Wimbledon Tennis Outright Picks 2018 (July 2-15)

The third Grand Slam of the 2018 Tennis season is just about ready to get underway and the weather in London looks to be stunning for the opening of Wimbledon 2018.

The shift onto the grass is a positive time for some players and a real pain to deal with for others, but that tends to mean we usually have a small field of players who can genuinely go all the way to win the title here.

Looking at the men's event it is hard to think of a new name that could join the list of former Winners here, while the women's event looks as wide open as the other two Slams that have been played in 2018 with the additional 'wild card' of Serena Williams.

Below I have written a short preview of both events and I will highlight any outright picks that appeal for the tournament. Day 1 Picks should be out by Sunday evening and I am going to take a similar approach as I did at the French Open which is putting down my full analysis for a few matches and then adding the remaining Picks to the 'My Picks' section.

During the World Cup it is the best approach with work and football meaning it will be tough to write a full analysis of 10-12 Picks from the opening Rounds, but later in the tournament that will be less of an issue.

Men's Tournament

The defending Champion and World Number 2 Roger Federer has missed the clay court season for the last couple of years and it worked well for him twelve months ago when picking up yet another Wimbledon title. He takes his place at the top of the draw and opens proceedings on Centre Court on Monday and Federer comes in having won the title in Stuttgart before a surprising loss to Borna Coric in the Halle Final.

The performances in Halle may be a slight concern for his fans, but Federer is going to be a tough out for anyone who wants to beat him in a best of five set match on his favourite surface. Grass is really a specialty surface and there aren't too many who are more special than Federer which makes him the correct favourite to win the title yet again.

That favouritism is only strengthened by the kind looking draw for Federer and I really don't foresee too many problems for him until the business end of the draw. Ivo Karlovic and Adrian Mannarino are comfortable grass court players that potentially stand in Federer's way, but it would be an upset of epic proportions for either to knock him off his run to another strong showing in SW19.

Borna Coric, the Federer conqueror in Halle, is the potential Fourth Round opponent for the Number 1 Seed which is very interesting. Prior to Halle I don't think Coric showed a lot of feel for grass court tennis and he will have to beat competent grass courter Mannarino to get into the potential Fourth Round clash with Federer and I am not sure he will be able to repeat his heroics from Halle again.

There are a couple of other players in the bottom half of the First Quarter who may well feel they can have very strong showings here. Sam Querrey and Richard Gasquet have all enjoyed successes at Wimbledon in the past with both reaching at least the Semi Final before, while Kevin Anderson's big serving game is well suited to this surface too.

It is Gasquet who I feel could have the best run if he gets through a tremendously difficult First Round match against compatriot Gael Monfils, but I would be very surprised if Federer is not playing in another Semi Final in SW19 later this month and his short odds to win the First Quarter reflects that.

The Second Quarter of the men's draw is very interesting with two recent Finalists and a Semi Finalist from Wimbledon's past all in this section. The favourite to reach another Semi Final has to be Marin Cilic, who is also the highest Seeded player in the section, and his recent form suggests that is the right person to get behind.

Cilic won the Queens tournament in the build up to this Grand Slam and he has become a huge factor on the grass courts in recent years. The confidence from deep runs at the US Open, Australian Open and French Open shows how strong a player Cilic has become on all surfaces, but he is a tremendous test for anyone on this particular surface.

His form has looked very good but a potential Fourth Round clash with Milos Raonic could be a really tough match.

Well I would have been much more concerned about it if the Canadian has not been dealing with the injury issues he has been which forced him to pull out in Queens. Raonic did reach the Final in Stuttgart before falling to Roger Federer, but I just feel like he is still rebuilding his strength and confidence and I would back Cilic in that match on current form.

My feeling is that Cilic is going to be one of the Quarter Finalists in this section and he is most likely going to be opposed by Steve Johnson or Grigor Dimitrov. John Isner is also in this section and is most famous for the longest match in Wimbledon history, but his actually record at Wimbledon is pretty average for someone who serves as huge as he does.

The draw is perhaps not the toughest, but his compatriot Steve Johnson will likely oust him in the Second Round and that is where I think Johnson will be able to pick his way through the draw to the potential Fourth Round match with Dimitrov. These two have played some tough matches against one another in the past but I do think the Bulgarian is overrated on the grass thanks to past results and it would not be a massive surprise if Johnson was able to overcome him here.

It could be that Dimitrov is the fresher player coming into that Fourth Round though and that is a match to look forward to. I don't think it matters a great deal as to who will win as I would favour Cilic to be too strong for either and the Croatian will be part of my outright plan for this tournament.


I think the Third Quarter of the men's draw is very intriguing with a number of leading contenders which means the favourite to reach the Semi Final, Novak Djokovic, is almost 2-1 to make it out of the section. I don't think Djokovic will have too many problems getting through the first couple of Rounds here after showing very strong form at Queens where he reached the Final and came close to beating Marin Cilic, things look very difficult from then moving forward through the draw.

At the moment Djokovic is not in the top 10 of the World Rankings which means the tough matches come a little earlier in the draw than he is perhaps used to. Kyle Edmund doesn't have a strong grass court record, but he is a tough match up in the Third Round while Karen Khachanov has the power to hit through opponents on this surface and has had some very strong results over the last twelve months to be anything but a difficult match for Djokovic in the Fourth Round.

The lower half of the Third Quarter is no less difficult to predict with Nick Kyrgios, Alexander Zverev and Kei Nishikori all involved in this section of the draw. My predicted draw had Nishikori coming through to the Quarter Final, but I wouldn't feel completely confident in that prediction as Kyrgios could turn on the style to reach that stage again.

I am less believing in Zverev who had some injury issue at the French Open and has had his difficulties on the grass in the past, but no matter who is able to get through to the Quarter Final it will be another tough match for Djokovic.

My lean is that Djokovic does come out of this section, but his price looks short with the matches he will have to face and I think the better angle may be finding plays in those tough matches when they come up if the market dictates.


It has been seven years since Rafael Nadal last played in the Wimbledon Final and he has yet to get past the Fourth Round in the years since. In 2017 he was beaten in a tough match against Gilles Muller, but Nadal will arrive at SW19 with a lot of confidence having won yet another French Open title and I don't think the limited grass court play this summer is going to have a big impact on his play here.

The draw is not entirely straight forward with a couple of players in decent form over the last month who could cause problems. Mikhail Kukushkin reached the Semi Final in Eastbourne last week and he would be a potential Second Round opponent, while Mischa Zverev's serve-volley style took him to the title in Eastbourne and could face Nadal in the Third Round.

I do have to respect the potential those players have, but I would still think Nadal is going to be a little too good for them in a best of five setting and the majority of the dangers in the Fourth Quarter of the draw reside in the top half of the draw.

Juan Martin Del Potro, Feliciano Lopez, Jeremy Chardy and Andy Murray are in a small section of the draw which means only one of those players will be able to make it through to the Fourth Round.

I really don't know which of those is going to make it through to the Fourth Round, but my feeling is that it will be Del Potro.

I am not convinced about Murray's fitness to win three tough best of five set matches in a row especially with the kind of matches he has to face, while I think Del Potro can outhit Lopez and Chardy for long enough in potential matches to get past those.

Of course Murray could be a big danger if he gets through this section and through to the Fourth Round. His grass court pedigree can't be dismissed, but I do think Del Potro will be the biggest threat to Murray with his ability to power through the former World Number 1.

A player who could be a surprise to reach the Quarter Final is Matthew Ebden who has been in fine form over the last month on the grass courts. His opening match is against David Goffin which won't be an easy one, but I do think Ebden could have a deep run in the Wimbledon draw if he can get through that one and the Australian may hope he can face someone who has already had three tough matches in the Fourth Round.

It should be a fun Quarter of the draw, but I am leaning towards Nadal to form a part of my staking plan by having him come through the Fourth Quarter at a big price. It isn't an easy path through the draw but I think Nadal will be fairly happy with the way it has panned out and I expect him to grow into this tournament.

It has been a long time since Nadal has had a really big run at Wimbledon, but I can see it happening in 2018 and I will back him to make it out of this section of the draw.


I am backing a couple of players to come out of a couple of the Quarters of the draw and both at a decent price.

For the outright winner I think it is hard to look past Roger Federer winning another title here in SW19 despite not looking at his best in Halle. However he won the title in Stuttgart and he has an opportunity to settle into the tournament with a kind draw giving him a genuinely decent path through the draw.

I think his biggest danger may be the potential Semi Final with Marin Cilic who came so close to beating Federer at the Australian Open back in January, but on this surface I think the World Number 1 will be the man to beat and I will back him to win yet another Wimbledon title.

Women's Tournament

The two previous Grand Slams featuring the WTA players have been very open events and I have little doubt that this year's Wimbledon was going to be another. The favourite for the title is in the First Quarter of the draw, but Petra Kvitova is a big price to go all the way and win another Wimbledon title having done that twice before in her career.

The recovery from a hand injury caused by an intruder over eighteen months ago has been very impressive from Kvitova and her win in Birmingham suggests the Czech player is back to her best on her favourite surface.

I do think the price would have been much shorter for Kvitova if she had been in a kinder Quarter of the draw with some big names to overcome just to make the Semi Final.

Simona Halep is the World Number 1 and coming off a maiden Grand Slam win when she took the title home in Paris. There is a hope that will open the floodgates for Halep going forward, but I think it will be tough to raise her intensity at Wimbledon and I believe it is Johanna Konta, the Semi Finalist from last year, who will be most likely to reach the Quarter Final.

However it has to be said that Konta could have had a better path through to the Fourth Round herself which means there is a potential for some real upsets in this Quarter.

For Kvitova the biggest immediate danger looks to be Maria Sharapova although the Russian has yet to really get back to the level she had prior to the fifteen month ban for using a banned substance. Sharapova also hasn't played any competitive tennis since going out of the French Open and I am going to look for Kvitova to have a very strong run in this tournament.

The Second Quarter of the draw is led by defending Champion Garbine Muguruza and there is every chance she could have another strong showing at Wimbledon. I find it hard to really trust Muguruza in these types of events though as she is player that can blow hot and cold frequently, although she does remind of Stan Wawrinka from the ATP Tour in that she does seem to peak for the Grand Slam events.

To be honest Muguruza could not have asked for a much better draw with the first real threat likely to come in the Fourth Round when she will come up against Ashleigh Barty who has been a tremendous player on the grass courts. It will take a big effort for Barty to make it through to that potential match, and I do wonder if she has the mental strength to really beat a big name player at this level.

Instead the biggest threat in this Quarter of the draw looks to be Angelique Kerber who will feel she is coming into the better half of the season as far as her results are going to show. The German has reached the Final at Wimbledon before and she has been in decent form on the grass courts underlined by her run to the Semi Final in Eastbourne last week.

I do think the likes of Naomi Osaka and Caroline Garcia could be tough matches for Kerber but I would favour the latter to beat both of those players on her current form. It really could come down to a Muguruza versus Kerber Quarter Final to decide the Semi Finalist in the top half of the draw and I think the latter looks a big price to win this Quarter of the draw.

You can't ignore the fact that Muguruza has beaten Kerber five times in a row, including at Wimbledon last year, but Kerber has been very unfortunate in at least a couple of those losses. Even the one last year should really have gone the other way and I think this time Kerber can find a way to get out of the Quarter even if she faces Muguruza, although the Spaniard becomes a real danger when she picks up momentum in these Grand Slam events.

There really is an open look to the Third Quarter of the draw at Wimbledon this summer and that is highlighted by the favourite being as big as 4.50 to come out of the Quarter.

That favourite is Sloane Stephens who has won the US Open and reached the Final of the French Open in the last twelve months and who has a very strong performance indicator on the grass. However I am not convinced she gets past Donna Vekic in the First Round, while second favourite in the Quarter Karolina Pliskova has openly admitted that she is not completely comfortable on the grass courts despite having some strong results on the surface.

Venus Williams is a multiple time former Wimbledon Champion and that has to be respected, but she has not looked in good form for some time. There is a chance that Venus can turn things around here, but she is in a tough Quarter and will have to get going immediately, while Victoria Azarenka is still a little inconsistent on her return to full time tennis.

It really feels like a section in which we could have a surprise Semi Finalist and I have found Barbora Strycova at a very big price to be that player. It certainly feels like the Czech player could be worth a small interest to do that with her strong record on the grass courts in recent years certainly showing she is capable of having a strong tournament.

Strycova has not had a great season but she did reach the Fourth Round at both the Australian Open and French Open in 2018 and her best ever Grand Slam result was a Quarter Final run here in 2014. The price does reflect the situation with Strycova never having a really strong run in a Grand Slam to think she could reach the Semi Final here, but she may be the player that is able to work her way through the draw while other players perhaps falter.

The opening Round match against Svetlana Kuznetsova is the key to get this going and there are some big matches along the way that Strycova will have to negotiate too, but she could be someone who is a back to lay option in this draw.

I am not quite convinced enough to bring her into my staking plan but I wouldn't be massively surprised if Strycova can come through a tough section to get a read on.

There may have been some controversy attached to the decision made by Wimbledon to Seed Serena Williams but that is the situation that the other players will have to deal with. The American is the best grass court female player of all time as far as I am concerned and Williams presents a significant threat if she can find her form here.

It isn't going to be plain-sailing for Serena Williams who had an injury at the French Open which forced her withdrawal from that tournament. She has not been able to play a competitive match since then and Williams has had limited tennis in the last eighteen months which means she should be vulnerable especially early in the draw.

The draw has been kind enough for Serena Williams to get through the first couple of Rounds without too many problems but a potential Third Round match against Elina Svitolina is going to a real test of her credentials. If Serena Williams is able to get through that she is then potentially facing Madison Keys who is coming in off a strong showing at the French Open and should be much more comfortable on the grass and I do think it is a tough ask for Serena Williams to get out of this Quarter.

With Williams in this Quarter it is no surprise you can find some big prices opposing her in the draw and it is the bottom half of the Quarter where my attention has drifted to find that player.

Caroline Wozniacki and Coco Vandeweghe are both very good grass court players and I think they will head into a Fourth Round match that could determine who is able to make it through to the Quarter Final. Both have a couple of very tough matches to negotiate before that Fourth Round match though with the likes of Agnieszka Radwanska and Petra Martic both in this half of the Quarter.

However both are in the same section as Wozniacki who has yet to get past the Fourth Round at Wimbledon and so my interest lands with Vandeweghe who hasn't had a great month on the grass courts. She is a two time former Quarter Finalist at Wimbledon though and I think her game is suited to go one step further.

Vandeweghe has not made it past the Second Round of her two Slams in 2018, but if she can get into a roll I think she can be difficult to stop here. She reached the Semi Final at the Australian Open and the US Open in 2017 so I am not of the belief that there is a Quarter Final mental blockage for the American to overcome at Grand Slam level and she looks a huge price to reach the Semi Final here.

I will keep Vandeweghe as part of my staking plan for this event as I look for her to get out of the Fourth Quarter of the draw.


Like the men's draw, my main focus from the women's event at London will be from the Quarter winners I have highlighted and I will back three players to just make the Semi Final.

My most likely winner of this event if Petra Kvitova, but the women's draw looks wide open to me and I am not always convinced by the Czech player. If she wins her Quarter I would fancy her to go on and win this tournament, but I am just going to back her at a decent price to come through her section of the draw.

Both Angelique Kerber and Coco Vandeweghe are worthy of small interest for Semi Final spots too as far as I can see and I am looking forward to hopefully produce some winners in around ten days time.

MY PICKS: Roger Federer to Win the Title @ 2.87 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Marin Cilic to Win the Second Quarter @ 2.50 Ladbrokes (2 Units)
Rafael Nadal to Win the Fourth Quarter @ 2.62 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Petra Kvitova to Win First Quarter @ 2.87 Bet365 (2 Units)
Angelique Kerber to Win Second Quarter @ 5.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Coco Vandeweghe to Win Fourth Quarter @ 17.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Season 2018 Update: + 30.32 Units (983 Units Staked, + 3.08% Yield)

Wimbledon Preview and Outright Picks 2017 (July 3-16)

The third Grand Slam of the season comes hot on the heels of the second Slam and this time the men's tournament will have all of the top names in action as Roger Federer returns.

It is Federer who will go into the men's draw at Wimbledon as the favourite to capture another crown at SW19 and you probably wouldn't argue that prior to the draw being made.

Once again the women's tournament looks an open event although one that is bolstered by an in-form Petra Kvitova and the return of Victoria Azarenka.

There will be some angles to exploit, I hope, from the outright position and ones that can return something in two weeks time, while the daily picks from Wimbledon will begin on Monday and go through the event too.

Gentlemen's Draw

There has been plenty of concern about Andy Murray throughout 2017 as his form as dropped off, but things looked to be in much ruder health at the French Open where he reached the Semi Final.

However the early exit at Queens and the subsequent hip issues which have kept him from playing the exhibition matches he usually does means Murray may be undercooked heading to defend the title he won for the second time in 2016.

There won't be any complaints about the draw for Murray though who will begin with a Qualifier. Some will point to the likes of Dustin Brown, Nick Kyrgios and Lucas Pouille as potential threats before the Quarter Final, but I can raise doubts about all of those players.

Brown may have all the flash in the world, but Murray will know exactly what to expect from the German and his return should be good enough to see off someone who relies heavily on the serve-volley game being absolutely perfect. While Brown has had big wins at Wimbledon in the past, Murray losing to him would be only down to the hip making it almost unplayable for him.

The World Number 1 doesn't have to play both Kyrgios and Pouille, who will be Seeded to meet one another in the Third Round, but Murray will feel confident facing both. He has a strong record against the two players and Kyrgios has been suffering with an injury which means he might not be in top shape. Pouille is more interesting having played well on the grass, but he hasn't matched up well with Murray in the past and by the time they meet I would expect Murray would have played himself into the event.

Who he faces in the Quarter Final is much harder to judge when you think Stan Wawrinka is opening up against Daniil Medvedev, a player who has been producing plenty of top results on the grass this year. Wawrinka hasn't had the best of success at Wimbledon and has a number of obstacles on the way to the Quarter Final which makes it difficult to believe in him.

An in-form Jo-Wilfried Tsonga would have been the favourite to play Murray a couple of years ago, but he has not looked right himself and Murray may have a surprise opponent if he gets that far as I expect him to. Whoever it is who does make it through, Murray should be very happy with the way he can build into this event despite the obvious concerns about the hip.

There will be a lot of people who may be looking at Rafael Nadal having the opportunity to reach his first Final at Wimbledon since 2011 if he can produce the form he has on the clay courts when moving onto the grass. It will be a brave person that backs him though as Nadal has not played well on this surface for a long time and has been upset a number of times.

Players like Donald Young and Karen Khachanov have played well enough on the grass to think they could potentially upset Nadal if they are to catch him early in the tournament, while Denis Istomin is another potential Second Round opponent and has already beaten Novak Djokovic in a Slam this season.

If Nadal can negotiate what looks to be some tricky early opponents, the Spaniard will be able to play his way into the tournament. That will begin to make him a dangerous opponent for anyone, but if he is beaten early at Wimbledon again, there is one name that stands out as able to take advantage.

That, for me, is Marin Cilic who has played really well here over the years and is perhaps unfortunate not to have gone even deeper into the tournament. The Croatian has made the Quarter Final at Wimbledon three years in a row and only he will know how he blew a two set lead over Roger Federer in 2016 when completely dominating the match.

Cilic should have won the title at Queens a couple of weeks ago, but he looked to be in nice order and is a definite danger having won the US Open before. His record against Nadal is a concern, and Cilic opens with potentially back to back really difficult matches as he faces Philipp Kohlschreiber and then either Victor Troicki or Florian Mayer.

There is a potential of an upset there, but Cilic will pick up some momentum if he can get into the Third Round and I would favour him over the likes of Steve Johnson (out of form) and Kei Nishikori (health issues) as the man who could take advantage of any Nadal slip.

If you think Andy Murray will be delighted by the draw he has received, Roger Federer should be over the moon and the favourite for another title at Wimbledon looks to be the man to beat over the next two weeks. The fitness concerns may have been pushed aside when Federer won the Australian Open earlier this year, and Federer looked in very strong form in winning the title in Halle.

Alexandr Dolgopolov is the kind of player who can raise his game for the big matches and presents an awkward First Round opponent, but on current form that would be a monumental upset for Federer to go down to him. Getting through that would open the door for Federer and I really don't see a lot of threats for him in the way he has been playing.

Mischa Zverev, Bernard Tomic, John Isner and Grigor Dimitrov would likely disagree with me, but who would really fancy any of those to beat Federer in a best of five sets match. Even the dangerous Isner serve seems to be lacking the bite of old and I actually don't envision too many issues for the Swiss superstar until the Quarter Finals.

Even then he could be picking the bones of someone coming through a tough portion of the draw.

While the early Rounds for the top two Seeds to face Federer in a Quarter Final, Milos Raonic and Alexander Zverev, have relatively serene early progress in front of them, they are scheduled to meet in the Fourth Round. Raonic is always going to be a danger on grass, but his return game means he can be dragged into long matches and may be short of energy by the time he gets to Federer, which would be a reverse of when they met in the Semi Final in 2016.

Zverev has the same issue of dropping silly sets and he now has a huge one-sided defeat to Federer to think back on having been crushed in the Halle Final. Once those two players have played one another, Federer could have had plenty of time to recover and be ready to face them in the Quarter Final where he would be a pretty strong favourite to progress.

Novak Djokovic has to be thankful for his strong record on the grass in recent years which has seen him move into the top two for the Seedings at Wimbledon despite being Ranked lower overall. That has seen him rewarded with what looks the perfect draw, although the question marks about Djokovic's form makes it hard to really trust him at this moment.

He opens against Martin Klizan which may be the most difficult match he faces until he gets to the Fourth Round, and Klizan is someone who can potentially shock when playing his high octane brand of tennis. However he had to pull out in Antalya last week and I am not sure he will be at 100% for this one which won't be good enough to beat Djokovic.

Juan Martin Del Potro is another who has had issues with his health and his lack of grass court tennis could go against him, despite playing in exhibitions last week in Berkshire. All of that means the biggest threat to Djokovic may not come until the Fourth Round where someone like Feliciano Lopez could be waiting.

Lopez has really played well during the grass court season, which won't surprise, but he doesn't have the easiest of draws. The title win at Queens will give him confidence, but the Spaniard opens with a tough match and those look to keep coming before he will get a crack at Djokovic.

With a limited return game, Lopez could be ripe for an upset and things could open up for Djokovic who has won multiple titles here.

The benefit of being the Number 2 Seed is most keenly felt when you see the entire Quarter Djokovic has been drawn into. The next highest Seed is Dominic Thiem who has struggled on the grass and will have to produce something special to replicate his win over Djokovic at the French Open.

Even getting there is no guarantee for the Austrian with a difficult opener and the potential to face players like Tomas Berdych or Richard Gasquet in the Fourth Round. Both Berdych and Gasquet have plenty of grass court pedigree behind them and perhaps are the most likely contenders to face Djokovic in the Quarter Final assuming things go the way I am anticipating.

Looking at the way the Wimbledon draw has worked out, you can see why the 'big four' of the last decade lead the market. Those with the most doubts, Murray and Djokovic, have been given what look like ideal draws, while the two players in the best form, Federer and Nadal, look like they could be too strong for the tougher paths they have been given.

In saying that, Grand Slam events rarely work out completely as the plan would suggest and the most vulnerable of the four contenders still has to be Nadal.

The Spaniard just hasn't performed well at Wimbledon for some time and I think a small interest on Marin Cilic coming out of the Second Quarter could be warranted. He is the second favourite in the section, but his price would shrink drastically if Nadal does suffer another early loss and Cilic has played well enough on the grass to believe he can challenge the Spaniard if they do meet in the Quarter Final.

Value doesn't put money in the bank, but Cilic is the value play in the Second Quarter.

The winner of the tournament is likely to come out of the five names I have mentioned in that section above. I would be surprised if it isn't one of Murray, Nadal, Cilic, Federer or Djokovic, but the value for me could be in backing Murray and Djokovic.

Djokovic might not have played Federer since January 2016, and he has come off the level he had back then, but he does match up nicely with the former World Number 1. He leads both the head to head overall and the head to head on grass and I want to have a back of Djokovic to surprise and capture an unexpected major here.

Instead of backing him completely on the outright market, I will split the stakes up and back Djokovic to win the Fourth Quarter as well as the tournament. He is odds against to win what looks a relatively comfortable section of the draw and Djokovic will be a lot shorter to beat Federer if he has played himself into some decent form by the Semi Final.

I also will do the same with Andy Murray whose lingering hip doubts has increased the price on him in the First Quarter and to win the event overall. I think the tennis he has missed has been a precaution and Murray is certainly capable of running through this Quarter as he builds momentum through the tournament.

Both players have risks attached, but the prices are appealing and I do think Murray and Djokovic will at least reach the Semi Final here over the fortnight. They will then look much shorter prices to win the tournament if they can build that momentum and I will back both in similar ways to get a return.

Ladies' Draw

With Serena Williams out of action at this moment, the Ladies' draw at Wimbledon looks to be as open as it was at the French Open. Only Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova have been priced up as single digit prices to win the title here as questions surround the other leading contenders.

You can understand why the layers have done that because there are some serious issues to address for so many players in the draw. Playing on the grass is obviously another factor and the Jelena Ostapenko price (5th to 7th favourite depending who is pricing the outright winner up) says it all.

Prior to the French Open Ostapenko would have been one of the big priced dark horses here, but it just goes to show the relative lack of form of so many that she has been priced in. The Latvian is a former Junior Champion here and has the big hitting to be very, very dangerous, but the French Open-Wimbledon double is such a tough task that I think it may be beyond her winning the title at SW19 this year.

I can understand the theory behind Kvitova being the favourite here alongside Pliskova- she has won the tournament twice before and was a solid winner in Birmingham on the grass courts and all in the second tournament since returning from a hand injury which threatened her career.

That hand injury is still a concern for me and Kvitova has some tough players in her section of the draw who can give her a real test of her credentials. The wins in Birmingham were solid, but she will face even better players here and a potential Fourth Round with Johanna Konta could be tough considering the British player already holds a win over her on the grass.

However Konta picked up an injury in Eastbourne which may raise some doubts about her chances here and she won't have time to settle into Wimbledon with First Round opponent Su-Wei Hsieh beating her in the First Round at the French Open. Donna Vekic is a potential Second Round opponent who beat Konta in the Final in Nottingham recently, and both Konta and Kvitova look to have to negotiate some tough matches just to get to a potential Fourth Round clash.

One player who may take advantage of that could be Simona Halep who will come into this Grand Slam with considerably less pressure than she had at the French Open. The Romanian played well in Eastbourne last week and has reached the Quarter Final at Wimbledon in 2016 and a Semi Final in 2014.

Halep looks to have been given a good run through to the Fourth Round where a clash with someone like Victoria Azarenka potentially awaits, but I would favour Halep over the majority of players in her section. She has reached the latter end of Grand Slam events so has that experience, although actually winning the title here may be a step too far on her least favoured surface.

The price certainly does appeal, but the potential of having to face Petra Kvitova in the Quarter Final and the other player that appealed to me, Venus Williams, in the Semi Final may be too much for Halep to overcome.

Venus Williams is a legitimate threat to win the title here, although it would have been more intriguing if not for a 'car crash incident' hanging over her head. Venus has been blamed for the death of another motorist in early June and there is no telling what kind of mental affect that will be having on the American veteran.

On pure tennis terms Venus Williams is a five time former winner of this title and she reached the Semi Final here last year as well as the Australian Open Final earlier in 2017. However being blamed for a fatal crash is tough to deal with and I am not sure Venus Williams will be in the perfect mindset to take on a tournament of this magnitude, especially in the tough bottom half.

The draw through to the Quarter Final looks manageable for Williams, and it is the potential Semi Final with Kvitova which would worry me the most. With the off court issues around her though we can't really know what Venus Williams is feeling even if I would expect her to come out of her Quarter of the draw where she would then be a really dangerous contender to go on and win this event.

It is funny to think Karolina Pliskova is the joint favourite to win the title here when you think she has never been beyond the Second Round. The top half does look much weaker than the bottom to me though and Pliskova will be disappointed if she is not able to make hay in this section.

There is a big potential threat looming in the Second Round considering how well Magdalena Rybarikova has played on the grass courts recently. Rybarikova has won two ITF titles and reached the Semi Final in Nottingham over the last month and Pliskova's poor record at Wimbledon could be tested if that Second Round match is set.

There are a few big name players in the top half who could take advantage of any upset suffered by Pliskova with names like Caroline Wozniacki, Angelique Kerber, Agnieszka Radwanska and Coco Vandeweghe all having success on the grass courts before, but injury and loss of form is a concern for all of those players.

The signs shown by Angelique Kerber in Eastbourne could be interesting though, especially considering she has been given what looks like a really good draw. Any potential match with the likes of Pliskova would not take place until the Semi Final, and Kerber could have played herself into some kind of form by then having built the momentum from Eastbourne.

The German has reached the Quarter Final, Semi Final and Final at Wimbledon in her career and I would think she could get the better of Garbine Muguruza in any potential Fourth Round clash. Kerber looked to be moving a little better at Eastbourne and I do feel she could look a very big price in two weeks time.

Kristina Mladenovic was another I considered, but her draw looks tougher than Kerber's with a lot of potentially tough matches before the Semi Final stage. That could begin as soon as the Second Round for a player who can blow hot and cold a little too much and one who has yet to surpass the Quarter Final of any Slam and the Third Round here at Wimbledon.

Picking a winner and Quarter winners in the Ladies' event at Wimbledon looks really difficult and I wouldn't be that surprised if an underdog comes through for a surprise win as Jelena Ostapenko did at the French Open. The two clear favourites both have some big question marks as do most of the top names and so I think a couple of interests on big priced players who have had success here in the past could be warranted.

Despite the off court issues for Venus Williams, I think the American has every chance of adding another Grand Slam title to her collection. The previous form shown in 2017 shows Venus is not far off her best and she is as good on the grass as anyone in the draw.

The draw isn't a bad one for her, but it will all come down to whether the fatal car incident she has been blamed for is working overtime on the mind and makes Williams lose focus. She has yet to play a competitive tennis match since then but could be tough to stop if she does take to the court and can block out all the things going on in her life.

The 2016 Finalist Angelique Kerber showed signs of recovering her form last week in Eastbourne and she could not have asked for a much better draw here. Getting to play her way in with a Qualifier first up should help Kerber who has missed the really in-form players in her section of the draw.

Getting the better of an out of touch Garbine Muguruza won't be easy, but Kerber could work her way through the draw if she can do that in the Fourth Round. There is no guarantee the Spaniard would get there any way, and I have some doubts over Karolina Pliskova reaching the Semi Final which could open the door for Kerber who has played well at Wimbledon even prior to the run to the Final in 2016.

Both of the players I have identified look a big price and worth an 'each-way' selection with the hope one reaches the Final, at the least, and brings in a profit. The Ladies' event looks very open though and a dark horse powering through the draw in a manner similar to Jelena Ostapenko would not be a huge surprise, even if identifying that player is far from easy.

Another pick worth an interest may be Simona Halep winning the Fourth Quarter where the leading players are Petra Kvitova and Johanna Konta. As well as Kvitova played to win at Birmingham, she may be playing with more pressure as the favourite at this Grand Slam and Konta has some fitness doubts that need to be addressed.

Halep has played well here as I have mentioned, produced some solid tennis at Eastbourne last week and looks to have a decent enough draw before the Quarter Final. She could have played herself into some form while the Romanian won't be dealing with anything like the same pressures as she had in Roland Garros where she was a clear favourite.

While there have been a couple of early exits on the grass, Halep has some solid results at Wimbledon and looks a big price to come out of the Fourth Quarter.

MY PICKS: Andy Murray to Win @ 7.00 Coral (1.5 Units)

Novak Djokovic to Win @ 7.00 Paddy Power (1.5 Units)

Andy Murray to Win First Quarter @ 2.10 Ladbrokes (2 Units)

Marin Cilic to Win Second Quarter @ 5.00 Ladbrokes (1 Unit)

Novak Djokovic to Win Fourth Quarter @ 2.10 Ladbrokes (2 Units)

Angelique Kerber to Win @ 21.00 Coral (1 Unit E/W)

Venus Williams to Win @ 17.00 Sky Bet (1 Unit E/W)
Simona Halep @ 9.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Wimbledon Outright Picks 2015 (June 29-July 12)

The grass court season hasn't been my most productive period of the season and this has regularly been the case over the years going into the third Grand Slam of the season.

While my Grand Slam record remains pretty decent, Wimbledon is the one that I look forward to the least because of the surface and the erratic results it can produce.

It is no surprise that is the case compared with the clay court season as there is more emphasis on players needing to take their chances for you to be successful. There are also some dangerous players in the draw who perhaps don't produce a high quality return during much of the season, but love the grass and come alive at this time of the season. You have to be aware of these kind of things going into Wimbledon as it helps in making the right plays and hopefully leads to a strong couple of weeks before the Tour moves away from the grass (well after the event in Newport anyway).


So what advice would I have for someone preparing to make picks from the next two weeks? Well I have a couple of suggestions.


1) You will see a lot more tie-breakers on this surface than on the clay: This is important for those looking at the spreads, especially some of the really big ones you get in the early Rounds of Slams.

You have to be aware that even the top players can sometimes have the racquet taken out of their hands if an opponent is serving well on grass with the faster conditions that generally do still exist compared with the clay courts.

It does mean the spreads from 7.5 games and above can be a little more difficult to be confident in, unless of course the right match up is there but the increased chances of tie-breakers being a factor can't be ignored.


2) One break can sometimes be enough to end the set: Following on from the first point, you will also get a few break point chances in a set for each player, but sometimes it can take just one to finish the set.

On the faster surfaces there is less of an opportunity to recover breaks, and very little opportunity to not just recover the break but move ahead by a break. That is a lot more common on the clay courts than on the grass courts, especially in the men's game, and so any pick has to have an element more luck on this surface.

While you can always rely on the superior skill to be telling on the clay, the grass can sometimes be very frustrating for the returner as well as those who have made picks to cover certain handicaps.

It is also more important to open the set serving you would feel for a number of the funnier numbers and is something to watch out for, although the toss of the coin and decision of the winning player is way out of our hands.


3) Playing on grass is not the most comfortable experience for everyone: One of the big criticisms of the tennis Tour over the years has been the general unification of the speed of the courts no matter the different surfaces.

While the grass courts don't have the same speed of years gone by, it is still a surface that can provide difficulties for some players and relight the fire of others.

So watch out for some of the Seeds that are simply not that comfortable on the surface as the lower bouncing ball or the confidence in the movement is not there for them. Also watch out for dangerous floaters in the draw that might not have strong seasons, but love this portion of the Tour and can do significant damage if caught on one of their hot days.


4) Checking the schedules will give you an insight into how important the grass court season is for an individual: There are some players out there that don't usually do too much preparation for Wimbledon after the move from the French Open, the likes of Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams coming to mind. These players will be challenging at Wimbledon just by looking at their past experiences on grass and their season success, but other players simply don't care too much about the grass courts and enter the tournament with little expectation.

No player wants to lose a match, but some accept the grass courts are not for them so it is always a good idea to see past experiences on the surface. It is a limited part of the season so you can't take success/failure as gospel, but it does give an idea as to how serious players are.

An example is Pablo Cuevas- he may be Seeded this year, but he has played just a couple of grass court tournaments in the last six years. However, he has shown more signs of wanting to get involved on the surface having entered two tournaments already on the grass this season.

It is something to keep in mind- if a player has shown little enthusiasm for grass, they might not be the most likely to dig in if things begin to go wrong for them and perhaps not a great person to back to keep within a big number. Conversely, they could be worth opposing if up against a competent player on the surface and has to be taken in as a factor.

Men's Tournament

It is no surprise that Novak Djokovic decided that he needed to recharge both physically and mentally from his exertions at the French Open and thus only played a couple of exhibition matches on the grass in preparation for Wimbledon. The defeat in the French Open Final would have been a bitter pill for Djokovic to swallow, but he has stated himself that he feels comfortable heading to SW19 with this schedule behind him as he has won the tournament in similar circumstances in the past.

That includes recovering from a French Open Final loss in 2014 to win and the defending Champion will come in as the favourite. However, Djokovic must have been hoping for a far more straight-forward match than facing Philipp Kohlschreiber in the First Round, especially as the German is very comfortable on the grass courts himself.

If this tournament entered a time displacement machine (yeah, I've been watching The Terminator), Djokovic would have been really worried about a potential Second Round match with Lleyton Hewitt. However, the Australian is no longer the force of old and no sure thing to get out of his First Round match against another veteran Jarkko Nieminen, although I think the former Wimbledon Champion will get one more day out in the sun at this tournament.

Bernard Tomic, Jerzy Janowicz and Kevin Anderson are potentially dangerous threats to Djokovic through to the Quarter Final, but the World Number 1 has been in incredible form through 2015 and it is hard to see him losing to any of those players in a best of five set match.

I don't think Djokovic would be too concerned if he does get through to the Quarter Final as there are some big doubts about Marin Cilic, John Isner and Kei Nishikori coming into the tournament and Novak Djokovic does look like he will have the opportunity to peak at the right time for this tournament.

You do have to feel that Novak Djokovic might have mistimed his form at the French Open thanks to the Quarter Final match against Rafael Nadal and the Semi Final against Andy Murray. Most players would think beating those two players back to back would be enough to win most big tournaments, but especially at the French Open, and I do think that might have contributed to Djokovic's struggles.

That is taking nothing away from Stan Wawrinka who was magnificent in Paris, but I am not convinced he is going to reach his Seeded position of the Semi Final here at Wimbledon. Rafael Nadal was the last player to win the French Open/Wimbledon double back in 2010 and this has notoriously been a big test for the best players, while Wawrinka has not been beyond the Quarter Final here.

Wawrinka did play well in SW19 last year, while his defeat to Kevin Anderson at Queens is forgivable so this might be the chance for him to go beyond his personal best here. However, I would be a little concerned with the way Wawrinka followed up his Australian Open win and he is always someone that could potentially be caught early in a Grand Slam draw, even if Wawrinka has been given a very cosy draw up to the Quarter Final.

At that point, I can see one of three players standing in his way- Milos Raonic is Seeded to get there, but didn't have a deep grass court resume before Wimbledon last year and relies too much on tie-breakers; Richard Gasquet has loved playing on the grass in the past, but was beaten by Raonic at Queens Club and so I am looking for this surface to reinvigorate a certain Grigor Dimitrov.

The Bulgarian has been in poor form in recent weeks, but the defeat to Gilles Muller at Queens might not be as poor as it initially may have felt for him. Dimitrov was a Semi Finalist at Wimbledon in 2014 and he is a previous Semi Finalist and Winner at Queens so clearly loves to play on the grass.

Dimitrov's form is a concern, but he has the chance to play his way in at Wimbledon with what looks a decent First Round draw and then a more challenging one against likely Steve Johnson. His 0-4 head to head with Gasquet would be a concern, but their last match came in 2013 and I think they have by-passed one another from that time and I would think Dimitrov has enough to come through.

He has a decent record against Milos Raonic and beaten Stan Wawrinka three times in a row, including twice on clay prior to the French Open, so Dimitrov has every chance to return to the Semi Final and try and reverse the loss to Djokovic from last season.

Nick Kyrgios is the wild card in this Quarter of the draw, but the Australian is struggling with some sort of elbow injury as well as other niggles. He can be dangerous on his day, but those injuries may prevent him from reaching the Quarter Final as he did last season and I think Dimitrov could be the player to back out of this section.

The top half of the draw does look like one that Novak Djokovic will be a strong favourite to get out of, but the bottom half looks loaded with talent. The intriguing matches look to be coming thick and fast from it, especially after Rafael Nadal was thrown into the same section as Roger Federer and Andy Murray.

In all honesty it is hard to get excited about Nadal's chances prior to the draw simply because of his recent struggles on the grass courts. He did win in Stuttgart, but Wimbledon has proved problematic since he reached the Final here in 2011 which was Nadal's fifth time in a row he had managed to get to the final Sunday of the tournament (one absence in a six year period between 2006-11).

Since then Nadal has not been beyond the Fourth Round, and while many are looking to the potential Quarter Final with Andy Murray, the Spaniard has a number of tests to pass. The First Round shouldn't present a problem, but Nadal could potentially face Dustin Brown in the Second Round (beat Nadal on grass at Halle last year), Victor Troicki in the Third Round (Nadal beat him in a close Final in Stuttgart) and then David Ferrer who can never be underestimated.

I actually think Nadal might be a very dangerous opponent for Andy Murray in the Quarter Final because that run could have him played into form, although his recent experiences at Wimbledon would mean it is hard to trust Nadal. Someone like Brown could take the racquet out of his hands if in top form and Troicki has played well enough to be considered a real danger in the Third Round.

Murray does seem to have the more straight-forward path to the Quarter Final, although there are some dangers in the section that can't be ignored. You'd still expect Murray to come through on the form he has displayed since Munich, even if he faces someone as awkward as Ivo Karlovic in the Fourth Round.

I'd put a line through Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, which might be dangerous considering his previous grass court form and how well his game is suited to the surface. However, the Frenchman has been injured and not played any grass court tennis heading into Wimbledon and has a ridiculously difficult First Round match against Gilles Muller and I would be surprised if Andy Murray isn't the man to come out of the section.

Rafael Nadal might be 3-0 against Andy Murray on the grass courts of SW19, but the last of those matches was in 2011 in the midst of Nadal's run of Finals at Wimbledon. Things have changed since then and Murray's destruction of Nadal in Madrid should have shifted the balance going into that Quarter Final.

The problem for Murray in being in the second half of the draw and in the same Quarter as Rafael Nadal is that he will have to follow that potential Quarter Final with a potential Semi Final against Roger Federer.

The seven time Wimbledon Champion has to be pleased with the draw he has been handed for the next two weeks, although his Grand Slam record in 2015 has been poor by the standards Federer has set in the past. In saying that, Wimbledon and the US Open give Federer his best chance of winning another Grand Slam in my opinion and he will be a dangerous opponent for anyone on his favourite surface.

Federer won Halle, but he perhaps wasn't as convincing which might have opponents thinking they have a chance for the surprise, but I don't see too many threats for him early in the tournament. Sam Querrey might have a decent grass record and Jack Sock is a Doubles Champion at Wimbledon, but beating Federer in a best of five set match looks unlikely for both.

Feliciano Lopez has never beaten Federer and you look through the names that he might have to beat prior to the Quarter Final and I don't think too many would be expected to challenge Federer.

The biggest obstacle to Federer reaching another Semi Final here has to be Tomas Berdych who did beat Federer the last time they played at Wimbledon in 2010 on his way to the Final that year. Berdych looks to have a much more awkward path to the Quarter Final though with a dangerous First Round opponent in Jeremy Chardy and grass court specialist Nicolas Mahut a potential Second Round opponent.

There are other dangers before the Quarter Final for Berdych and his inconsistency at Wimbledon since reaching the Final in 2010 has to be a concern. Berdych has made just one Quarter Final since then and was beaten in the Third Round last year.

That potentially opens the door for one of two Frenchmen to perhaps move into a surprise Quarter Final- Gael Monfils has not been in as effective form as Gilles Simon and had to deal with an injury in Halle, but both will be hoping to be involved in the Davis Cup tie with Great Britain at Queens Club the week after Wimbledon.

Neither would really worry Roger Federer and he might be in a much better position physically by the time he gets to the Semi Final if the potential Rafael Nadal-Andy Murray Quarter Final develops into a classic Wimbledon Quarter Final.


It is hard to look past the two favourites at this Grand Slam- as long as Novak Djokovic can come through the early couple of Rounds, I expect he will get stronger and stronger as he looks to retain the title he won last season.

I also had Andy Murray as the favourite prior to the draw and looking through his part of the draw hasn't reduced my belief in him. Of course Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in consecutive matches is a huge test for anyone, but I am still convinced Murray is playing at a high enough level to at least reach the Final and perhaps win the tournament for a second time.

I do think Roger Federer still has something left in the tank and we are most likely to see that either at Wimbledon or the US Open. After reaching the Final here last year and winning in Halle in preparation for Wimbledon, I think the draw has been kind enough to back Federer to win the Fourth Quarter of the draw, although Tomas Berdych is a real threat in the section.

Finally I am going to have a small interest on Grigor Dimitrov to rediscover some form and win the Second Quarter to at least match his performance at Wimbledon last season. Dimitrov has a very tough section, but he has strong records against the likes of Milos Raonic and Stan Wawrinka and I would expect the Bulgarian to get past both of those players if he can see off Richard Gasquet in the Third Round.

Raonic is still coming back from an injury and Wawrinka has never really pulled up too many trees at Wimbledon so Grigor Dimitrov could be a big price in ten days time.

Women's Tournament

Any time you look at a women's event that has Serena Williams involved in the draw, you have to say the World Number 1 is going to take some stopping to win the title. However, Serena Williams has won just one of the last four Wimbledon tournaments she has competed in while she has failed to reach the Quarter Final in the other three events in that time. Add the fact that no one has done the French Open/Wimbledon double in the women's game since 2002 when Serena Williams achieved that and you have to wonder if the favourite should be opposed.

However, the theory has been that you need to 'get' Serena Williams early in any tournament she enters and it is difficult to see who is capable of beating her before the Quarter Final. If she gets to that stage, Serena will be incredibly difficult to stop and would be a strong favourite to go on and win the event.

Daniela Hantuchova, Dominika Cibulkova and Caroline Garcia are all capable players, but they would all be big underdogs against Serena Williams, and the biggest threat in her section may be older sister Venus Williams.

Venus Williams might not have reached the Final in SW19 since 2009, but no one came closer to knocking Petra Kvitova out last year at Wimbledon and she has a respectable path through to the Fourth Round where she can potentially meet younger sister Serena. Venus Williams won the last meeting with Serena Williams at the Canadian Masters last summer, but it is Serena who holds a 3-2 lead at Wimbledon in the head to head having beaten Venus in the Final in 2009.

Players like Belinda Bencic, Tsvetana Pironkova, Ana Ivanovic and Victoria Azarenka all have their positives, but many negatives too which makes it hard to oppose Serena Williams if she was to come through the Fourth Round.


If Serena Williams was to make it through to the Semi Final, I don't really think there are too many players that she would be afraid of ahead of the final Saturday of the tournament. Maria Sharapova looks an awful third favourite to win Wimbledon, despite being a former winner here, especially considering she has reached the Final once in the last eight years and failed to get past the Fourth Round in seven of those years.

While Sharapova is expected to get past the early Rounds relatively easily, dangers lurk later on in her Quarter of the draw with the likes of Andrea Petkovic, Flavia Pennetta, Lucie Safarova, Sloane Stephens and Karolina Pliskova all potential Fourth Round and Quarter Final opponents.

The latter three players look the most likely Semi Final opponents for Serena Williams and I do like Karolina Pliskova's game and the way it transfers onto the grass courts. She was a Finalist in Birmingham, but the draw could have been a lot kinder for her and Serena Williams may be picking the bones of whoever comes out of a tough section of the draw.


The second favourite for the title is Petra Kvitova who has hopefully recovered from the illness that forced her out of Eastbourne last week and the defending Champion will be pleased with her draw.

Well, I think she would have more pleased if she had seen the draw a month ago after Agnieszka Radwanska rediscovered some form on the grass courts over the last three weeks. In saying that, Kvitova has a dominant head to head against Radwanska and the power on the grass courts to really get the better of the Pole in a potential Fourth Round blockbuster!

Kvitova might be more wary of her potential Quarter Final opponents which looks like it could be either Madison Keys or Ekaterina Makarova assuming Eugenie Bouchard's struggles have yet to be overcome. Keys has a win over Kvitova at the Australian Open earlier this season and has the kind of game that will be a huge presence on the grass for years to come, although I think she is carrying some sort of injury which lessens enthusiasm for her.

Makarova is a much more interesting candidate having a 1-2 record against Kvitova on the grass, but all of their matches have been highly competitive and she can match the big lefty serve. However, Makarova had to withdraw from the Doubles at Eastbourne with an achilles injury and it does seem to be working out for the defending Champion Kvitova to have another deep run at what is clearly her favourite Grand Slam.


To me there is clearly no doubt that the most intriguing Quarter of the women's draw is the third Quarter where there are many players that will feel they are good enough to not just reach the Semi Final, but go all the way to the title.

Simona Halep has won a grass title in her career and was a Semi Finalist at Wimbledon last season; Angelique Kerber won the big tournament in Birmingham and is a former Quarter Finalist and Semi Finalist at Wimbledon; Sabine Lisicki has reached the Quarter Final three times, the Semi Final and the Final in her last five appearances at Wimbledon.

I have drawn a line through Caroline Wozniacki because I find it hard to believe she will recover from her back issues in time to be a threat at this tournament, while Garbine Muguruza is just not comfortable enough on this surface to be trusted.

A couple of dangerous floaters in this section are Timea Bacsinszky and Camila Giorgi who both have had previous success on the grass. Bacsinszky might struggle to back up her performance at the French Open, while Giorgi is still a very erratic player with little room for error in the way she plays.

The Italian did win the tournament in Hertogenbosch, and she has previously reached the Fourth Round at Wimbledon after coming through the qualifiers so has the experience of playing a lot of matches on grass, but I am not convinced Giorgi can tone it down when the mistakes start flowing from her racquet.


The French Open/Wimbledon double has proved troublesome for the women's players in recent years, but Serena Williams can become the first player to do that since she did the same back in 2002. The draw looks to have worked out very well for Williams who I assume is over the physical illness that affected her so badly at the French Open.

The fact she won her worst Grand Slam despite the illness is a remarkable achievement and I think Serena is ready to reclaim her crown at SW19. Her biggest problem might be facing her elder sister Venus in the Fourth Round, but I think Serena is going to be able to work through the gears over the next two weeks and I would be pretty surprised if she is not making up one half of the Final on Saturday 11th July.

Like the men's event, it is hard to see the top two favourites being beaten over the next couple of weeks, although I do have more doubts about Petra Kvitova than I do about Andy Murray which may be surprising when looking at the names they have to face. However, Petra Kvitova's form at Wimbledon is so hard to ignore when you think she has won Wimbledon twice, been to the Quarter Final twice and the Semi Final over the last five years here.

The draw has also seemed to have worked out in Kvitova's favour and I think a similar staking plan to the men's tournament in the outright markets may work out.

I am also keen on having a small interest in the middle two Quarters of the draw and think the two Finalists at Birmingham a couple of weeks ago are worthy of support against higher Seeded players in their section.

Karolina Pliskova has the perfect game for the grass courts of SW19 and I think she can be supported to reach the Semi Final ahead of someone like Maria Sharapova who has struggled at Wimbledon in recent years. I am a big fan of Lucie Safarova and Sloane Stephens has been playing well in recent weeks, but Pliskova might be able to pick off whoever comes through to meet her in the Fourth Round and perhaps take advantage if Sharapova is beaten early again.

In the Third Quarter I believe Angelique Kerber can be the player to make it into another Wimbledon Semi Final. She was playing very well in Birmingham and looks to have the 'easiest' path into the Quarter Final in this section.

She has a strong record against Sabine Lisicki, who is a potential Quarter Final opponent, and I am not convinced Simona Halep is playing with enough confidence to maintain her unbeaten head to head with Kerber. It is Lisicki favoured to come out of the Third Quarter, but I do think her compatriot can surprise by taking the Semi Final spot instead.

MY OUTRIGHT PICKS: Novak Djokovic @ 2.40 Coral (4 Units)
Andy Murray @ 3.75 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Grigor Dimitrov to Win Second Quarter @ 9.00 William Hill (1 Unit)
Roger Federer to Win Fourth Quarter @ 1.80 Bet Victor (4 Units)
Serena Williams @ 2.75 Ladbrokes (4 Units)
Petra Kvitova @ 5.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Karolina Pliskova to Win Second Quarter @ 9.00 Bet Victor (1 Unit)
Angelique Kerber to Win Third Quarter @ 4.50 Paddy Power (1 Unit)

Weekly Picks Final: 8-12, - 9.64 Units (40 Units Staked, - 24.1% Yield)

Season 2015: + 30.38 Units (997 Units Staked, + 3.05% Yield)

Season 2014: + 45.05 Units (1586.5 Units Staked, + 2.84% Yield)
Season 2013: + 21.74 Units (1251.5 Units Staked, + 1.73% Yield)
Season 2012: + 49.21 Units (855 Units Staked, + 5.76% Yield)