It was a year of drama at the 110th Wimbledon Championships. Four men's seeds fell on the first day, including the 1992 Champion Andre Agassi and the 1993 finalist Jim Courier. The unexpected exit of Boris Becker was to follow, continuing a tale that led to the most unusual scenario of the Open era, in which three unseeded players progessed to the semi-final.

One of them, Richard Krajicek, put an end to the dreams of last year's Champion, Pete Sampras, to challenge Bjorn Borg's record of five consecutive Wimbledon titles. The Dutchman beat another American, MaliVai Washington, to become the 1996 Champion.