Archive | Sunday , June 22 , 2008

For the first time in a long time there are no clear favorites for the men and women’s titles at Wimbledon. Although Venus Williams and Roger Federer are chasing their fifth and sixth Wimbledon titles they have a lot of competition. Federer is in a slump he has only won two minor titles this year. Rafael Nadal just won his first grass court title at Queens over a week ago. Nadal is full of confidence he defeated Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic in straight sets to claim the Queens title.

Roger Federer did manage to win the grass court event in Halle Germany but he never encountered a top ten player on his path to victory. I just checked the Wimbledon draw on http://www.wimbledon.org and once again Rafael Nadal also has a much easier path to the Wimbledon finals. It appears the Wimbledon committee really are favoring Nadal they are always giving him extremely easy draws. Roger Federer’s draw is much more tougher.

Andy Roddick and Andy Murray are the two suspects most likely with a chance to upset Nadal. However, I am not sure Roddick and Murray have the mental toughness to beat Nadal. It appears Nadal will easily reach another Wimbledon final. Roger Federer’s draw is much tougher he could face Novak Djokovic in the men’s semifinals.

On the women’s side Venus Williams once again is a question mark? At the French Open Venus played poorly but she had little preparation for the French Open. Venus also had an undisclosed illness but she has also won Wimbledon four times. The fast grass courts of Wimbledon suits Venus game much better then the slow red clay.

Venus is also in the bottom half of the women’s draw with Jelena Jankovic and Maria Sharapova. Jankovic can play on grass but the question is does Jankovic have the heart and fight to win seven matches?

Venus younger sister Serena is in the top half of the women’s draw. Serena is a two time Wimbledon champion she is the best player on the WTA when her game is on. Serena has the most consistent serve in women’s tennis. Svetlana Kuznetsova is a player nobody is talking about but she has managed to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals twice she can play on grass. However, Kuznetsova has proven she can get far in grand slams but can’t seem to go the distance.

Lindsay Davenport and Amelie Mauresmo are my dark horse picks because nobody is talking about them. If the Williams Sisters, the Serbs, or Maria Sharapova don’t come through then Mauresmo and Davenport have a chance. Both Mauresmo and Davenport have won Wimbledon before and have the game to win on grass.

Ana Ivanovic is definitely a contender because she just won the French Open and she reached the semifinals of Wimbledon last year. Of course, Maria Sharapova the 2004 Wimbledon champion is a contender as well.

A young player the public should be paying attention to is Polish teenager Agneiszka Radwanska. Radwanska is a rising player to watch. Radwanska beat Sharapova at the US OPEN last year in the third round. Radwanska also followed up her strong US OPEN performance by reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals in January. Radwanska is a versatile player she won a clay court title in Istanbul last month and she just also won the Eastbourne grass title yesterday.

I am impressed with Radwanska she has a very thoughtful game she doesn’t just hit the ball hard she hits slice, drop shots, lobs, volleys well, she really thinks on the tennis court.

I am so glad clay court season is over. I really love Wimbledon a lot it is my favorite grand slam. Maybe it is because of the tradition? Maybe it is because you actually need a “game” to win. On clay it is all about outlasting your opponent and not making errors. At Wimbledon you need a big serve, big forehand, backhand, and volley skills to win.