The 2018 Wimbledon is upon us, which means tennis-heads will be getting their dose of high-quality brand of tennis again. With that said, you can read our preview of some of the favorites, high-value sleepers, and a long shot in the women’s side below.
As a two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova definitely deserves to perceived as among the heavyweights at Wimbledon. It’s the only major tournament she’s topped so far in her career The 28-year-old Czech has five singles titles to date this year, and that count could soon be six if she continues to flash the fine form she’s been brandishing all year long. Her latest title run came last month when she won the Nature Valley Classic in the United Kingdom, taking down Johanna Konta in the finals.
Speaking of titles this year, Williams has to take home one, which is why she’s going to treat this coming new edition of the Wimbledon with an extra layer of motivation. Williams returned to major tournament action after a long layoff due to pregnancy when she competed in the French Open but got knocked out in the fourth round by Maria Sharapova. With more preparation this time around, Williams should be more than ready to claim another Venus Rosewater Dish. Williams has won the singles of the women’s side at Wimbledon seven times, the latest being in 2016.
SLEEPERS: Ashleigh Barty (+2,500), Johanna Konta (+2,500)
Barty is a worthy sleeper to take a punt on. The 22-year-old Australian has not advanced past the round of 32 in a major tournament since 2012, when she began competing in such events. In the recently concluded French Open, he was bounced out in the round of 64 but not before giving Serena Williams a run for her money. Barty won the first set of their round of 64 match before getting ultimately eliminated via a score of 6-3, 3-6, 4-6. That was on clay. Wimbledon is on grass, and on that surface, Barty is 8-2 so far this year.
Konta, on the other hand, struck out of the French Open right in the very first round, but that also just made her a bigger sleeper, as not many people are thinking of her today. That said, she’s excelled the most on grass this year, relatively speaking. She is 5-3 on grass in 2018, which is more efficient, percentage-wise, than her 8-7 record on hard surfaces and 3-3 on clay. She made it to the title match of the Nature Valley Open where she lost to the aforementioned Barty. Last year, Konta made it all the way into the semifinals of Wimbledon, so it would be unwise to just count her out.
As a 22-year-old who has not managed to see the light of anything past the third round of any majors, Kontaveit surely deserves being labeled with a very long +6,000 odds to win it all. That said, reaching the round of 16 of last year’s Wimbledon shouldn’t be brushed aside like it’s not, in any degree, a fantastic feat. She is 3-1 on grass this year.
Writer’s Prediction
Serena Williams shows she’s still got it by winning another Wimbledon title this year.
