After the grit and grind of the French Open and an intriguing three weeks of grass court lead-up events, the third major of the season is here with many storylines surrounding Wimbledon this year in London.
The most prestigious tennis tournament of the year is here at the All England Lawn Tennis Club as Wimbledon begins with many storylines surrounding the ladies field in London. Following a wide open French Open that saw 20-year-0ld Jelena Ostapenko claim a shock maiden Grand Slam title and an interesting three weeks of grass court lead-up tournaments, the number one ranking is yet again in play on the hallowed grass of Wimbledon, with the third major of the season providing another prime opportunity for many women to step up and take advantage of another open field at SW19.
First quarter
The top quarter is led by world number one and defending finalist Angelique Kerber, who is fighting to keep her top ranking following a tough 2017 season so far. Joining Kerber in the first quarter is seventh seed of Russia Svetlana Kuznetsova, a struggling ninth seed and 2012 runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska, and fourteenth seed 2016 French Open champion and 2015 finalist here at Wimbledon, Garbine Muguruza.
For Kerber, the German begins her Wimbledon campaign against American qualifier Irina Falconi ahead of a possibly tricky second round against either 2013 semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium or Japanese left-hander Misaki Doi. 2014 semifinalist and 32nd seed Lucie Safarova looms as a potential third round opponent for the world number one, with big-hitting Muguruza a possibly very difficult round of 16 for Kerber assuming she gets there. For Muguruza, the Spaniard has a very good draw until the fourth round, where given Kerber’s form of late the 2015 finalist would be favored to beat the defending runner-up for a spot in the quarterfinals against possibly Kuznetsova or Radwanska.
In Kuznetsova’s section of this quarter, the two-time major winner, who has never excelled on grass at Wimbledon, has a pretty comfortable early draw, with dangerous lefty Ekaterina Makarova of Russia looming as a potential roadblock for the seventh seed in the second round. If Kuznetsova could navigate past big-hitting Makarova, she should reach the quarterfinal meeting with Muguruza, given that the next seed below her in this section, Agnieszka Radwanska, who opens against former world number one Jelena Jankovic, has struggled mightily this season,
With Muguruza and Kuznetsova both possessing fairly good draws to the last eight, it would be no surprise to see these two meet in the quarterfinals, and with the Spaniard’s previous success at Wimbledon, expect Muguruza to reach her second semifinal at the All England Club.
Semifinalist: Muguruza
Second quarter
The second quarter of the draw is headlined by third seed and recently-crowned Eastbourne champion Karolina Pliskova the woman she beat to hoist the trophy on the grass of the Aegon International, former world number one and fifth seed Caroline Wozniacki. For Pliskova, the Czech has the possibility to become number one following Wimbledon, and she begins her quest for a first Grand Slam title against Evgeniya Rodina of Russia. The world number three could face a tricky second round against Magdalena Rybarikova, who won a title at a grass court lead-up on the ITF circuit earlier this month. If Pliskova can navigate her way past the crafty game of Rybarikova, she could then face big-hitting German Julia Goerges, who reached the final in Mallorca, in the third round, ahead of a possible fourth round with 16th-seeded Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Despite some potentially difficult matches against Rybarikova or Goerges, Pliskova does have a decent draw to reach the quarterfinals here at SW19.
In the other section of this quarter is former world number one and Eastbourne finalist Caroline Wozniacki, who has a tough early draw with a possible second round meeting against grass court specialist Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria and a dangerous third round against arguably the best unseeded player at Wimbledon this year, ‘s-Hertogenbosch champion Anett Kontaveit of Estonia. Given Wozniacki’s average results at Wimbledon, having never made it past the fourth round, and big-hitting opponents like Kontaveit or tricky Pironkova in her way, it’s tough to see the Dane reaching the second week.
If Kontaveit can keep up her red-hot form of the last two months, the Estonian would be the favorite to reach the round of 16 where she could face one of the in-form players on the WTA this season, 12th seed Kristina Mladenovic, or big-serving American Coco Vandeweghe, who could meet in what would be a blockbuster third round despite Americans Alison Riske or Sloane Stephens as possible second round opponents for Mladenovic. If the Frenchwoman can keep up what she’s been doing so far in 2017, she should be able to beat Riske or Stephens in the second round and make her way past Vandeweghe in the third to book a place with Kontaveit in the round of 16. With Mladenovic and Kontaveit being two of the best players this season so far, that would be a toss-up fourth round, but expect Kontaveit to book a quarterfinal meeting with Pliskova, where the powerful Czech’s experience and dominant serving would likely send her into a first Wimbledon semifinal.
Semifinalist: Pliskova
Third quarter
In the third quarter of this draw is fourth seed Elina Svitolina, 10th seed and five-time champion Venus Williams, and the most recent Grand Slam winner, the 13th seed of Latvia Jelena Ostapenko. For Svitolina, many question marks surround the Ukrainian, given that only a week ago following an early exit in Birmingham, she said she wasn’t even sure if she would play Wimbledon due to a foot injury. Only to add insult to injury, the fourth seed drew one of the toughest unseeded opponents out there, Birmingham runner-up Ashleigh Barty of Australia. It’s tough to see Svitolina making it out of the first round also due to her own grass court struggles, but for either her or Barty, the winner will have a pretty clear road to the fourth round despite big-hitting German Carina Witthoeft a possible third round opponent in this section.
Also in this section are two dangerous seeds, the aforementioned winner at Roland Garros Jelena Ostapenko and 2014 Eastbourne champion, big-serving American 17th seed Madison Keys, who has struggled this season due to two minor wrist surgeries. For Ostapenko, the 20-year-old Latvian has a very clear draw to the third round, where she could meet Keys, who has a dangerous second round matchup against either Camila Giorgi or Alize Cornet. If Barty can keep up her form from the grass of Birmingham earlier this month, she should take advantage of a good draw against possibly Witthoeft in the third round to reach the round of 16, where likely Ostapenko will face her after beating Keys in the third round. Despite previous first-time Grand Slam champions having trouble backing it up, the big-hitting Latvian still possess a pressure-free mindset, one that should help her to reach the quarterfinals here at the scene of her only junior major crown.
In the other section of this draw is the most accomplished player on The Championships lawn in this ladies draw, five-time winner Venus Williams. The 10th-seeded American does have off-court distractions surrounding her though, with news that the 37-year-old was involved in a fatal car crash that killed a 78-year-old man earlier this month in Palm Beach taking up much of Williams’ time ahead of the third major of the season. Despite that, Williams does have a comfortable early draw, with her first big test likely coming against tricky Czech Barbora Strycova, the 22nd seed and two-time Birmingham finalist, looming in the third round. If Williams can navigate past the variety of Strycova, the American would be the favorite in the round of 16 as well, where she could meet returning 2013 finalist and grass court specialist, Sabine Lisicki of Germany in the fourth round.
If Williams can play the powerful tennis that saw her win five Venus Rosewater Dishes and reach the Australian Open final earlier this season, the American should be the favorite to come through matches against Lisicki and Ostapenko to reach a second straight Wimbledon semifinal.
Semifinalist: Williams
Fourth quarter
In the bottom quarter of the draw are many big names, second seed and 2014 semifinalist Simona Halep, sixth seed and British hope Johanna Konta, and two-time champion Petra Kvitova. For Halep, the Romanian is still recovering from a heart-breaking defeat to Ostapenko in the final in Paris, but the second seed begins her Wimbledon campaign against qualifier Marina Erakovic of New Zealand. Halep could face a dangerous second round against big-serving Brazilian lefty Beatriz Haddad Maia or another lefty in British wildcard Laura Robson. The draw doesn’t get any easier from there for the former semifinalist, with possibly 2014 runner-up Eugenie Bouchard or another big-hitting lefty, Market Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, awaiting the Romanian in the third round. That will be a difficult task for Halep to reach the fourth round, but given her form from the clay court season, she could definitely grind her way there.
Also in this section is 15th seed and last year’s semifinalist Elena Vesnina, who could face two-time Grand Slam champion and former world number one Victoria Azarenka, who is playing only her second tournament in the last year due to giving birth and opens against American rising star Cici Bellis in a blockbuster first round. Whoever makes it out of there would most likely be an underdog against Vesnina, who has a proven grass court pedigree, and could face potentially Mallorca champion Anastasija Sevastova or Eastbourne semifinalist Heather Watson of Great Britain in the third round, both players Vesnina should beat. This section should come down to Vesnina and Halep in the fourth round, and with Halep’s inconsistent record on grass and Vesnina’s game suited well to the lawns of Wimbledon, the Russian should reach the quarterfinals.
In the other section of this quarter is Kvitova and Konta, with both players having received good draws to the round of 16, where they could meet. The only real question around a Konta and Kvitova fourth round match is the British hopeful’s spine injury sustained in Eastbourne, where she took a hard fall to the ground on her head and back, forcing her to withdraw from the semifinal there to recover in time for Wimbledon.
If Konta and Kvitova do reach the round of 16, the two-time Wimbledon champion and newly crowned winner in Birmingham should be the favorite to reach the quarterfinal, where a meeting against Vesnina would favor the Czech 11th seed to reach the last four yet again at the All England Club.
Semifinalist: Kvitova
Predictions:
Semifinals: Pliskova def. Muguruza, Kvitova def. Williams
Final: Kvitova def. Pliskova
