The day came. This Friday (11 Spanish peninsular time) we will find out how the Wimbledon box was configured in a draw full of cheats which could bring high-voltage duels from the early rounds.
And it is that on grass everything changes, and the specialists make their way despite not having a good ranking after the clay court season. If, in addition, we add the players who dropped down the ranks due to physical problems, we find tennis players with a height of Matteo Berrettini, Andy Murray, Ben Shelton, Richard Gasquet, Lorenzo Sonego or Adrian Mannarino as possible rivals of Carlos Alcaraz or Novak Djokovic in the first or second round.
But the curves are from the third, where the Spaniard and the Serbian will be paired with one of these players: Yoshihito Nishioka, Nicolas Jarry, Denis Shapovalov, Daniel Evans, Tallon Griekspoor, Tomás Martín Etcheverry, Alejandro Davidovich and Nick Kyrgios.
Undoubtedly, the Australian will be the rival to avoid, although his state of form leaves many doubts after physical problems that they had only allowed him to play one game in the past nine months.
It’s the second week of the competition, in the round of 16, it’s the chance to meet the candidates to do something important in the contest like Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Cameron Norrie, Alex de Minaur or Alexander Zverevwhile Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune and Jannik Sinner, executioner of Alcaraz last yearis emerging as the toughest rival in the quarterfinals.
One of the keys to the draw is on which side of the draw the number 3 and 4 seeds are paired. And, in principle, there is a lot of difference between having as a rival the always scary Daniil Medvedev or Casper Ruud, whose performance on grass leaves a lot to be desired.
So, the draw could be key in a competition where Novak Djokovic starts as the clear favorite to defend the title achieved last year. It was his 24th Grand Slam and his eighth Wimbledon, a figure that would see him equal the legendary Roger Federer.
For his part, Alcaraz will try to break one of the few barriers he left to break, to succeed in the ‘major’ that suits his tennis best. For now, last week’s title at Queen’s invites optimism.
The great challenge of Iga Swiatek
In the women’s box, Iga Swiatek will be looking to break his poor balance at Wimbledon. The undisputed dominator of the circuit in recent years is still unable to impose its superiority on grass and will face dangerous rivals, with Aryna Sabalenka (2) and the reigning champion, Elena Rybakina, at the fore.
The trio, dubbed the new “Big Three”, had to face the challenge of Tunisian pioneer Ons Jabeurwho will seek to become the first African woman and the first Arab player to win a Grand Slam singles title after reaching the Wimbledon and US Open finals last year.
Another contender is two-time champion Petra Kvitovawho surprised Rybakina with her win at the Miami Open and set up for the grass-court Slam by winning her second title of the season at the Berlin Open.
For the first time in recent years, There are no Spaniards among the seeded teams.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
