Pete Sampras built records on it; Marcelo Rios claimed it was fit only for cows while Spain's Albert Costa planned his honeymoon to coincide with it.

Never has a handful of perfectly-manicured lawns, tucked away in south-west London, caused such bitter divisions amongst players and this year's Wimbledon will be no different.

The length of the grasscourt season, currently standing at a modest four weeks and sandwiched between the claycourt and hardcourt schedules, is also a hot topic with some players happy to see it shortened; others want it extended.

Roger Federer, who will bid to win a sixth consecutive Wimbledon title over the next two weeks and move one closer to Sampras's record, believes the season is fine as it is.

"I don't think it should happen (lengthen the season), even though grass is maybe my best surface and I've had unbelievable success," said Federer.

"It stays unique to see the French Open backed up right away with one or two tournaments and then Wimbledon."

The two-week long Grand Slam event at Wimbledon is preceded by a fortnight of warm-up events, mostly in England but with one each in Germany and Holland.

Once finished, it's back to hardcourts and the long run-in to the US Open at the end of August.

Unlike Federer, four-time French Open winner Rafael Nadal, who has been runner-up to the world number one in the last two Wimbledon finals, dreams of a longer grasscourt programme.

"The grasscourt season is very short," said Nadal who collected his first title on the surface at Queen's last week.

"I always say it's not fair that you only have two weeks to prepare for a very important tournament like Wimbledon. But, boy, I never thought of the calendar without Wimbledon."

Amongst the women, opinions are just as strong.

"It's in the middle of nowhere," complained Russia's Dinara Safina, the runner-up at the French Open but who made the final on grass at 's-Hertogenbosch this weekend.

"It's just three tournaments. There is nowhere else other than England and in Holland where there are grass courts. I don't like, so they can take it away."

On the grass of Eastbourne this week, Russian top seed Svetlana Kuznetsova crashed out at the first hurdle to Denmark's 17-year-old Caroline Wozniacki.

"It's hard to move from clay to grass — from very slow to the fastest court," said Kuznetsova.

"But for me it's about controlling movement — you cannot slide on grass."

Fellow Russian Vera Zvonareva, who won a Wimbledon mixed doubles title with Israel's Andy Ram in 2006, also admits it's hard to make the switch.

"Most of the players are used to playing on hardcourts — it's a different game. It's hard to produce my best tennis when I'm not used to playing on this surface," said Zvonareva.

AFP