The Main Draw of Wimbledon took place on Friday. In the top half, Novak Djokovic (1) drew Phillipp Kohlschreiber in the first round and could meet Kei Nishikori (5) in the quarterfinal. Andy Murray could meet Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (13) in the 4th round and either David Ferrer (8) or Rafa Nadal (10) in the quarterfinal. In the other half, Roger Federer (2) could take on Tomas Berdych (6) in the quarterfinal and Murray in the semifinal. Diego Sampaolo
Defending champion Djokovic is in the same half as newly crowned French Open champion Stan Wawrinka (4) and could face him in the semifinal if they both progress that far. It would be a re-match of the recent Roland Garros final. The Serbian World Number 1 opening round match is not an easy proposition as Kohlschreiber is an experienced tour veteran and has had success on grass here at Wimbledon getting to the quarterfinal round back in 2012. Kohlschreiber can also take comfort in knowing that he has beaten Djokovic before at a major back in 2009 French Open.
If Djokovic gets out of the 1st round, it is virtually smooth sailing henceforth through to the semifinal. His next round opponent is the winner of the Lleyton Hewitt v Jarkko Nieminen. Both Nieminen and Hewitt are playing their final Championships here as they set to retire at the end of the year. Possibly lurking for Djokovic is Kevin Anderson (14) in the 4th round which really should be an easy confrontation for him. This draw definitely makes it very possible for Djokovic to defend his title here to equal his coach Boris Becker and john McEnroe as three-time Wimbledon champion after his titles in 2011 and 2014.
Nishikori will start against Simone Bolelli (quarterfinalist in Nottingham this week) in a re-match of last year’s five-set match won by the Japanese player. Nishikori could meet either Santiago Giraldo but he will not face many tough obstacles until the 4th round. Wawrinka, 2-time major champion will face Joao Sousa in the first round for the second year in a row at this tournament. Wawrinka could meet Milos Raonic (7) in the quarterfinal. The Canadian could face a tough draw against Nick Kyrgios (26) in the third round and Grigor Dimitrov (11) in the fourth round
The other members of the “Big Four Club” Federer, Murray and Nadal were drawn in a very tough bottom half which also features 2010 Wimbledon finalist Berdych and 2-time semifinalist (2011-12) Tsonga who recently returned to a major semifinal earlier this month in Paris. Wimbledon champion (2008, 2010) Nadal, who has dropped to 10 in the ATP Rankings, could face 2013 Wimbledon champion Murray in the quarterfinal match. The winner could meet seven-time Wimbledon champion Federer in the semifinals.
Murray will start his Wimbledon campaign against Mikhail Kukushkin before meeting either Robin Haase or Alejandro Falla in the 2nd round. Murray is looking very confident having won his 4th Queen’s Club title a week ago. Tsonga will play against Gilles Muller from Luxemburg in one of the most interesting first round matches. This section of the draw features Aleksander Dolgopolov who could meet Ivo Karlovic (23) in the 2nd round.
Nadal won his first grass title since Wimbledon 2010 in Stuttgart but lost in the 1st round against Dolgopolov at the Queen’s the following week. He will open his Wimbledon campaign against Thomaz Bellucci. Nadal despite being a 5-time finalist has struggled in London since 2011. The last three years here has seen the 14-time major winner with a 4-3 record. He comes into this 3rd major of the year with only 2 ATP 250 titles under his belt and no major final appearance. His success here is not a guarantee.
In the fourth quarter of the draw Berdych will play a tough first round match against France’s Jeremy Chardy and the winner of the match face Ernests Gulbis or Lukas Rosol in the 3rd round. Federer will start against Damir Dzumhur in a re-match of this year’s third round match won by the Swiss Maestro in three sets. Wimbledon will be Federer’s best chance to win his 18th Grand Slam title. Last week he won his 8th Halle title beating Andreas Seppi in the final.
