous fortnight would not be possible

These are the unassuming, self-effacing figures that make Wimbledon what it is

252 ball girls and boys must take four training sessions a week and review their performance on video (Getty)

Swoosh. A stinging serve, clocking in at 124mph, fires down at an outstretched Novak Djokovic. Under a hot summer sky on Centre Court, with the thermostat pushing on for 30C, the Serb reaches to return but can only find the net. “Game, Murray,” the umpire whispers into his microphone. That’s the ball boy’s cue. Keeping low and moving quickly, he scampers towards the ball, scoops it up in one clean sweep and proceeds to roll it towards the back of the court.

At the same time, hundreds of waiting fans make their way into the 95-year-old venue as the players take a quick break. Armed with strawberries and Pimm’s, the masses take their seats under the watchful eyes of the vigilant servicemen and women on duty.

The sense of excitement is palpable, rising with each passing game as Djokovic and Murray go head to head in one of tennis’ fiercest rivalries. After each hard-fought point, a ripple of applause reverberates around the ground until the match reaches its exhilarating conclusion: a victory for the Scot, and a place in the next round.

It’s a pretty picture, for sure, and one that embodies this iconic Grand Slam. Like a great Renaissance painting, the focus may be fixed on the central figures but it’s the finer, intricate details which make up this sporting artwork. From the ball boys and girls (BBGs) to the elderly honorary stewards, clad in their finest Sunday wear, these are the stars away from the stars – the unassuming, self-effacing figures that make Wimbledon what it is.

The BBGs are perhaps the most instantly recognisable collective at SW19, having featured at the tournament since the early 1920s. Sarah Goldson, the BBG manager, demands a “high standard” of quality from her 252 youngsters – all of whom are put through their paces ahead of the Championships.

“That’s [training] always difficult but it’s so worth it,” Milly Greer, a 14-year-old ball girl, tells The Independent. “We’ve trained since October in our schools and at Wimbledon so it’s been really worth it. It always pushes you but to get here is amazing.”

Indeed, there’s no half measures when it comes to training up those fortunate enough to be selected. In the final run-up to Wimbledon, the teenagers can expect to undertake four sessions per week that last between two and two-and-a-half hours.

So much hard work goes into the Tournament (AFP) (Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP)

During the Championships the BBGs will be briefed each morning on their daily matches and, in their time off, are expected to watch videos of their past performances to see where they can improve. Not that this fazes Milly.

“I think the atmosphere and morale of Wimbledon, being a part of such a big sports tournament is amazing,” she says. It’s a sentiment shared by her teammate Louis Kanwal. “Because there’s not a lot of us around the world, to be part of that is quite unique,” the 14-year-old chips in.

And what about the pressure of performing in front of 1000s of fans? For these guys it’s water off a duck’s back. “The pressure is worth it at the end of the day,” Louis says with a grin on his face.

The likes of Milly and Louis aren’t the only ones working under the spotlight, though. Dressed in their pin-stripe Ralph Lauren shirts and vanilla white chinos, all 345 of Wimbledon’s umpires can expect to face a similar level of scrutiny to their on-court counterparts.

For Kelly Thompson, a silver-badge chair umpire, this is her 13th year at SW19. Having taken up the profession on a full-time basis after graduating university, Kelly has been officiating at the sport’s biggest competitions across the globe for the past eight years now.

Wimbledon is regarded as the greatest tennis tournament in the world (Getty)

Like the BBGs, Kelly will be briefed on her daily schedule each morning and, as a chair umpire, can expect to cover one or two matches for that day. And while the prospect of watching tennis from the best seat in the house is sure to turn any die-hard fan green with envy, Kelly insists she can never afford to relax during a match.

“You have to learn to block the pressure out, especially with 15 courts that are now televised. You’ve also got six courts with Hawk-Eye, so you know that somewhere somebody is watching so you have to be focused the whole time,” she says.

“That’s why it’s very important to eat properly and also in the hot weather to make sure you’re drinking enough but not too much so you need a bathroom break!”

This is Thompson’s 13th year at the All England Club (Getty)

Thanks to the growing fame of French umpire Kader Nouni, affectionally nicknamed the “Walrus of 15-love” in reference to his Barry White-esque voice, the Wimbledon officials have never enjoyed so much attention before. But, as Kelly confesses, the limelight isn’t necessarily always welcome.

“We were having a rain delay on court 18 and the players left, the camera men left and then the ground coverers were covering the court,” she starts, before pausing reluctantly. “I fell from the top step of my chair to the bottom, but then all the TV cameras came back to watch it and it made the BBC highlights clip at the end of the week…”

It’s light-hearted moments like these which strip back the prim-and-proper veneer of Wimbledon, but for others working at SW19 such jovial relief is hard to come by – and with good reason.

Prepare for the busiest day of The 2017 Championships (Getty)

Security at the tournament has taken on increased prominence this year in light of the recent terror attacks in London and Manchester. Concrete barriers, bomb-sniffing dogs, armed police patrols and more; the “proportional uplift” in security measures at this year’s Championships have now become a necessary prerequisite for any major public event.

Details surrounding the security operation at Wimbledon have unsurprisingly been kept under wraps, though the vital role played by the security forces present here at SW19 is plain to see.

“For us at G4S, we are more of a deterrent than an actual emergency response team, the point is if potential attackers see many people in uniform ‘doing their job’ then they are less likely to want to target the event,” one G4S employee tells The Independent.

Security has been stepped up this year (Getty ) (Getty)

Speaking from experience, this employee can spend up 12 hours a day on duty, the majority of which is spent on his feet. It’s a “painful” and “tiring” job, but someone’s got to do it.

So what about in the case of a serious incident? “If an emergency occurs, we’re told to remain alert at our posts, and to keep the event contained and try not to cause the public to panic and remove them from the affected area in a calm and controlled manner.”

As for the Metropolitan Police, the nature of their work remains covert but a spokesperson said ahead of the Championships it was deploying a “significant number of resources to support the [AELTC] to deliver a really safe, secure competition this year”.

Like cogs in a well-oiled machine, then, the men and women of Wimbledon keep the tournament ticking over with a rhythmic buzz and whir that has fans coming back for more year after year. In sight but never in full focus, this unsung workforce, in all its unique forms, has come to define the tournament as much as the players down the years. SW19’s great British summer wouldn’t quite be the same without them.