Swiatek, Sinner look to repeat in south-west London
The Wimbledon draws have been revealed and players have learned their fates ahead of Monday’s highly-anticipated kick-off at the All England Club.
Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner are back as reigning champions, while Serena Williams returns to the hallowed turf of SW19 for the first time since 2022.
Unlike 12 months ago when she reached a maiden grass-court final at Bad Homburg on the eve of Wimbledon, third-seeded Swiatek arrives at the All England Club this year with zero wins on the surface, having lost her opener to Emma Navarro at the German event on Wednesday.
The Polish six-time Grand Slam winner will commence her Wimbledon journey against 2024 doubles champion Taylor Townsend, whose aggressive serve-and-volley game can be tricky to handle on grass.
Swiatek could face former world No.1 Karolina Pliskova in round two, and could potentially meet Williams or Alexandra Eala in round three.
A rematch with Navarro could possibly await Swiatek in the quarter-finals. Other potential last-eight foes for the 25-year-old include eighth-seeded Elina Svitolina, who beat Swiatek en route to the Rome title last month, recent Queens champion Donna Vekic, Roland-Garros semi-finalist Marta Kostyuk.
Australian Open champion and 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina anchors the bottom half of the draw as the No.2 seed and could face Swiatek in the semi-finals.
Rybakina shares a quarter with last year’s runner-up Amanda Anisimova – they practised together at Wimbledon on Friday – and opens her campaign against France’s Loïs Boisson.
It is a stacked half but still most eyes will firmly be fixed on Williams, who at 44 years old, has decided to make a comeback and will play her first competitive singles match since the 2022 US Open.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion begins her journey against Australian Maya Joint before a potential second round clash with Eala, the Filipina No.29 seed who recently won a WTA 125 title on grass in Birmingham then reached the semis in Berlin with wins over Vekic, Rybakina and Svitolina.
The top half of the draw is headlined by world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka, whose Wimbledon prep featured a semi-final defeat in Berlin to fourth-seeded Jessica Pegula. The pair could get a rematch in the final four at Wimbledon.
Sabalenka’s first opponent in SW19 is 18-year-old Serbian qualifier Teodora Kostovic, with Emma Raducanu looming ahead as a possible third round for the top seed.
Roland-Garros champion Mirra Andreeva is the No.5 seed and could square off with Sabalenka in the quarter-finals. Paris runner-up Maja Chwalinska, four-time major champion Naomi Osaka, and 10th-seeded Karolina Muchova are all in that same quarter of the draw.
Italian world No.1 Sinner will make his first appearance since his surprise second-round defeat at Roland-Garros, during which he struggled physically.
The four-time major champion has been practising at the All England Club for the past week, and had a session with Novak Djokovic on No.1 Court on Thursday afternoon.
The pair have landed in the same half of the draw and could face off in the semi-finals.
Sinner must first make it past another Serb, his opening-round opponent Miomir Kecmanovic before he can think of a last-four clash with Djokovic.
He could get Daniil Medvedev or Tommy Paul in the quarter-finals before possible semi-final meetings with Djokovic or third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Seven-time champion Djokovic opens against China’s Wu Yibing before a potential second round against Stefanos Tsitsipas, a player he has played in two Grand Slam finals. The 39-year-old could get the player who beat him at Roland-Garros, Joao Fonseca, in round four before a possible quarter-final against Auger-Aliassime.
Recently-crowned Roland-Garros champion, Alexander Zverev is the No.2 seed and has been handed a difficult draw, with sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz or 17th-seeded Frances Tiafoe looming ahead as potential quarter-final opponents for him.
Fritz has beaten Zverev in their last five consecutive meetings (plus two in Laver Cup), including a semi-final in Halle last weekend, while Tiafoe is in great form and was the eventual champion in Halle.
But before Fritz can worry about Zverev, the American must make it through a blockbuster opener against home favourite Jack Draper.
The British lefty was ranked No.4 in the world 12 months ago but has slipped to 160 in the rankings due to injury.
He has played fewer than 15 matches so far this season but is enjoying a decent comeback on grass in Eastbourne this week, where he faces Ugo Humbert in the semi-finals on Friday.
No.4 seed and recent Stuttgart champion Ben Shelton shares a quarter with No.5 seed Alex de Minaur; both are possible semi-final opponents for Zverev or Fritz.
Women’s singles
Aryna Sabalenka (1) v Mirra Andreeva (5)
Jessica Pegula (4) v Coco Gauff (7)
Elina Svitolina (8) v Iga Swiatek (3)
Amanda Anisimova (6) v Elena Rybakina (2)
Men’s singles
Jannik Sinner (1) v Daniil Medvedev (8)
Felix Auger-Aliassime (3) v Novak Djokovic (7)
Alex de Minaur (5) v Ben Shelton (4)
Taylor Fritz (6) v Alexander Zverev (2)
Women’s singles
Magda Linette v Mirra Andreeva (5)
Emma Navarro (23) v Paula Badosa
Serena Williams v Maya Joint
Taylor Townsend v Iga Swiatek (3)
Jasmine Paolini (13) v Robin Montgomery
Men’s singles
Jannik Sinner (1) v Miomir Kecmanovic
Casper Ruud (11) v Hubert Hurkacz
Marin Cilic v Daniil Medvedev (8)
Stan Wawrinka v Matteo Berrettini
Taylor Fritz (6) v Jack Draper
Raphael Collignon v Arthur Fils (20)
Alexander Blockx v Alexander Zverev (2)
ROLAND-GARROS
17 May - 6 June 2027
