Wimbledon 2021

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The draw is out for Wimbledon, with defending champ Djoko opening against GB's Jack Draper.

Djoko is, of course, clear favourite and won't have to play Rafa or Thiem who have had to drop out along with, among others, Raonic and Stan the Man.

Federer opens against Mannarino and could play Gasquet in round two and Cameron Norrie in the third round. More importantly, Roger is in the bottom half of the draw and away from Djoko.

Andy Murray, who could have been drawn against any of the top seeds, has got 24th seed Basilashvili which won't be easy but could have been even tougher.

Dan Evans, seeded 22nd, could be up against it. He plays grass-court specialist Feliciano Lopez in the opening round. An intriguing round one match is Kyrgios v Humbert who won in Halle.

No one can be sure how Federer will play. He does not have too difficult a start and may be able to run into some form for the later, harder matches. Berrettini, seeded 7, could be a handful if his Queen's form carries on. Difficult to look beyond Djoko, although Novak could face Anderson in round two.

As mentioned in the previous topic 2019 champ Halep is not fit enough to start. Practically impossible to predict a woman's winner. Gauff could go deep. Kvitova and Kerber, two previous SW19 champs, seem to have run into some grass-court form as does 2017 French champion Ostapenko, who has reached a Wimbledon semi before.

I expect Murray to lose.  If he wins that would be a fantastic achievement getting to the fourth round.  Shapovalov is the tenth seed, had a difficult first match to get him match sharp and acclimatized, then had a walkover in the second round - so he will be coming into this match fresh and match sharp.  Meanwhile Murray has played nine sets of energy sapping tennis coming into this match.

No name Bertie wrote:I expect Murray to lose.  If he wins that would be a fantastic achievement getting to the fourth round.  Shapovalov is the tenth seed, had a difficult first match to get him match sharp and acclimatized, then had a walkover in the second round - so he will be coming into this match fresh and match sharp.  Meanwhile Murray has played nine sets of energy sapping tennis coming into this match.

But Murray has huge experience and skill on grass, which Shapo is lacking. I think being seeded 10 over-states Shapo's qualities for Wimbledon, where this is the furthest he has progressed. Not saying it will be easy for Andy, but he certainly goes in with a decent chance despite not being physically / technically back close to his best. Gets tougher the next round, with potentially Bautista Agut, who has previously reached the SF at Wimbledon, so is much more experienced on the grass courts.

Rublev 2 sets to 1 up and a break up in the fourth on Fognini who is carrying an injury. Kachanov despatched Francia Tiafoe earlier.

Make that a double break now for Rublev. The writing is on the wall.

Fognini as entertaining as ever but going down in four.

Some easy wins for some of the women today. Swiatek, looking dangerous, added to her impressive list of bagel sets won.

Nasty fall by R BA but he's OK.

Muguruza taking the torturous and tortuous route on Centre at the moment. But she is a set up.

Samsonova totally justified her WC by coming thru just now in three against Sloane Stephens.

Mug 3-1 down in final set. BBC will be happy. Long first match followed by Dan Evans means they can have Murray on all evening. Prepare for the usual channel-switching farce.

Jabeur knocks out Mug in a match featuring just the 40 BPs. Mug alone faced 27 BPs. Jabeur now plays Swiatek

R BA two sets up despite his awkward fall, but trailing in the third set. Schwartzman two sets down to Fucsovics.

Evans knocked out by Korda. Dan was a break up in the third set and lost it and was a break up in the fourth and lost it.

The Brit has done well to get as high as he has but really he's only ever going to be a top 30 player at best. He just doesn't have a big enough game to trouble the top guys.

Fucsovics beat Schwartzman in four.

Kyrgios is playing mixed with Venus and by the look of it is having a lot of fun.

Murray up next. Another late-night thriller?

A frustrating exit for Evans.

The harsh reality is that he lost to a more talented player ; and perhaps he will simply accept as much, once the initial pain has subsided. The frustration is that he had so many opportunities to take it to a fifth - and if he had done, it’s perfectly possible that his greater big-match experience could well have seen him get over the line. This is a guy who beat the world no. 1 only a couple of months back.

So now it’s Andy time. On paper, Shapovalov should win - and maybe in straights. But of course Murray contests are rarely ‘normal’ events. Let’s see !

Murray on the verge of a two set deficit. Murray needs the roof to save him here, and upset Shapo’s rhythm

So Andy just needs the next 3 sets and he’s home & dry

But in all seriousness : huge respect for his motivation, his sense of pride, and his fighting spirit …… when so many had already written his career obituary two or three years ago.

Only good thing about Murray being two sets down is that he's spun the match out long enough to have the roof closed.

Shapo - four BPs out of four. Murray one out of 11.

Murray needs a raucous late-night crowd to help him to a major fightback.

Just John wrote:Murray on the verge of a two set deficit. Murray needs the roof to save him here, and upset Shapo’s rhythm

No he needs a good month or two of match tennis to regain match sharpness/fitness. Tennis is all about touch and feel. When you have been out of the sport and played virtually no tennis for three and a half years it is definitely going to affect you. And lets not forget Shapovalov is No 10 seed. I have no doubt Andy won't be happy how he has played but he is always his own biggest critic.

This tournament was always about a test of Murray's fitness. It seems to be holding up which is the best news Andy could have hoped for.

Cannot deny that Shapovalov is playing at a very high level (perhaps as well as he ever has done …. ?) ; but it’s also true that nothing has clicked for Andy tonight.

If he had been able to scrap his way to edging one of these sets, who knows what might have transpired.

But it was just not to be, and he can at least look at the many positives over the past few weeks, once the dust has settled on this year’s Wimbledon.

lags72 wrote:Cannot deny that Shapovalov is playing at a very high level (perhaps as well as he ever has done …. ?) ; but it’s also true that nothing has clicked for Andy tonight.

If he had been able to scrap his way to edging one of these sets, who knows what might have transpired.

But it was just not to be, and he can at least look at the many positives over the past few weeks, once the dust has settled on this year’s Wimbledon.

Indeed.

Shapovalov stuck to the game plan and kept his cool in an intense atmosphere and showed why he is seeded 10. Andy just couldn't build any momentum and was not striking the ball as cleanly as he has in the tournament. As you say I am sure Andy will go forward with renewed heart and belief that he can extend his career now providing he can stay fit. The more court time he gets the better he will feel and the more his level will improve.

Tomorrow sees Norrie play the biggest match of his life on Centre Court against Roger Feder. That should be an interesting watch.

Wonder what would have happened if Murray had been able to get it back to 5-5 in that first set.

Good thing is his body seems to be holding up OK. He beat a seed, won another match and got thru three matches in five days.

Doubt whether any Britons will be left in the men's draw after tomorrow.

Murray seemed fairly despondent after his loss. He wondered if all the hard work was worth it if he ended playing poorly.

But he shouldn't be too down on himself. He had bad matches (Dimi in the quarters at Wimbledon one year, for one) when he was younger and fitter.

Not sure that working hard in training/practice is the whole answer. Andy needs matches. He should try to enter as many tournaments as he can.

Don't think Norrie really has the game to worry Federer. Cam is not a big server nor a huge hitter. Rog will have to have an off day and Norrie play excellently for there to be anything other than a Swiss victory.

sirfredperry wrote:Murray seemed fairly despondent after his loss. He wondered if all the hard work was worth it if he ended playing poorly.

But he shouldn't be too down on himself. He had bad matches (Dimi in the quarters at Wimbledon one year, for one) when he was younger and fitter.

Not sure that working hard in training/practice is the whole answer. Andy needs matches. He should try to enter as many tournaments as he can.

Don't think Norrie really has the game to worry Federer. Cam is not a big server nor a huge hitter. Rog will have to have an off day and Norrie play excellently for there to be anything other than a Swiss victory.

It has always been Andy's way. Give it a few days and he'll realise he cannot be expecting too much too soon. He'll realise he has come through three slam tournament matches in five days unscathed - surely a big step forward from where he was pre-tournament where the tournament was being painted as his last hurrah before forced retirement.

I agree he needs matches where he can shake off rust and regain confidence in his body and how hard he can push it.

Yes I think you are right about Norrie V Federer. Federer just beginning to up his levels now and Norrie will need to be at his best to stick with Fed. Fed in three sets although one or two of them may be tight.

Raducanu looks a great talent, that double backhand is glorious and her first serve has been strong throughout. It's a demolition job on Cristea so far.

Emma Raducanu has won eight games in a row to take a a set and a 3-0 lead against Cirstea.

Looks a remarkable talent. Good court craft and big shots.

Terrific straight-sets win by 18-yr-old Emma Raducanu who may be able to go further as possible 4th round opponent Ostapenko has just been knocked out.

Raducanu had a purple patch to earn three points for a double break in the second set. Cirstea fought back only to go down 7-5.

Wins today for Berrettini (still looking good), Kerber, who lost the first set and Gauff (possible winner?).

Federer v Norrie coming up.

Superb win for Raducanu. Backhand is a thing of beauty and her all-round game looks so strong. Has a winnable next round on that form as well - will presumably be on a big court again and the crowd seems to lift her rather than make her nervous.

Apparently Raducanu youngest fourth round British woman at Wimbledon since.....Christine Truman.

Pretty scrappy opening to the Norrie-Federer match with Cam getting away with THREE DFs in the first game.

Very poor opening set from Norrie with Federer not really having to do very much to win it.

Federer’s speed & accuracy are way, way below what we saw from him throughout his prime years. No big surprise there, given that he is about to turn 40.

There are some ‘gettable’ balls that he seems not to even want to run for these days - quite possibly because of fear of damage / injury …. ?

But OTOH : his vast experience, court craft, and of course sheer talent means that even on a substandard day, he can still cause major difficulty to 80% of the guys on tour.

Norrie

Here we go !!!

Norrie takes it to a 4th. Winner to play Italy's Sonego.

Kyrgios retires at one set all v F AA. Zverev thru in four.

Federer suddenly looking a tad weary. So many shots are loose and way off their target, and he is frequently caught out of position.

Despite the deficit (and yes, despite the opponent), I would actually give Norrie an even chance of taking this match.

Disappointed to see Kyrgios retire with ab injury.

Fed missing key points. Norrie full of beans.

Not ready to call the result just yet ; but I’m going to predict a fifth

Federer breaks, but can he hold to consolidate the break? Too many errors from Norrie allow Federer back in.

And the answer is NO !

Norrie leads 4-3. He is making some impressive strikes.

Hold on tight, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride.

This is how life will be for Fed should he decide to continue on Tour : flashes of the old magic, but far too inconsistent to challenge for big titles.

There is a lot of talent out there, ready to capitalise on the old man’s gradual decline.

Federer through.

He got the job done. But for much of the match, it wasn’t a pretty performance.

Huge credit to Norrie for keeping it close throughout.

When I saw that Fed was two sets up I couldn't believe that it would go deep into the 4th.

Rog looks capable of beating the non top-20 guys but he'll have to do a lot better against the big boys.

On the other hand, here is a 39-year-old who has been out of the game for many months still capable of making the second week of a Slam.

Norrie could prove me wrong, but his game is such that he may well never do better than his current ranking.

As I write Cilic has just taken the first set against Medvedev on a tiebreak.

Well played, Norrie! Good experience for him.

Cilic wins first set TB and the second set 6-3.

Barty up a set and a break.

Norrie stuck to his task very well I thought. But Federer has just too much all-round weapons for him.

Raducanu - well what can I say? A great performance. She has all the shots, a great temperament, good court speed and mentally looks strong and into the 4th Round and a match against Ajla Tomljanovic which I would make her favourite to win.

Cilic down a double break in third. Medvedev has the third set 6-3.

What I particularly liked about Raducanu was her court craft. This instinctive way of knowing the right shot to play and where to put it was something we saw in the young Murray.

For example, Raducanu often got low balls. She rarely made UEs on them. Indeed she made very few UEs overall.

Her court coverage was good. She looked a top player. I just wonder if someone switching on their TV and not knowing who the players were would have thought Emma R was a highly-ranked player and not an 18-yr-old playing in only her second main tour match.

Barty wins 6-3, 7-5.

Medvedev in five over Cilic.

Excellent win by Medvedev, especially as Cilic has been doing better of late.

Eight of the top 10 men's seeds have made it into the last 16. It's not beyond the bounds of possibility that Berrettini could emerge as a finalist from the bottom half of the draw.

The Italian has a huge game. But I think he could be toppled if he's forced to work harder in his service games. He has a good slice on his BH but I'm not sure he hits many BH winners.

I confess I don't know anything about Sonego, Fed's next opponent, apart from the fact that he's shot up the rankings. Fed's form, understandably, has been a bit patchy so I'm not sure how this one will go.

Still find it very difficult to think of anyone other than Djoko making the final from the top half of the draw.

Very different story in the women, where only four of the top 10 seeds have made the fourth round.

Barty to me has looked nothing like a number one. But she's in the second week and may be she's saving her best for the later stages. Can't really see her winning it, though.

I've fancied Gauff from the start and thought Kerber would do well, too. Now they meet. Could be a very good match.

Raducanu has a winnable match against Tomljanovic. I expected Ostapenko to come through to play the Briton and that would have been harder.

My last eight - Djoko, Rublev, Korda (one of the form guys at the moment), R BA, Federer, Berrettini, Zverev, Medvedev.

Women - Krejcikova (not that impressed with Barty so far), Raducanu, Badosa, Kerber*, Samsonova (Pliskova pretty flaky at Slams), Keys, Swiatek#.

* Kerber-Gauff is a very hard pick
# Swiatek-Jabeur could also go either way.

My picks

Mens - Djokovic, Rublev, Korda, Shapovalov, Berretini, Zverev, Federer, Medvedev.
Womens - Barty, Raducanu, Badosa, Gauff, Pliskova, Keys, Jabeur, Sabalenka.

Laverfan, unlike me, has actually got eight women going thru rather than my seven.

Gonna go with Sabalenka, too.

Manic Monday arrives, with everyone still standing due to play.

Laverfan and I have made our predictions which include going for Emma Raducanu to win.

It's been announced that there will be full houses allowed on Centre and No 1 from Tuesday which is good news.

After today, too, there's no need to worry about the weather as they can put all the singles on the with-roof courts.

Sabalenka, Berrettini and Korda all a set up.

Swiatek came from 3-5 down to take the first set 7-5 but Jabeur now 4-0 in the second.

Sabalenka, Jabeur through. Shapovalov up a set on Bautista-Agut. Fifth set in Korda vs Khachanov. Rublev down a set, but up a break.

Korda vs Khachanov fifth set has 12 breaks in 14 games.