By Tony Fairbairn at Wimbledon
- Carlos Alcaraz aims to continue his momentum from winning at Roland Garros as he prepares for his first Wimbledon title defence.
- Top Seeds: Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev
- British Interest: Jack Draper [28], Cameron Norrie, Dan Evans, Andy Murray, Liam Broady [WC], Charles Broom [WC], Jan Choinski [WC], Jacob Fearnley [WC], Arthur Fery [WC], Billy Harris [WC], Paul Jubb [WC], Henry Searle [WC]
LONDON, ENGLAND – Carlos Alcaraz will aim to continue the momentum from his Roland Garros title as he prepares for his maiden Wimbledon title defence against tough competition.
 |
|---|
[1] Jannik Sinner
Best Result: Semi-Finals (2023)
Sinner will believe this is his best year of achieving Wimbledon glory as this is the first Grand Slam he is world number one and enters this year’s tournament having won his first ever grass court tournament in Halle.
Sinner’s Path to the Final (Ranking/Seeding)
- R1: Yannick Hanfmann | H2H: Sinner leads 1-0
- R2: Matteo Berrettini | H2H: Sinner leads 1-0
- R3: Tallon Griekspoor [27] | H2H: Sinner leads 5-0
- R4: Ben Shelton [14] | H2H: Sinner leads 2-1
- QF: Daniil Medvedev [5] | H2H: Medvedev leads 6-5
- SF: Carlos Alcaraz [3] | H2H: Alcaraz leads 5-4
- F: Novak Djokovic [2] | H2H: Djokovic leads 4-3
Sinner has a tough first week as he faces players that are either power players or who are good movers on the grass. The most notable challenge is in the second round against former finalist Matteo Berrettini. A fourth round test against Nicolas Jarry could prove challenging while Grigor Dimitrov would be the best placed to challenge Sinner in the quarter-finals as he could renew his rivalry with Alcaraz in the semi-finals. Ultimately if Sinner can get past Berrettini in the second round then it would be tough to see anyone beating him at Wimbledon as he is slightly ahead of Alcaraz and Djokovic in terms of form, consistency and fitness.
[2] Novak Djokovic
Best Result: Champion (2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022)
After missing out in a thrilling final last year, Djokovic is targeting an eighth Wimbledon title this year but heads into this year’s tournament with doubts over his fitness having just had meniscus surgery a few weeks ago.
Djokovic’s Path to the Final (Ranking/Seeding)
- R1: Vit Kopriva [Q] | H2H: First Meeting
- R2: Alejandro Moro Canas [Q] | H2H: First Meeting
- R3: Tomas Martin Etcheverry [30] | H2H: Djokovic leads 3-0
- R4: Holger Rune [15] | H2H: Djokovic leads 3-2
- QF: Hubert Hurkacz [7] | H2H: Djokovic leads 7-0
- SF: Alexander Zverev [4] | H2H: Djokovic leads 8-4
- F: Jannik Sinner [1] | H2H: Djokovic leads 4-3
Djokovic has a fairly comfortable opening week with the first real challenge coming against either Karen Khachanov or Holger Rune in the last 16. The quarter-final match could be Djokovic’s toughest test on the way to the final with Hubert Hurkacz potentially awaiting, an opponent that pushed Djokovic all the way last year. This is the perfect draw for Djokovic to play his way into the tournament and find confidence to see if his knee injury has recovered in time to mount a serious challenge for the title. Should Djokovic be at his 80-90% best than he should have enough quality to reach the final but winning the title could prove to be a step too far.
 |
|---|
[3] Carlos Alcaraz
Best Result: Champion (2023)
After winning a third Grand Slam title on a third different surface, Alcaraz now aims to successfully defend his Wimbledon title.
Alcaraz’s Path to the Final (Ranking/Seeding)
- R1: Mark Lajal [Q] | H2H: First Meeting
- R2: Sebastian Ofner | H2H: First Meeting
- R3: Frances Tiafoe [29] | H2H: Tied at 1-1
- R4: Ugo Humbert [16] | H2H: First Meeting
- QF: Casper Ruud [8] | H2H: Alcaraz leads 4-0
- SF: Jannik Sinner [1] | H2H: Alcaraz leads 5-4
- F: Novak Djokovic [2] | H2H: Djokovic leads 3-2
Alcaraz’s grass court capabilities will be tested in the first week against Sebastian Ofner and Frances Tiafoe even if Tiafoe’s form has been poor this season. A fourth round clash against Ugo Humbert could prove to be a big test of his returning ability before the Spaniard will likely take on Queen’s Club champion Tommy Paul in the quarter-finals. History suggests that Alcaraz may fall short when it matters most especially against Sinner but it would be typical for the Spaniard to break the norms once again and create more history at SW19.
[4] Alexander Zverev
Best Result: Fourth Round (2017, 2021)
Having been so close to winning his first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros, Zverev now turns to his worst surface on paper in order to break his Grand Slam curse.
Zverev’s Path to the Final (Ranking/Seeding)
- R1: Roberto Carballes Baena | H2H: Zverev leads 1-0
- R2: Marcos Giron | H2H: Zverev leads 1-0
- R3: Jack Draper [28] | H2H: First Meeting
- R4: Taylor Fritz [13] | H2H: Zverev leads 5-3
- QF: Andrey Rublev [6] | H2H: Zverev leads 6-3
- SF: Novak Djokovic [2] | H2H: Djokovic leads 8-4
- F: Jannik Sinner [1] | H2H: Zverev leads 4-1
Zverev will face two tough tests in the first week of Wimbledon to see whether he really can challenge for Wimbledon this year. One of Marcos Giron or last year’s boys champion Henry Searle will provide a tough challenge for the German in the second round before the fourth seed takes on Stuttgart champion Jack Draper in the third round. In the week there could be tests from one of Andrey Rublev, Lorenzo Musetti, Stefanos Tsitsipas or Taylor Fritz before a potential semi-final meeting with Djokovic. Ultimately, if Zverev wants to achieve his best Wimbledon result than he will need to play at his maximum level otherwise another early exit is likely.
Wimbledon starts on the first of July and concludes on the 15th of July.
How to Watch/Follow Wimbledon 2024
| TV | Across BBC Channels & Red Button |
| Live Stream | BBC Sport |
| Live Scores | Tennis Scores Powered By TNNSLIVE |
 Sign up to PBLC for free to support ongoing contributions from Britwatch Sports |
|---|
| Follow Britwatch - Sport in General, Brits in Particular! | |
|---|---|
| Soundcloud | |
| YouTube | |
| We may receive compensation for products purchased via affiliate links on this website | |