“My favorite Wimbledon warm-up is Queen’s Club, if you catch my drift.”

Stan Wawrinka’s 2014 Australian Open championship run meant more to me than any tennis victory besides Federer’s 2017 Australian Open triumph. It wasn’t just the thrill of him finally breaking through against Djokovic (who’d beaten him 14 times in a row) in the quarterfinals, or the distinctive sound of his ball strikes, or the lethal beauty of his one-handed backhand. It was Samuel Beckett.

Wawrinka’s now-famous arm tattoo of a Beckett quote read “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Those were words I needed to hear then. Even now, I think of Beckett, and of Wawrinka’s dedication to failing better, quite often. And I have tried, with mixed results, to fail again, and fail better, myself. I like to imagine I’ll never stop. Wawrinka certainly hasn’t: In an era thoroughly dominated by the Big Three, his Grand Slam singles total stands at an astonishing three.

As I write this, Wawrinka, now 37, is heading into the third set of his first-round Wimbledon match against Italy’s Jannik Sinner. He’s in the twilight of his career, which he, like Andy Murray, is struggling to finish on his own terms after being repeatedly sidelined by injury. (Murray’s another sentimental favorite of mine, someone whose on-court negativity stands in sharp contrast to his off-court decency and honor.) If either man advances to the next round, I will be quite pleased, even though deep runs are unlikely.

This morning, when my dog got me up around 5:30, I lumbered downstairs excited to turn on the TV. Wimbledon was officially underway, and my enthusiasm was immediately dampened by a familiar site: puddles forming on protective tarps that covered the grass. Rain delays are as much a Wimbledon tradition as white kits and strawberries and cream. But since then I’ve experienced my great thrill of the day: an incredible passing shot from Carlos Alcaraz in the fourth set tiebreak that propelled him to a five-set victory over Jan-Lennard Struff.

The controversial absence of Russian and Belarusian players (like ATP #1 Daniil Medvedev, 2018 quarterfinalist Daria Kasatkina and two-time semifinalist Victoria Azarenka) looms over this year’s tournament, but there’s still plenty to look forward to. Nadal, following his win at Roland-Garros (and experimental treatment for his nagging foot injury), continues his quest for a calendar year Grand Slam on his least favorite surface.

Serena Williams, my all-time favorite women’s player, returns after a too-long absence. And, of course, Iga Świątek, who became my favorite WTA player while Serena was away, looks to see if she can extend The Streak after skipping grass-court warm-up tournaments. Whatever happens, it’s going to be an exciting two weeks.