In the beginning, athletes play for the moment, for the sheer unmeditated joy of doing it. In mid-career they play for the money. At the twilight of fitness, they play for the memories, seeking one last accomplishment to etch their names in history. For the two dominant tennis players of the decade past, Ivan Lendl and Martina Navratilova, all the conceivable goals of a career have narrowed to one: the All-England Lawn Tennis championship, or Wimbledon, which starts this week and is the sport's premier tournament precisely because it is the most historic.
The skittish, demonstrative blond woman and the brooding,...