Men's Tennis: Predicting the Winners of the 10 Next Grand Slams
For any tennis player, the measuring stick for greatness is major championships. This is what all tennis players dream of. Prior to the majority of these tournaments, we try to predict who will win, who will lose early, whose a dark-hore, etc.
While I was thinking about tennis in the future, I came up with some of my own predictions. Therefore, in the following slides I will predict the winners of each of the tennis Grand Slams until the 2013 US Open.
Beware, although most of what I wrote is plausible, there are two or three disagreements.
Enjoy!
2011 Wimbledon: Rafael Nadal
1 of 10
Just two weeks after beating Roger Federer to defend his French Open title, Rafael will have an even tougher task on his hands: defending the Wimbledon crown he won in 2010. In my opinion, he will succeed.
First of all, both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, the two most dangerous opponents, were forced to pull out of their tune-ups in Halle and Queen's club, respectively. While some may see this as an advantage because they won't waste energy, they also won't have any match play on grass until Wimbledon starts.
Also, grass is by far Djokovic's worst surface, and I wouldn't be surprised if he lost earlier than expected. Federer looked great at times over the course of the French, but I still can't see him besting Rafa in a slam final.
2011 US Open: Novak Djokovic
2 of 10
I see last year's runner-up and this year's best player capturing his third slam in NY. He has yet to lose a hard-court match in four tournaments and has had some moments of genius before in Flushing Meadows.
He is already a two-time finalist, and the third time will be the charm for the young Serb. He will once again run into Rafael Nadal in the final, but in his first slam as world No. 1, he will outlast Rafa in four sets.
His hardcourt game has proved second to none, and it will show as he gets the clean sweep of majors on that surface in '11.
2012 Australian Open: Andy Murray
3 of 10
The third time will also be the charm for this young Brit, who has finished runner-up in 2010 and 2011. He has reeled off impressive wins in his two previous runs and will not run out of gas in the finals next year.
Murray proves that he can win the big match on the big stage as his serve and forehand grown into themselves, propelling him to the win down under.
After beating an ailing Rafael Nadal (who has made it a ritual to get hurt in Melbourne) in the semis, Murray will make amends from the 2011 final, beating top-ranked Djokovic in a tough four-set final.
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2012 French Open: Rafael Nadal
4 of 10
Nadal has owned Roland Garros pretty much every year since 2005, winning every title besides one, where Robin Soderling beat an ailing Rafa in the fourth round. Nadal has bounced back very well, dropping only three sets, while capturing two more titles on the red clay in Paris.
In 2012, it is clear that Novak Djokovic will more than likely be his biggest competitor. The Spaniard will steal the crown as the No. 2 seed, overwhelming Djokovic in straight sets. One thing that Nadal has to keep in mind is that he isn't getting any younger, and he will likely have to cut down on the amount of tournaments he plays.
If he enters three instead of four during the swing, he should have no problem winning his twelfth major.
2012 Wimbledon: Roger Federer
5 of 10
In his final Wimbledon final, Federer seems dead, as Nadal races through the first set, 6-2, and seems well on his way to a third consecutive Wimbledon crown. Images of past defeats race through his mind.
However, riding the crowd's energy, Roger roars to an emotional five set victory, winning the final Grand Slam encounter between him and his chief rival Nadal. The huge win also gives him enough momentum to steal the Olympic gold medal, joining Nadal and Andre Agassi as Golden Slam winners.
This goes down in history as Federer plays three five-setters, but has enough fuel to win a 17th major crown.
2012 US Open: Rafael Nadal
6 of 10
Nadal, angered by people talking about his decline after the meltdown to Roger at Wimbledon and a sub-par North American swing shows signs of his 2010 form, cruising through the draw.
In the final he plays against Novak in one of the most highly anticipated matches in recent history. Both have steamrolled through the draw to that point, but Nadal proves he is superior in a straight-set win over the Serb.
This win inches Rafa closer to Federer's 18th slam, as he wins his 13th and second in NY. Still no luck for Djokovic, who is unable to defend his crown and loses for the third time in four US Open final tries.
2013 Australian Open: Novak Djokovic
7 of 10
Djokovic continues to play his top tennis down under, as Nadal still shows signs of fatigue in Austalia. Finally back in peak form, 2009 US Open champ Juan Martin Del Potro looks primed to win the title. However, down a break in the first set, Djokovic starts to play aggressive, risky tennis and turns things around.
Although Del Potro steals two sets, he runs out of gas and Djokovic cruises in the fifth. Djokovic wins his for the third time in Melbourne, and his fourth slam overall.
Djokovic's run is all the more impressive, as he beats Federer and Nadal in straight sets, and people start to talk about a potential Grand Slam for him, because there are no true competitors.
2013 French Open: Rafael Nadal
8 of 10
Djokovic routs his first six opponents, and with Nadal being pushed around to two five-setters and only two straight set matches, Djokovic will finally win a major in Europe.
Not so, says Nadal, who, as always, reaches deep into his bag of tricks in major finals. Nadal not only beats Djokovic for the first time in his past four tries, he annihilates him, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2. The match isn't even close, and Nadal's 14th slam seems to be his sweetest.
The crowd rises, as Nadal takes an unheard of eight titles in the course of nine years with an unbelievable passing shot to win.
2013 Wimbledon: Juan Martin Del Potro
9 of 10
Del Potro, who had looked great in the Aussie and the French but was unable to get past a particular hurdle (Novak Djokovic), finally finds the right formula at the All-England club.
He doesn't need to face Djokovic, who loses early, and with the shorter points not affecting his still tender wrist, his forehand and serve control points, none more important than a critical fourth-set tiebreak in the finals against young upstart Milos Raonic of Canada.
2013 US Open: A Young, Unknown American
10 of 10
This is as bold as they get. Just like Andy Roddick a decade prior, some other American will be labelled the savior of American tennis after winning the US Open.
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