With the French Open now behind us, we have Wimbledon to look forward to, which starts on Monday. Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova both had amazing runs to win the French Open, but now they have to make a quick turn around from clay to grass and try to win back-to-back Grand Slam titles. It's a very difficult task to win the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back, but both players should be up to the challenge. Like all my Grand Slam previews, I will give you ten things to look for in this year's Wimbledon to help hone in your focus on some key things. Five things will be from the Men's draw and five will be from the Women's. Without further ado, I will begin my list.
1. How will Victoria Azarenka play after her layoff?
Victoria Azarenka didn't play at the French Open due to a foot injury and has been off to a slow start this year, only reaching the Quarterfinals of the Australian Open back in January. Her ranking has fallen to #9 in the world and she is seeded 8th at Wimbledon. Normally, I would have her as one of my favorites to win this event, given the fact that she has been to the semifinals twice. But since she is recovering from a foot injury and hasn't played in a while, it's hard to figure where she ends up. The one good news for her is she avoided the sections of Serena Williams, Sabine Lisicki, Maria Sharapova, and Na Li. Her projected Round of 16 match is against Dominika Cibulkova and her projected Quarterfinal match is against Agnieszka Radwanska. I like her draw provided she is capable of playing at a high level.
2. How does Andy Murray handle the pressure of being a defending Wimbledon champion? How does the crowd treat him?
This is probably the most interesting thing to watch for in this tournament. Andy Murray no longer has the pressure of being the first Brit to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry, but there is an added pressure of being the defending champion and being expected to defend the crown for the Motherland. How Murray responds to his new role as defending Wimbledon champion will be fascinating to see in addition to how the crowd responds to him. Will there be the same excitement and buzz around "Murray's Mound"? (Note: To me, it will always be "Henman Hill")
3. How will Serena Williams bounce back from her early French Open exit?
Losing in the second round of the French Open does not sit well with Serena Williams after she came in as the overwhelming favorite. To see how she rebounds at Wimbledon will be something to watch for. I expect her to play well and make a very deep run.
4. Will Rafael Nadal play well on the grass?
Rafael Nadal is the greatest player to ever play on clay, and in my opinion, he is the greatest tennis player of all time. But even with that being said, grass has never been his strong suit, and after losing his Wimbledon tune up match, questions immediately are raised about how far he will go in Wimbledon. I expect him to go far and contend, but the first couple of matches will be key for him to gain some confidence. If he does well in his first 2-3 matches, then I think we can be confident that he's going to go deep and at least make the semifinals. In essence, I'm saying he either gets bounced really early in rounds 1 or 2, or he goes to the semifinals or beyond. Given his overall track record for success, I think he goes to at least the semifinals.
5. Will Sabine Lisicki break through and win Wimbledon?
Sabine Lisicki hasn't found much success at other Grand Slam events, but Wimbledon is where she comes alive. She reached the Final last year, and looks to make another deep run this year. Seeded 19th, she has her work cut out for her, but fortunately, her section looks pretty favorable with Simona Halep, Carla Suarez Navarro, Jelena Jankovic, and Ana Ivanovic being the players ranked ahead of her in her section. I like hr chances to come out of that quarter and make a run to the semifinals, but can she put it all together and win the whole thing? Therein lies the question.
6. Is this the Grand Slam Novak Djokovic gets back in the winner's circle?
It seems like it was just yesterday that Novak Djokovic was at the peak of his tennis powers winning every Grand Slam except the French Open. But now his Grand Slam drought has gone on pretty long, not winning a slam since the 2013 Australian Open. I think he has a pretty good shot to end the drought here at Wimbledon, but do keep in mind that he has only won one Wimbledon, and that was in 2011.
7. How does Maria Sharapova do coming off her French Open title?
Maria Sharapova has always won her Grand Slams far apart from each other and never close to each other, so it's hard to predict she wins back-to-back Grand Slam titles. That being said, if something happens to Serena Williams before their projected Quarterfinals match, Sharapova has to be considered a favorite to win Wimbledon since nobody else ahead of her can be said to be any more likely to win it all.
8. Does Roger Federer have one more Wimbledon in him?
Roger Federer won Wimbledon back in 2012, but when he did, it felt like he was winning it for the last time as part of the Roger Federer farewell tour. However, he was #1 in the world at the time and still has shown to have some gas left in the tank. Perhaps he gets another Wimbledon title before riding off into the sunset.
9. Look for Serena Williams to win. If she doesn't, then I have no idea who wins the Women's title
Serena Williams is the clear cut favorite to win the Women's Singles title at Wimbledon. But if she doesn't win it all, then it'll be a free for all. Maria Sharapova, Angelique Keber, Sabine Lisicki, and Na Li are some of the ladies who I think are most likely to win it if Serena goes down.
10. Look for Andy Murray to defend his title
It's really hard for me to pick a winner for the Men's draw, and while I kind of hope it will be Novak Djokovic, I have a hard time picking against Andy Murray. He won Wimbledon last year, so the pressures on him last year are gone and he should be feeling more confident. He played well at Roland Garros and I expect him to play well at Wimbledon. He should have no problem getting past David Ferrer in the Quarterfinals to reach the Semifinals, and he has been successful against Novak Djokovic, his projected Semifinals opponent. Ultimately, I like Murray to win this title, but I wouldn't be shocked if Djokovic, Nadal, or Federer won it.
---Ben Parker: follow me on twitter for tennis news @atp_guy
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