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The 2015 Wimbledon Championships start on Monday as players look to win the title at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. In the 129th edition of the tournament 256 players will be dwindled down to one male winner and one female winner.
The draw was conducted on Friday and play will begin with the men’s champion from 2014, Novak Djokovic, playing on the opening day.
Here is a look at each half of the draw and The Roar‘s predictions for the event.
Men’s draw: Top half
Notable seeds: Novak Djokovic, Kei Nishikori, Stan Wawrinka and Milos Raonic.
Aussies: Lleyton Hewitt, Bernard Tomic, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Matt Ebden, John Millman, Marinko Matosevic, John-Patrick Smith, Luke Saville and Nick Kyrgios.
We could see a repeat of the French Open final if Stan Wawrinka and Novak Djokovic win through to the semi-finals.
Wawrinka faces the easier task with no real obstacles facing him until the quarter-finals. Djokovic, on the other hand, faces tough grass challenges in Philipp Kohlschreiber, Lleyton Hewitt, and Bernard Tomic.
While none should beat him, they could tire him out, as Djokovic progresses further in the event. He could also face a big server in the fourth round, and the quarters, with Kevin Anderson, Marin Cilic, and John Isner in the same quarter.
The best chance for Australia in this half comes from Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis. Kyrgios, who faces a potential match-up with Raonic in the third round, could repeat his quarter-final appearance if he finds form early.
Kokkinakis, who faces Leonard Mayer first up, could go on a run if he can defeat his clay rival first up.
Prediction: Djokovic looks to face Wawrinka for the third time in Grand Slams this year. Djokovic is better on grass than Stan the Man and would be my tip to make the final.
Dark Horse: Nick Kyrgios and John Isner.
Men’s draw: Bottom half
Notable seeds: Roger Federer, David Ferrer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Tomas Berdych.
Aussies: Sam Groth and James Duckworth.
Andy Murray looks to have a good draw to repeat his 2013 Wimbledon success. He could face either Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Ivo Karlovic in the fourth round but shouldn’t have too many problems against either of them. His form will be too good for both players.
Murray then faces a potential match-up with Rafael Nadal, who might have to get past David Ferrer in the fourth round. That will be a bruising encounter.
He could then face either Roger Federer or Tomas Berdych in the semis with both due to meet in the quarters. Both should make the quarters and repeat their 2010 battle, which Berdych won.
With the Brits’ form over the last few months, it looks to be a hard task for either Federer or Berdych should they get that far.
Australia’s best chance to go far in this half looks to be Sam Groth. It could be an all Aussie showdown in the second round if both Groth and James Duckworth win. The winner of that, likely to be Groth, could face Federer in the third round.
Prediction: Andy Murray
Dark Horse: Tomas Berdych, Gael Monfils, Viktor Troicki
Overall men’s prediction: Andy Murray. His form looks good enough to win the title overall.
Women’s draw: Top half
Notable seeds: Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Victorian Azarenka, Maria Sharapova and Lucie Safarova.
Aussies: Daria Gavrilova and Sam Stosur.
Serena Williams should have no problems making the semi-finals here with a draw that wouldn’t intimidate the world number one. Battles against Victoria Azarenka or Ana Ivanovic (quarters), and Venus Williams (fourth round), look to be the only threat to her in the first week and a half of the event.
The sister battle in Round 4 should be interesting but Serena should be too strong with the form Venus is in this year.
The other side looks interesting with Maria Sharapova and Lucie Safarova set to do battle again in the quarters, after facing each other in the same stage at the French Open.
Safarova, who made the semis last year at Wimbledon, has a nice draw to repeat her performance from 2014. She is every chance of beating Sharapova again.
Australia could see two players in this half make the third round with Daria Gavrilova and Sam Stosur having good draws. If Stosur can find form on grass she could cause some damage. A potential fourth round match with Safarova awaits the Queenslander.
Gavrilova could also go far but she needs to be over her abdominal strain. A third round match against Sharapova awaits the Victorian based Aussie.
Prediction: Serena Williams
Dark Horses: Belinda Bencic, Andrea Petkovic, Sam Stosur, Karolina Pliskova
Women’s draw: Bottom half
Notable seeds: Caroline Wozniacki, Simona Halep, Ekaterina Makarova and Petra Kvitova.
Aussies: Jarmila Gajdosova, Casey Dellacqua and Ajla Tomljanovic.
Petra Kvitova should face no problems making the semis, or the final, in this half. With the form of others around her, I see no threats to her as she looks to go back to back in Wimbledon.
The only concern for her is injury after withdrawing from a lead-up event.
Her quarter, which includes Eugenie Bouchard and Agnieszka Radwanska, will be focused on those two players. Both are struggling for form this year and have fallen in the rankings.
Radwanska, who made the final in Eastbourne last week, just doesn’t have the devastating precision to her game she had twelve months ago. As a result she is being beaten by players with more power than the Polish star.
Bouchard has also struggled with expectation since her breakout year last year. She could struggle in her opening match given the form she is in. The Canadian faces Ying-Ying Duan.
The top quarter looks to be the most open in the draw this year. Anyone of Caroline Woznaicki, Simona Halep, Camila Giorgi, Angelique Kerber, Sabine Lisicki or Timea Bacsinszky could win the quarter.
Expect plenty of upsets as unexpected results occur.
With that in mind Kvitova could play someone ranked outside of the top 10 in the semi-final. If that happens then the Czech Republic left-hander looks in prime position for a back-to-back title.
Three Aussies are in this section with Casey Dellacqua and Ajla Tomljanovic potentially facing each other in the third round. Both face winnable matches in the first round against Tamira Paszek and Klara Koukalova respectively.
Jarmila Gajdosova, the final Aussie, will face Sabine Lisicki in the first round.
Prediction: Petra Kvitova
Dark Horses: Take your pick from Svetlana Kuznetsova, Sabine Lisicki, Madison Keys, Camila Giorgi, Timea Bacsinszky, and Alize Cornet.
Overall women’s prediction: Serena Williams. If she plays at her best, no one stops her.
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