Abhishek Mukherjee
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Chair umpire and referee
Paresh Mokani|Mukherjee excels in line of duty|Jul 19 2017 : The Times of India (Delhi)
There's scarcely a place in the big, wide world without an Indian presence. Not even at the sidelines of Wimbledon's Centre Court on the day of men's singles final. Surely enough, Abhishek Mukherjee was there, playing his part in history as Roger Federer clinched his eighth crown to surpass Britain's William Renshaw and the US' Pete Sampras. A chair umpire and proud owner of brown badge, and also a referee with a silver badge, Abhishek was a line umpire when the Swiss maestro fired an ace to seal the match against Marin Cilic of Croatia on Sunday .
Abhishek returned to Kolkata early on Tuesday . For the 39-year-old, having witnessed tennis history from such close quarters was a rare privilege, and he was lost for words. “I cannot describe my experience in words. It was magnificent. It's one of the best experiences in my officiating career,“ he said.
And it has been a distinguished ca reer. Abhishek has featured in three of Federer's 11 finals at Wimbledon and Sunday's duty was his 34th Grand Slam assignment. “I had a feeling that this was Federer's year. I entered the arena when the Swiss star was 3-0 up in the second set as our group was assigned the second turn to officiate after an hour's duty by the first group,“ said Abhishek.
“There was a sense of excitement.The crowd, though sporting, was clearly rooting for Federer. It was hard not to get nervous. I am a seasoned umpire and have done many Grand Slam finals, but it was completely different from what I had seen before. His shots were crisp and the decibel level of applauds grew higher and higher with each point. It felt like thunder. Placards showing `8' were visible everywhere.“
But as Federer coasted to his record, Abhishek faced a race against time for another honour. And that meant remaining on court when the championship point was won and not being replaced after the rota was followed.
As per regulations, it would mean witnessing the prize distribution when Prince Charles hands over the winner's trophy. A much-coveted experience, indeed. Fifty-five minutes had ticked by and it was touch-and-go. Abhishek's date with destiny was running out of time. It was 5-4 in the third set but Federer obliged and chair umpire, Frenchman Damien Dumusois' “Game, set and match“ call was simply music to Abhishek's ears. It was reward for hard work efficiently done. Not a single call by Abhishek was overruled.
