Tennis fans spot baffling detail in Novak Djokovic photo at Wimbledon

With every Wimbledon tournament that comes and goes comes the inevitable question - why is there a pineapple on the men's trophy?

As Novak Djokovic posed with the men's singles trophy at the All England Club on Sunday after beating Nick Kyrgios in the final, fans spotted the bizarre detail.

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Adorned atop the golden trophy is none other than a tiny pineapple - taking pride of place right in the very middle.

While the official reason for the staggering detail isn't actually known, it is believed to be due to the fact that pineapples were a rare and exotic fruit in the late 19th century.

The trophy originates from 1877 when the very first Wimbledon tournament was played, and many believe the pineapple may have been seen as a status symbol at the time.

According to the Wimbledon website: “The most plausible explanation for the presence of this unlikely fruit atop the most prestigious trophy in tennis is that, when The Championships began in the latter half of the 19th century, pineapples were prized as a rare and exclusive food.

“Although Christopher Columbus brought a pineapple back from his 1492 expedition to the New World, pineapples remained expensive to import to, or grow in, western Europe, until commercial production began in Hawaii in the early 1900s. Serving them was thus an indication of high status.”

Another obscure fact about the trophy is that it features the inscription: “The All England Lawn Tennis Club Single Handed Championship of the World”.

Tell that to double-handed backhanders like Djokovic and Nadal.

The men's champions at Wimbledon receive a three-quarter sized replica of the trophy featuring the names of every previous winner, complete with the pineapple on top.

The women's champions received the Venus Rosewater Dish - unfortunately without the pineapple.

Novak Djokovic robbed in Wimbledon rankings farce

Despite winning his seventh Wimbledon title and 21st overall major, Djokovic has fallen four places in the ATP rankings to No.7.

The farcical situation came about because the ATP and WTA tours decided to strip Wimbledon of rankings points in retaliation to the All England Club's ban on Russian and Belarusian players.

But because the rankings weren't put on hold, Djokovic has now lost the 2000 points he earned from winning Wimbledon in 2021, resulting in his drop in the overall rankings.

Equally as ridiculous is Kyrgios falling five places to No.45 despite reaching his maiden grand slam final.

The rankings fiasco threatens to cost Kyrgios an all-important seeding for the year's final major at the US Open, starting in New York on August 29.

Kyrgios would normally have soared to No.15 in the world on the back of his run to the final at Wimbledon, placing him in position to claim a top-16 seeding at Flushing Meadows.

But he will instead by at the mercy of the draw unless he climbs the rankings in the next month when he plans to take a well-earned break.

Elena Rybakina's first grand slam title has also done her no good in the WTA rankings, with the Kazakh remaining at World No.23.

Ons Jabeur, who lost to Rybakina in Saturday's final, fell three spots to No.5 despite recording her best result at a major.

French Open champion Iga Swiatek remains No.1 on the women's tour, while Russian outcast Daniil Medvedev has held onto the top spot in the men's rankings, despite being barred from playing at Wimbledon.

with AAP

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