Wimbledon: Thousands queue for men's final tickets

Hundreds of tennis fans have emerged from their tents to join the queue for tickets for the men's singles final at Wimbledon.

People had flocked overnight to queue at gate three at the All England Tennis Club in London SW19 and there are already about 5,000 waiting.

A total of 10,000 unreserved tickets are available for the showdown between Pat Rafter and Goran Ivanisevic.

Officials at Wimbledon had feared there might be security problems, but it seemed the stg£40 cost of a ticket had kept many people away.

About 5,000 people were already queuing outside the club at 7am.

Many fans had camped overnight to secure a spot at the head of the queue and ensure that they get one of the tickets, which are offered on a first come, first served, basis.

The men's final had to be delayed until today - it should have been played yesterday - after rain hampered the semi-final between Ivanisevic and Tim Henman.

One fan, Robert Fraser, 52, a company director from Bracknell, Berkshire, said he arrived at 1am yesterday and had only hoped to get a ground pass.

"It's been brilliant, absolutely fantastic. I used to queue years ago when you could queue for the two final days," he said. "It's very rare to queue for the final day these days and at last we have been able to do it again.

"There's real camaraderie here. We were hoping to see Tim, but I think it will be a unique opportunity today. You don't often get a chance to experience something like this."