There’s always a lot to digest when a Grand Slam draw gets released. We’ve tried to keep this Wimbledon preview as simple as possible. The stands are quiet now, but they’ll soon be full of spectators cheering on their favourites. Who are the players they’ll be cheering into the second week, and who are the dangers? Wimbledon 2024 is here….
Quarter 1:
Seeds:
Jannik Sinner (1)
Tallon Griekspoor (27)
Nicolas Jarry (19)
Ben Shelton (14)
Grigor Dimitrov (10)
Adrian Mannarino (22)
Zhizhen Zhang (32)
Daniil Medvedev (5)
Dangers:
Matteo Berrettini
Denis Shapovalov
Lloyd Harris
Gael Monfils
Jan-Lennard Struff
I see Sinner, Medvedev, and Dimitrov as the obvious choices to get out of this quarter. But it’s not always so straight forward. I expect Ben Shelton will have a big result on grass at some stage, but I’m not sure he’s quite ready this year. The big threats for those top 3 players, probably come from a couple of unseeded floaters. We know how good Berrettini is on the surface, and a potential second round clash with compatriot, Jannik Sinner, is a real minefield for the top seed. Big serving Struff has a pretty decent draw, while Gael Monfils has shown some form in Mallorca, and will probably get through countryman, Adrian Mannarino in the first round.
Quite a tricky quarter, but I’m predicting Jannik Sinner and Grigor Dimitrov to make the quarter-finals.
Quarter 2:
Seeds:
Carlos Alcaraz (3)
Frances Tiafoe (29)
Sebastian Baez (18)
Ugo Humbert (16)
Tommy Paul (12)
Alexander Bublik (29)
Mariano Navone (31)
Casper Ruud (8)
Dangers:
Matteo Arnaldi
Jordan Thompson
Max Purcell
Jakub Mensik
Carlos Alcaraz is the standout in this quarter, with Tommy Paul, and Alexander Bublik, the only other seeded players I can see getting through. Ruud has never been a fan of the grass, and although Bublik has good grass court form, having won Halle last year, we’re yet to see him really nail a big run at major. Paul and Bublik will likely meet in the 3rd round, and the winner of that might get through to the quarters. Matteo Arnaldi looked good at Roland Garros, but I can’t have him here. The danger might be the Aussie pair. Purcell has hit some form, and the second round potential match against Paul will be very interesting. Thompson has a pretty good looking draw, and I can see him getting to the 3rd or 4th round possibly.
To get out of this quarter though, I’d have to go for Carlos Alcaraz and I’m going to go out on a limb and say Alexander Bublik is about to have his best result at a major.
Quarter 3:
Seeds:
Andrey Rublev (6)
Lorenzo Musetti (25)
Sebastian Korda (20)
Stefanos Tsitsipas (11)
Taylor Fritz (13)
Alejandro Tabilo (24)
Jack Draper (28)
Alexander Zverev (4)
Dangers:
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Christopher O’Connell
Kei Nishikori
Dan Evans
Cameron Norrie
The third quarter has Rublev and Zverev as the top seeds, but neither have really looked comfortable on the grass, with only the Russian having made one quarter-final here. I see Stefanos Tsitsipas and Taylor Fritz as the two players most likely to get out of this section. There aren’t a lot of real dangerous unseeded players, although a couple of the Brits could get hot, and cause some trouble along the way. While I don’t expect Kei Nishikori to go deep, if he gets through his first round, he’s not an opponent Fritz would be taking lightly in the second round.
I’m going with Stefanos Tsitsipas and Taylor Fritz to get through.
Quarter 4:
Seeds:
Hubert Hurkacz (7)
Francisco Cerundolo (26)
Felix Auger-Aliassime (17)
Alex de Minaur (9)
Holger Rune (15)
Karen Khachanov (21)
Tomas Etcheverry (30)
Novak Djokovic (2)
Dangers:
Arthur Fils
Tomas Machac
Andy Murray
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Christopher Eubanks
Alexei Popyrin
The bottom quarter has some potential to cause chaos. We don’t know what shape Novak Djokovic is in, so it’s possible we could see the number 2 seed out early, which would open things right up. If the good Holger Rune turns up, there’s no doubt he could find his way through to the second week. Karen Khachanov rarely puts in a bad tournament, and has made quarters here before. Hurkacz is a semi-finalist here, and is in good form, while Aussie, Alex de Minaur is having the season of his life.
We’ve also got some unseeded players that could quite easily cause upsets. Arthur Fils, Thanasi Kokkinakis, big serving Alexei Popyrin, and of course, last year’s surprise packet, Christopher Eubanks.
I don’t think Djokovic is in good enough shape, so I’m going for Hubert Hurkacz and Karen Khachanov to make the quarter-finals here.
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