BBC viewers were left furious after the broadcaster pulled a Wimbledon match off air early on Monday night, switching to a repeat episode of 'Mortimer and Whithouse: Gone Fishing' while play continued. The match between Alexander Zverev and Jiri Lehecka on Centre Court was suspended due to Wimbledon's strict 11pm curfew imposed by Merton Council, but BBC Two's live coverage ended at 10pm—nearly an hour before the match concluded.
Match Delayed by Earlier Thriller
The scheduling chaos began when British wild card Arthur Fery defeated Grigor Dimitrov in a five-set thriller that ran long, delaying the Zverev-Lehecka match. Zverev and Lehecka finally took the court at 8.40pm. The first set lasted 42 minutes, the second 54 minutes, and Lehecka took a lengthy toilet break. The third set started at 10.32pm, just 28 minutes before the 11pm curfew forced suspension at 10.56pm.
BBC's Abrupt Switch Angers Fans
At 10pm, during the second set, presenter Clare Balding announced the switch: 'Well, this is a match that looks highly unlikely to finish before the 11 o'clock curfew and we are getting close to our off air time here on BBC Two. So, coverage of this will continue on iPlayer.' She added, 'Alexander Zverev, the Roland Garros champion, having taken the first set 6-4 and looking pretty strong on serve. That continues on iPlayer.' Viewers were then redirected to iPlayer as BBC Two aired a repeat of 'Mortimer and Whithouse: Gone Fishing'.
Viewer Outrage on Social Media
Fans quickly took to X (formerly Twitter) to express their frustration. One wrote: 'Why is Wimbledon going off mainstream TV when it says it is on until 10.30?' Another said: 'You don't want to hear my language at the moment.' A third commented: 'BBC do it again I'm watching Zverev and it goes to IPlayer.' A fourth sarcastically remarked: 'A fishing program is more important than Wimbledon.'
Curfew Criticism
Many fans also criticised the 11pm curfew itself. One wrote: 'So the Zverev Lehecka couldn't end yesterday.. Wimbledon has such a permanent timing problem. Maybe the only tournament where matches cannot properly end in one day time EVEN if there is no rain issue at all. Feel this is sort of lack of respect for the players.' Another simply stated: 'It's ridiculous.'
Coverage of Wimbledon airs on BBC One and BBC Two, and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
