The tennis fans in the USA have never truly experienced what playing on fresh, virgin grass truly represents. To bridge that gap, Wimbledon has brought its signature atmosphere to New York since 2022, giving fans a taste of the iconic event. And this year as well, the showcase drew even greater attention as legends such as Andre Agassi and Caroline Wozniacki kicked off the four-day show.

The famous grass courts of SW19 found a new home in the heart of NYC. In Manhattan, a temporary pop-up grass court was built inside Central Park, bringing a slice of the iconic tournament to the iconic city.

Former Grand Slam champions and fan favorites, such as eight-time Grand Slam winner Andre Agassi and former AO winner Caroline Wozniacki, headlined the special exhibition. 

Both the former pros were joined by former American ace James Blake and former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard. The group competed in a series of exhibition matches ahead of the upcoming SW19, which begins on Monday. 

The players took part in 3 10-point tie-break-style exhibition matches. Fans embraced the All-England Club theme throughout the afternoon. The court itself was also something special. It used hybrid turf, a combination of natural and synthetic grass developed after nearly a decade of research.

That innovative surface was created to improve how green grass works for professional tennis. It was one of the event’s biggest talking points as well.

The celebration, running for 4 years now, called the Wimbledon Court in Central Park, will run from June 26 through June 29. With SW19 only a day away, the timing of the exhibition felt perfect. 

Still, the event wasn’t only about celebrating the upcoming tournament. There was also a much bigger purpose behind bringing SW19 and its grass-court experience to NYC.

Andre Agassi backs expanding grass-court tennis across the US

After their doubles match ended, the American ATP icon told Mirror US Sports that he is excited about the possibility of making the iconic grass courts more common across the US. “The idea that this could possibly spread to other more public venues across America would be kind of cool,” Agassi explained.

The temporary grass court itself came together quickly, as it took only 6 hours to complete the installation. Just over a day later, around 2 pm on Thursday, the SW19 Court Invitational officially got underway.

And while Agassi hopes to see more grass courts across the country, he was also proud to bring a piece of the All-England Club to NYC. “I don’t know if the tennis is as exciting as it used to feel to me,” Agassi added. “But nevertheless, it’s good to be here.”

The former WTA world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki also enjoyed the one-of-a-kind experience in NYC. “It was an amazing experience,” Wozniacki said. “Playing on a grass court in the middle of Central Park doesn’t happen every day. To be part of this amazing event was something that I won’t forget.”

The exhibition will continue through June 29, giving visitors several days to enjoy it. It really offers tennis fans in the US a rare chance to experience the spirit of Wimbledon without traveling to London.