Top Seeds Struggle During the First Week of Wimbledon
Published July 5, 2018 by Florin P
On the grass courts of Wimbledon, ATP’s best players march on, while the WTA field is decimated by a string of major upsets
The first two rounds at Wimbledon were surprisingly difficult for the best tennis players in the WTA circuit. Some of the best were eliminated in the first days of the competition, leaving the way wide open for their main counter candidates. Kvitova and Wozniaki were sent home early and Roland Garros finalist and U.S. Open winner Sloan Stephens lost the opening match. In the ATP, the top seeds have advanced with relative ease, but more difficult matches are scheduled over the weekend.
Federer and Nadal Steamroll Past Opponents
Federer and Nadal won their first matches without dropping a set and are a step closer to another Grand Slam final. Roger will play against Struff on Friday and he is overwhelming favorite, with odds of 3/10 offered by bet365 Sports for a victory in three sets. Nadal defeated Sela in three sets and had a more difficult task against the experienced Kukushkin. Federer will take on either Medvedev or Mannarino on Sunday and both of them are tough competitors, while Rafa will be pit against Herbert or Minaur.
Young Players Chase Wimbledon Glory this Weekend
Cilic and Raonic advanced with ease and are set for a confrontation in the phase of last 16. This is going to be one of the most exciting matches of that stage, scheduled for Monday. Sam Querrey is another grass specialist and he has a thrilling match scheduled for Friday against Gael Monfils. Meanwhile, the stars of tomorrow prepare for difficult matches of their own. bet365 sports trusts Shapovalov with the first chance to defeat veteran Benoit Paire, while Alexander Zverev is priced at 1/5. The German to win in three sets against young American Taylor Fritz will produce odds of 9/10.
Former Champions Survive Brutal Opening Week
Muguruza, Serena Williams and her sister Venus have all advanced to the next stage of the tournament after victories in the opening rounds. They did much better than other former champions who were eliminated in the opening match. Serena plays against Mladenovic and bet365 sports offers odds of 1/4 on her to win on Friday. Muguruza won the trophy last year so it comes as no surprise that the bookmaker only offers odds of 1.4 on her victory over Van Uytvanck as well. Last year’s finalist Venus is given odds of 1/2 to defeat Kiki Bertens and Karolina Pliskova has the same odds to win against surging Buzarnescu.
Halep Improves Grass Record with a Pair of Easy Matches
Simona Halep won the Roland Garros but was only credited with the 6th chance to prevail on the grass of Wimbledon. She was lucky to have many of her counter candidates eliminated in the opening rounds. Now she is on her track for another final after winning the first two games with relative ease. After a pair of easy games where bet365 sports offered odds of 1/10 on Halep’s victory, tough opponents are waiting. Simona will play against either Konta, Cibulkova, or Mertens this weekend and all are great on grass.
