By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Friday June 28, 2024
Coco Gauff is hoping for a career-best Wimbledon and her draw could help her get there.
Photo Source: Camera Sport
The women’s singles draw is set at Wimbledon, with Iga Swiatek in a stacked top half that also includes defending champion Marketa Vondrousova, 2022 champion Elena Rybakina, two-time finalist Ons Jabeur and several other top names.
Here’s a quick look at what we learned from today’s draw:
Swiatek’s Rocky Road
It will be a tricky road for the world No.1 as she will dive right into the deep end by facing former Grand Slam champion Kenin in her first match at Wimbledon – also her first match on grass in 2024.
Swiatek (9-4 lifetime at Wimbledon, though also a junior champion) made improvements on the surface in 2023, when she reached her first Wimbledon quarterfinal, but it’s hard to know how she’ll feel after a three-week competitive layoff. Swiatek is 2-0 vs Kenin, including a win against her in the 2020 Roland-Garros final and the first round at the Australian Open this year.
If Swiatek survives her first round, she’ll have to stay on her toes as she could face 2018 champion Kerber, Siniakova or Birmingham title winner Yulia Putintseva in the round of 32. After that, it could be Ostapenko – the type of player that could really bother Swiatek on grass – in the round of 16.
All that before the quarterfinals could make it a stressful run for the five-time major champion.
Sabalenka’s challenge
Aryna Sabalenka has reached the semis in each of her last two appearances at Wimbledon. Can the two-time Aussie Open champion expand her empire to SW19?
She faces American Emina Bektas in the first round and could face Donna Vekic in the second round. That’s not a great matchup for Sabalenka, who has lost six of eight to the Croatian across all levels.
Sabalenka is slated to face Zheng Qinwen in the quarterfinals, if the seeds hold, but could be challenged by other players in her second like Mirra Andreeva (potential round of 16) or Dayana Yastremska (potential round of 32).
Coco’s Time to Shine?
If Sabalenka, who pulled out of her last match in Berlin with a shoulder injury, struggles, it could be Coco Gauff’s time to step up.
The American reached the round of 16 as a 15-year-old at Wimbledon in 2019, but has never reached beyond that.
The draw gods seemd to favor the 20-year-old American this week. Gauff’s potential quarterfinal opponent is Jasmine Paolini. The Roland-Garros finalist is a blossoming talent on tour, but she carries an 0-3 record at Wimbledon into this year’s championships.
Gauff opens with Caroline Dolehide and is in the same 16th as former Slam champions Naomi Osaka, Sloane Stephens and Victoria Azarenka, as well as former World No.1 Karolina Pliskova.
It won’t be easy but there is a way forward for the World No.2 if she’s on top of her game.
Top Heavy?
In addition to Swiatek, former champions Rybakina and Vondrousova, and two-time runner-up Jabeur, there are several former Slam champions in the top half. Three-time Slam champ Angelique Kerber, 31st-seeded Barbora Krejcikova and Caroline Wozniacki are also in the top half.
Sprinkle in Caroline Garcia, Danielle Collins, Anna Kalinskaya, Liudmila Samsonova, 2023 semifinalist Elina Svitolina, Katie Boulter, Katerina Siniakova and recent Berlin titlist Jessica Pegula and it’s easy to see why the top half could be an agent for chaos at Wimbledon. It’s a gauntlet…
Best First-Rounders
[11] Danielle Collins vs Clara Tauson: Collins final Wimbledon ride begins with talented Dane Tauson, who is fresh off her best Slam performance at Roland-Garros (R16) last month.
Caroline Wozniacki vs Alycia Parks: The former World No.1 runs up against the hot hand – and hot serve – of American qualifier Parks.
[13] Jelena Ostapenko vs Ajla Tomljanovic: These two have history at Wimbledon – Tomljanovic accused Ostapenko of faking injury during their third-round clash (won by the Aussie) at SW19 in 2021.
[32] Katie Boulter vs Tatjana Maria: Boulter is becoming a force on the grass and Maria was a fairytale semifinalist at Wimbledon in 2022.
[22] Ekaterina Alexandrova vs Emma Raducanu: All eyes will be on Raducanu, who faces the very adept grass courter Alexandrova in her opening match.
Paula Badosa vs Karolina Muchova: Karolina Muchova’s return to the Grand Slam scene begins with a first-round meeting with Spain’s Badosa in a battle of former Top-10 players.