Draws are here:
http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/scores/draws/ls/lsdraw.pdfhttp://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/scores/draws/ms/msdraw.pdfWomen's seeds:
There has been an extra week of grass court tournaments this year in the build up to Wimbledon. Sharapova and Serena Williams haven't played any of the tournaments. With no form to go on, it's still difficult to back against either of these two. Serena's health and emotional stability would seem to be the only things stopping her winning at a canter.
Caroline Wozniacki withdrew from the semi-final at Eastbourne today with a back injury. She doesn't give up easily (she is renowned for playing through injuries) and her game is based on her physical ability so I think she can be discounted.
Kvitova and Kerber both dropped out of Eastbourne with viral complaints but I suspect that they will be absolutely fine for Wimbledon.
Simona Halep lost to Kristina Mladenovic in the QF at Birmingham and didn't play at Eastbourne. The TV commentators gave Mladenovic a lot of credit but it wasn't a good performance by Halep.
Agnieska Radwanska has found more enthusiasm for the game and should progress well. She has been playing consistently well apart from an odd performance at Nottingham in the semi-final against Monica Niculescu when she lost 5-7 6-4 6-0. She has reached the final at Eastbourne.
Ekaterina Makarova is a grass court player but she is in bad form - she got slaughtered by a very impressive Johanna Konta (ranked 146 but playing top 50) 6-2 6-4 at Eastbourne.
(I happen to have a very nice freeroll on Konta which has been hampered somewhat by her drawing Sharapova in the first round.
).
Lucie Safarova could do well but after a run of good form and reaching the final of the French Open but has only played one match since then. She lost to Dominika Cibulkova who had been out injured for several months.
Ana Ivanovic flatters to deceive.
Carla Suarez-Navarro is not a grass court specialist and is unlikely to progress far as she is scheduled to meet Mladenovic in round two and Azarenka in round three.
Karolina Pliskova has a big game with a great serve which should be ideal for grass. She looks a generous bet at 66/1 with SportingBet.
http://www.oddschecker.com/tennis/wimbledon/womens/winnerSabine Lisicki has a very good draw and a game made for grass. Her form has been inconsistent but she generally rises to the occasion at Wimbledon.
Eugenie Bouchard is well below her form of last year. General opinion is that she has too many off-court distractions. She has also lost a significant amount of weight.
Even with her habit of playing well in Grand Slam events it's difficult to see her progressing far here. She retired against Bencic at Eastbourne.
Victoria Azarenka was making good progress after being out for a long time with injury. Sadly she withdrew during Birmingham with a foot injury. This may have been preventative rather than terminal so don't rule her out.
Madison Keys should do well on grass but lost her only game on grass this year at Eastbourne to Belinda Bencic 6-2, 6-2.
For the British interest:
Sadly, Laura Robson will lose in the first round to Rodina. She has not recovered sufficiently from her wrist injury.
Rodina can be backed to win 2-0 at 2.38 in several places:
http://www.oddschecker.com/tennis/wimbledon/womens/evgeniya-rodina-v-laura-robson/set-bettingHeather Watson is playing fairly well and has a first round match against Caroline Garcia who is in very poor form.
I'm a big fan of Garcia generally but Watson at 1.9 appeals.
https://www.betfair.com/exchange/tennis/event?id=27476465As mentioned above, Johanna Konta drew the short stick.
Naomi Broady is favourite against Mariana Duque-Marino (who may be allergic to grass) despite being ranked 197 against her opponent at 97.
Random other thoughts:
Sloane Stephens seems to be re-focused on tennis and has an excellent coach in Nick Saviano who suits her personality. It may be a bit too soon for her at Wimbledon but she will be climbing the rankings soon.
Oh, and apparently, some blokes will be playing in a tournament too.
All comments made above are purely my own and made under the influence of red wine. I'd welcome any feedback. I'm happy to venture a view on anything else in the women's tournament. (Being uninformed shouldn't stop me having an opinion).
Personally, I've backed half the field so I'm hoping to keep some interest into the second week.
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