Wimbledon 2015: Predictions for Men and Women's Singles Draw Brackets
The 2015 edition of Wimbledon promises to be one full of intrigue.
As the 2015 French Open showed, storylines abound in the Grand Slam tournaments this year. On the women's side, there's the question of the Serena Slam. Serena Williams has already dominated the Australian Open and fought illness to a French Open title.
Now she'll set her eyes on the tournament she's already won five times as the third leg of a potential calendar-year Grand Slam.
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On the men's side, the tournament feels much more wide open than in the past. Novak Djokovic comes in as the defending champion, but Stanislas Wawrinka's French Open title shows that championships aren't just for tennis's Big Four anymore.
Here's a look at the top seeds on both sides along with predictions as to what the biggest storylines of the tournament will be. The full details of Friday's men's and women's draws can be found on Wimbledon's official website.
| 1 | Novak Djokovic (Ser) |
| 2 | Roger Federer (Swi) |
| 3 | Andy Murray (GB) |
| 4 | Stan Wawrinka (Swi) |
| 5 | Kei Nishikori (Jpn) |
| 6 | Tomas Berdych (Cze) |
| 7 | Milos Raonic (Can) |
| 8 | David Ferrer (Spa) |
| 9 | Marin Cilic (Cro) |
| 10 | Rafael Nadal (Spa) |
| 11 | Grigor Dimitrov (Bul) |
| 12 | Gilles Simon (Fra) |
| 13 | Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (Fra) |
| 14 | Kevin Anderson (SA) |
| 15 | Feliciano Lopez (Spa) |
| 16 | David Goffin (Bel) |
| 17 | John Isner (USA) |
| 18 | Gael Monfils (Fra) |
| 19 | Tommy Robredo (Spa) |
| 20 | Roberto Bautista Agut (Spa) |
| 21 | Richard Gasquet (Fra) |
| 22 | Viktor Troicki (Ser) |
| 23 | Ivo Karlovic (Cro) |
| 24 | Leonardo Mayer (Arg) |
| 25 | Andreas Seppi (Ita) |
| 26 | Nick Kyrgios (Aus) |
| 27 | Bernard Tomic (Aus) |
| 28 | Pablo Cuevas (Uru) |
| 29 | Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (Spa) |
| 30 | Fabio Fognini (Ita) |
| 31 | Jack Sock (USA) |
| 32 | Dominic Thiem (Aut) |
| 1 | Serena Williams (USA) |
| 2 | Petra Kvitova (Cze) |
| 3 | Simona Halep (Rom) |
| 4 | Maria Sharapova (Rus) |
| 5 | Caroline Wozniacki (Den) |
| 6 | Lucie Safarova (Cze) |
| 7 | Ana Ivanovic (Ser) |
| 8 | Ekaterina Makarova (Rus) |
| 9 | Carla Suarez Navarro (Spa) |
| 10 | Angelique Kerber (Ger) |
| 11 | Karolina Pliskova (Cze) |
| 12 | Eugenie Bouchard (Can) |
| 13 | Agnieszka Radwanska (Pol) |
| 14 | Andrea Petkovic (Ger) |
| 15 | Timea Bacsinzky (Swi) |
| 16 | Venus Williams (USA) |
| 17 | Elina Svitolina (Ukr) |
| 18 | Sabine Lisicki (Ger) |
| 19 | Sara Errani (Ita) |
| 20 | Garbine Muguruza (Spa) |
| 21 | Madison Keys (USA) |
| 22 | Sam Stosur (Aus) |
| 23 | Victoria Azarenka (Blr) |
| 24 | Flavia Pennetta (Ita) |
| 25 | Alize Cornet (Fra) |
| 26 | Svetlana Kuznetsova (Rus) |
| 27 | Barbora Strycova (Cze) |
| 28 | Jelena Jankovic (Ser) |
| 29 | Irina-Camelia Begu (Rou) |
| 30 | Belinda Bencic (Swi) |
| 31 | Camila Giorgi (Ita) |
Serena Makes it Three Straight
It might not be considered a bold prediction, but Serena Williams is the surest pick to win Wimbledon. The 33-year-old hasn't won the tournament since 2012, but she's clearly playing at a much higher level recently.
But calling for another championship for Williams isn't just about her play, it's about the general lack of a challenge for her in the draw. Looking at the latest odds from Odds Shark, her biggest competitors haven't been consistent in Slams:
| Serena Williams | 7/4 | 3R | W | W | W |
| Petra Kvitova | 7/2 | W | 3R | 3R | 4R |
| Maria Sharapova | 7/1 | 4R | 4R | F | 4R |
| Victoria Azarenka | 9/1 | 2R | QF | 4R | 3R |
| Simona Halep | 12/1 | SF | 3R | QF | 2R |
The biggest challenge for Williams should be Petra Kvitova. She's the last woman not named Serena to win a Grand Slam and has the second-best odds. However, her career record of 1-5 against Williams doesn't bode well for her chances of actually taking out Williams to win the title.
The greatest opponent for Williams will be herself in London. The pressure of going for a fourth-consecutive major title is immense, but she's saying all the right things about that aspect heading into this event.
"Personally, it doesn't make it feel any different, which I think is a good thing because I don't feel any pressure to win all four," Williams said to the Associated Press (h/t Yahoo Sports). "I've been saying that, but I really don't feel that pressure. Maybe if I would happen to win here, then maybe I might start feeling it after that."
A confident Serena who has the mindset of taking things one match at a time is bad news for the rest of the field. Expect her to complete the title and set up the opportunity for the clean sweep at the U.S. Open.
Stanislas Wawrinka Makes an Early Exit
Wawrinka is one of the hottest names heading into Wimbledon for obvious reasons. His win at Roland Garros was riveting and showed that the era of the Big Four in tennis is winding to a conclusion.
But if you're looking for the guy that could shock the field this time around it isn't Wawrinka.
As great as the 30-year-old's run through the French Open was, that magic isn't likely to carry over to Wimbledon. All one needs to do is look at his first Grand Slam to see that his inconsistency issues can creep up after a big win.
He followed up his '14 Australian Open victory with a first-round exit at the French Open.
The wheels have already started to come off for Wawrinka in transitioning to grass. He was ousted by No. 14 seed Kevin Anderson in the second round of the Queen's Club Championships in London. Add that into the fact that he's just 13-10 in his career at Wimbledon and never finished beyond the quarter-finals and it's hard to think that he'll make it beyond the fourth-round in 2015.
Roger Federer Has Another Run Left in Him
Novak Djokovic is the favorite to win the tournament, according to Odds Shark. That's with good reason. He's proven that he's a contender regardless of surface as the top player in the world.
But at 6/1 odds, Roger Federer is looking good to turn back the clocks and make a run at the All England Club.
Unlike Wawrinka, Fed has historically excelled on grass and comes in with some momentum. Federer earned his eighth career title at Halle to add to an already successful 2015 season as noted by Luigi Gatto of Tennis World:
Then there's the draw for the 33-year-old. There are some quality players in his path to the finals, but he avoids any members of the Big Four until the semifinals. As long as his return game is in form, he should be able to deal with the litany of big servers on his side of the draw. The Tennis Podcast tweeted the potential road to the finals:
Obviously making a run at Federer's age will be a challenge. Players got one more week than usual between the French Open and Wimbledon and it's made a difference, according to Federer.
"“It’s probably been the best preparation I've ever had for Wimbledon,” said Federer via the ATP's official site. “Because we have a week more on the grass. Winning Halle has given me the extra confidence I guess it's going to take me to win this title here."
With Federer seeing results on the court and feeling a bit rejuvenated, he's in prime position to meet Djokovic in the final.
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