On the eve of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, Jonathan Raymond, Ahmed Rizvi, and Jon Turner provide their predictions.
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JONATHAN RAYMOND — ONLINE SPORTS EDITOR
MEN’S
Champion: Andy Murray
Let’s start by acknowledging Novak Djokovic is the prohibitive favourite. Anyone with six of the last eight grand slam titles in their back pocket (not to mention a 44-3 record this season) gets that distinction as a matter of course. But, look, weird things happen. Even Djokovic, for as good as he has been these last 24 months, found a way to not win the 2014 US Open and last year’s French. Murray is in excellent form this season and just ran through a pretty impressive gauntlet to win at Queen’s Club for a record fifth time. Remember the Roland Garros final? How strong he looked in that opening set against Djokovic? What if he could do that again, except on grass? Just give him a few of the right breaks, inject a little bit of weird (Ivan Lendl is back, remember!), and Wimbledon can be there for Murray’s taking.
Surprise: Milos Raonic
How, exactly, is Raonic supposed to surprise? He’s the world No 7 and he already reached the semi-final two years ago. Well, the Canadian is on a collision course with Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals. If he indeed manages to get there and can, if not win, then at the least put a scare into the current king of tennis, that would register as impressively surprising. I think he has it in him.
Disappointment: Nick Kyrgios
His talent is unquestioned. Never has been in doubt, really. The issue is whether he actually wants to show up, and until he reveals even a small measure of discipline, it will always be too easy to envision a flame-out for the 21-year-old Aussie. It’s not that he needs to tone down his personality — it’s simply about being less erratic on the court. He’s reached only one final all year, winning Marseille back in February, and it’s easy to forget that his Wimbledon quarter-final march two years ago has been followed by just one last-eight march at a grand slam since — and even that was 18 months ago at the 2015 Australian Open. For all his talent, it’s as likely that he actually meets Andy Murray in the fourth round this year as it is a Feliciano Lopez or Fabio Fognini sends him crashing out.
WOMEN’S
Champion: Madison Keys
She’s fast emerging with one of the most dangerous power games in tennis, and she showed how well it plays on grass in winning Birmingham a few weeks ago. As a general rule in women’s tennis in 2016, if it’s not Serena Williams, it can be anybody, and as far as the field goes, Keys herself is a favourite of Williams’. The current No 1 tabbed her as a future No 1 after their well-contested final in Rome — so why not?
Surprise: Karolina Pliskova
She hits the ball hard, has some recent success on grass (winning Nottingham, reaching the final at Eastbourne) and oh, right, she hits the ball really hard. The Czech has far and away the most aces on tour this season (273 — nearly 90 more than the woman in second, none other than Serena Williams) and a fairly reasonable shout at the quarter-finals, if she can overcome Angelique Kerber in the fourth round.
Disappointment: Angelique Kerber
Conversely, the Australian Open winner hasn’t had much going for her of late. The German is just 2-4 since the end of April, when she exited in the first round at Madrid and the guess is her swoon continues with an exit no later than the fourth round at Wimbledon, where she reached the semi-finals in 2012 and the quarters two years ago.
AHMED RIZVI — REPORTER
MEN’S
Champion: Novak Djokovic
The first man to hold all four grand slam titles since Rod Laver in 1969, Djokovic is leagues ahead of the competition at the moment. And then he is a two-time defending champion as well at the All England Club, so it would be foolhardy to look beyond the Serb. Barring a tennis-equivalent of a Brexit, expect the expected — a Novak Djokovic three-peat at Wimbledon.
Surprise: Dominic Thiem
The Austrian has a tricky first-rounder against Halle champion Florian Mayer and could face Tomas Berdych in the fourth round, or the promising German teenager Alexander Zverev. But given his form this year, and his rise up the charts, Thiem is expected to take his place in the quarter-finals for what should be an exciting clash of one-handed backhands against Stan Wawrinka. If he pips that, then we could see a repeat of the French Open semi-final against Novak Djokovic. If nothing else, Thiem will certainly be determined to improve on his performance at Roland Garros in that 2-6, 1-6, 4-6 loss to the eventual champion.
Disappointment: Kei Nishikori
He might be the 5th seed, but Nishikori’s record on grass, and particularly at Wimbledon, means not many would fancy his chances over the next two weeks. He has never progressed beyond the fourth round in seven visits to Wimbledon and has lost in the opening round on three occasions. There is a chance of that happening again as the Japanese has drawn big-serving Aussie Sam Groth in the opening round. If he gets through that bruising encounter, then Gilles Muller awaits in the third round and Marin Cilic/Borna Coric/Ivo Karlovic in the fourth. Tough for him to stay positive, right?
WOMEN’S
Champion: Serena Williams
Like Novak Djokovic in the men’s draw, Williams is an automatic favourite for the women’s title, in any event, on any surface. Wimbledon, of course, is the last grand slam title she won and her career has been around the proverbial circle since, with those heady days at the US Open before the eventual heartache, and then the defeats in the final at the Australian Open and the French. That grand slam No 22, which would put her level with Steffi Graf at the top, has been a bit tough to get, but that wait could end in two weeks.
Surprise: Madison Keys
Winner of the Birmingham title and the first American to debut in the Top 10 since Williams in April, 1999, Keys has been drawn in what is probably the most open quarter on the women’s side, headed by Angelique Kerber (No 4) and Simona Halep (No 5). Given their recent form, those two could be making an early exit and Keys, who opens her campaign against Laura Siegemund, could be one of the biggest beneficiaries if those predictions come true.
Disappointment: Garbine Muguruza
The French Open champion will probably be one of the top picks in most people’s books, but looking at her quarter of the draw, it is not going to be easy for the Spaniard. She has already talked about the challenges of the transition from clay to grass, having lost the only match she has played since her Roland Garros triumph — on grass to Kirsten Flipkens in Mallorca. One defeat, of course, does not indicate doom, but look at her draw — she starts against Camila Giorgi and has dangerous floaters Sabine Lisicki, Venus Williams, Sam Stosur, Lucie Safarova and Jelena Jankovic in her quarter. And then, she also has to deal with what is being called a grand slam curse; of the past eight first-time women’s major champions, none have made the quarter-final at their next major. The odds are stacked against her.
JON TURNER — ONLINE SPORTS EDITOR
MEN’S
Champion: Andy Murray
From looking at the current state of the men’s game, it can surely be only one of two players that can win the Wimbledon title in 2016. Roger Federer’s injury disrupted season all but rules out the seven-time champion as a serious contender, and beneath him, there is no one that would worry both, or either, Murray or world No 1 Novak Djokovic. If it is to be the world’s two best players in the final, Murray gets the slight edge. Despite a lopsided win-loss record (10-24), Murray has beaten Djokovic on both occasions they’ve met on the Wimbledon grass (2012 London Olympics and 2013 final) and is yet to drop a set to the Serbian. Murray’s preparation has been ideal, with a record fifth victory at Queen’s, and his recent reconciliation with coach Ivan Lendl can provide a short-term spark over the next two weeks. Grand slam title No 3 awaits the home favourite.
Surprise: Juan Martin Del Potro
The demise of Del Potro has been one of the saddest stories in modern tennis. A grand slam champion at the age of 20 and a former world No 4, wrist injuries have blighted what would undoubtedly have been an elite level career. Del Potro, 27, is competing at a grand slam for the first time since the Australian Open in 2014, while his most recent participation at Wimbledon was a run to the semi-finals in 2013 when he lost a five set classic to Djokovic. It may be expecting a lot from a player still short of his best, but a look at his draw means that, just maybe, the Argentine could make an impact at the All England Club. He should face few problems against Frenchman Stephane Robert in the first round, which should lead to a second round showdown with world No 4 Stan Wawrinka. It will be a big challenge, but grass is unquestionably Wawrinka’s weakest surface, and should Del Potro find a way past the Swiss, he has a clear run to the quarter-finals. It may be a fanciful prediction, but Del Potro has the talent to shake things up at Wimbledon.
Disappointment: Roger Federer
It’s been a tough season for Federer so far. Back and knee injuries have limited the 17-time grand slam champion to just 22 matches, during which time he has reached a solitary final. After opting to miss the French Open — which ended a consecutive grand slam appearance record of 67 — Federer has had more time to focus on his Wimbledon preparation. However, semi-final defeats in Stuttgart and Halle suggest the seven-time Wimbledon winner is still short of his best form. He has been gifed a kind draw, and could meet Marin Cilic or Kei Nishikori in the quarter-finals. However, unless Federer can find some momentum, he could be facing an earlier exit than at the last eight.
WOMEN’S
Champion: Garbine Muguruza
Yes, the grass court preparation has been lacking, and yes, it has been an up-and-down season for her so far, but Muguruza is nothing if not a big game player. She regards grass her weakest surface, but the world No 2 still reached the Wimbledon final last year. Muguruza also enters a grand slam for the first time as a champion of one herself. The confidence she must have gained from her French Open triumph, and the impressive nature of her victory over Serena Williams, will play a big part, both in terms of her own self-belief and the unsettling of her opponent’s. She has a game that is well suited to grass, with a big serve, and a cannon of a forehand. She has to be one of the leading contenders.
Surprise: Coco Vandeweghe
In possession of the best grass court record on the WTA Tour (8-1), Vandeweghe, with her booming groundstrokes and heavy serve, has a game that has been custom made to succeed at Wimbledon. As is often the case with power players, consistency and accuracy has always been the American’s downfall, but when she is on, she is very difficult to live with. She enters Wimbledon following her best run of form in 2016; a first title of the season at the S-Hertogenbosch Open was followed by a semi-final run in Birmingham, and Vandeweghe should be full of confidence heading into Wimbledon.
Disappointment: Serena Williams
This may be a wildly left field prediction, but surely for Williams, anything less than the title, or even the final, should be deemed a disappointment, no? She may not be the overwhelmingly dominant force of past seasons, but Williams is still head and shoulders above her contemporaries, and will be fancied by many to clinch a seventh Wimbledon title. However, she could face a stern test in her portion of the draw, with No 13 seed Svetlana Kuznestova or No 18 seed Sloane Stephens possible fourth round opponents. It still feels as though the only person that can beat Williams is Williams herself, but given the minefield of her side of the draw, one day when she’s not at her best could prove costly.
