I was proud of what was to be my first big Wimbledon byline but when I showed my copy to my

I was proud of what was to be my first big Wimbledon byline, but when I showed my copy to my sports editor, who had been on the Centre Court, he said: "Sonny, this is too good for you," and with a few minor changes it appeared in the paper next morning under his name. Kramer and I learned a lot that day.In the quiet hours when the music is soft and the whisky mellow, memories, so many memories, of the doomed court where our youthful summers drifted into old age come flooding back. Afterwards he made no excuses and merely said that the best man on the day had won.In my demob suit, and green pork-pie hat with a red feather, this was my first Wimbledon as a Fleet Street junior reporter, and I had been consigned to Court No 1.Seeing "things" were happening, I left my press seat and got myself a place behind the umpire's chair, where I could see Kramer's plight and almost feel his pain I wrote my story full of blood, guts, colour and quotes. What started with small blisters had developed into a raw wound by the end of the 32-game second set. There were no chairs on court, no two-minute rest periods in those days, so at each opportunity Kramer snatched a few forbidden seconds to try to soften the path with sticking plasters. After one of the most thrilling matches played on any court, Drobny won by 2-6, 17-15, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. The drama was not confined to the power produced from Drobny's left arm, for at the change of ends it was obvious that Kramer was in serious trouble.He was suffering from an injured hand.

For it was on Court No 1 that the sad-faced Jaroslav Drobny, whose native Czechoslovakia was only just free from occupation, was beating the clean-cut US Marine Jack Kramer.The American had conceded only five games on his way to the fourth round, was the No 2 seed and the public favourite to take the title at his first attempt. The frustration must have been excruciating as they sat in their seats and listened to the rapturous applause from the place next door. Seldom did a day's play pass that the great cheers of its loyal devotees did not echo around the Centre Court, and make 12,000 people think that they were in the wrong place.They often were, and never more so than in the first Championships after the war in 1946. Memories are not so easily demolished. Although it did not have a Royal Box and was destined to be a semi-detached poor relation to the mansion next door, Court No 1 had a life and an atmosphere of its own. Eventually, the bulldozers will move in and in one mechanical swoop will reduce Court No 1 to a pile of anonymous rubble, to be dumped who-knows-where. No more do Joan Hunter Dunns flit around in Ted Tinling dresses with the odd peep of lace beneath. No more do men of grace blow kisses to pretty faces in the crowd; instead, they throw sweat-soaked shirts into a forest of eager arms.

These changes to Wimbledon came slowly, almost imperceptibly, but at the end of this year's Championships, the original Court No 1 will be obsolete. No more do I hear the sweet sound of white tennis balls flying from wooden rackets. "We may have only a slight chance of going through, but we are professionals and we will try our best."Homeward-bound Turkey, whose defensive midfielder Tolunay Kafkas is suspended, are likely to field the team which started against Portugal.PROBABLE TEAMS: PORTUGAL (v Croatia, City Ground, today, 4.30): Vitor Baia (Porto); Secretario (Porto), Fernando Couto (Parma), Helder (Benfica), Dimas (Benfica), Folha (Porto), Paulo Sousa (Juventus), Rui Costa (Fiorentina), Figo (Barcelona), Sa Pinto (Sporting Lisbon), Joao Pinto (Benfica).CROATIA: Ladic (Croatia Zagreb); Stimac (Derby County), Bilic (West Ham), Pavlicic (Hercules Alicante), Brajkovic (1860 Munich), Boban (Milan), Mladenovic (Gamba Osaka), Pamic (Osijek), Prosinecki (Barcelona), Vlaovic (Padova), Cvitanovic (Croatia Zagreb).DENMARK (v Turkey, Hillsborough, today, 4.30): Schmeichel (Manchester United), Thomsen (Ipswich Town), J Hogh (Fenerbahce), Rieper (West Ham United), Helveg (Udinese), Schjonberg (Odense), B S Nielsen (Odense), Nielsen (Brondby), M Laudrup (Real Madrid), B Laudrup (Rangers), S Andersen (Aalborg).TURKEY: Rustu (Fenerbahce), Recep (Besiktas), Alpay (Besiktas), Vedat (Karabukspor), Abdullah (Trabzonspor), Ogun (Trabzonspor), Tugay (Galatasaray), Sergen (Besiktas), Oguz (Fenerbahce), Hakan (Galatasaray), Saffet (Kocaelispor).. "They've been superb so far, just as we knew they would, and we would love to give them something to really shout about," he said."We watched the video of our defeat by Croatia, but if we sat down and talked about all the mistakes we made, we would be here until Christmas," Thomsen added. One man likely to play his third game of the tournament is the Ipswich Town midfielder Claus Thomsen, who has called on his country's army of fans to make an impact. The Danes must secure a convincing victory over Turkey at Hillsborough today and hope Croatia beat Portugal.The Danes have injury worries over their captain, Michael Laudrup, the defender Thomas Helveg and the striker Mikkel Beck. The striker Alen Boksic may return despite a throat infection which kept him out at Hillsborough.Denmark, the holders, have only a slim chance of making the quarter-finals as they are third in the group, three points adrift of Portugal.

He was substituted against Turkey after a bad miss in the first half.Oliveira was asked if he could be tempted to recall Porto's Domingos, the leading scorer in the Portuguese championship last season, but all he would say was: "Domingos will be play if the circumstances are suitable."Davor Suker, the two-goal hero against Denmark last Sunday, is likely to be one of those rested by the Croat coach, Miroslav Blazevic, who is already without the defender Nikola Jerkan, the victim of a broken nose against Denmark. Oliveira has other problems to contend with: he still has not found a striker who can provide the finishing touch to his team's intricate approach work.Sporting Lisbon's Ricardo Sa Pinto has started both games but, despite a goal against Denmark, has not convinced. He said: "We have videotaped all games in the tournament so far and I can say there is a very wide difference in the criteria being used for the award of yellow cards to the Portugal national team than there is for others."The coach also has an injury worry over the Barcelona midfielder Luis Figo, who turned an ankle in training and is having ice-pack treatment. It would seem an undemanding task given Croatia have already qualified for the last eight and are ready to rest several key players.