The Wimbledon tennis tournament, referred to by many as the crown jewel of tennis, completes first-round play on Tuesday. That’s where our tennis picks begin. Serena Williams will play, but her match is going to be extremely easy. We already saw her sister move through to the next round. There have already been some upsets as Ana Ivanovic was punched out by Ekaterina Alexandrova and Julia Goerges was knocked out by Yaroslava Shvedova. Even so, we haven’t seen any big names bow out just yet.
What about some of the more interesting matchups on the card for the top half of the women’s draw at the All-England Club? Here is a look at our tennis picks for Tuesday at Wimbledon.
Caroline Wozniacki vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova
This is a matchup of players who have done a lot in tennis. Wozniacki has reached multiple Grand Slam finals and spent many years of her career in the top five. She reached the 2014 U.S. Open final before falling to Serena Williams and ended the 2014 season as one of the best players in the world, someone who had revived her game.
Kuznetsova won the 2004 U.S. Open and the 2009 French Open. She has enjoyed a solid 2016 season, having reached the finals in Miami while displaying more consistency than in the past. The recent histories of the two players form the best argument for making a pick on this match, because neither player has done that well on grass at Wimbledon. Kuznetsova has bounced back this season, whereas Wozniacki has regressed. One player is taking a step forward, the other backward, in women’s tennis. Four years ago, Wozniacki would have been the easy selection here, but in 2016, it just as clearly has to be Kuznetsova, even though the Russian has lost many matches in her career that she should have won. Take Kuznetsova with your tennis picks in this spot.
Pick: Kuznetsova in three sets
Heather Watson vs. Annika Beck
This is a matchup of note because Watson, who is British, will be playing before her own fans. If you think that’s insignificant, remember that Watson came within an eyelash of beating Serena Williams in the third round of Wimbledon last year. She was inspired by the crowd and took a lot of energy from her surroundings. That pushed her forward and nearly enabled her to make a large piece of history. Watson has not enjoyed an especially encouraging season this year, and so if you wanted to pick Beck on that basis, you would have ample ammunition to do so. Yet, this feels like the kind of moment in which Beck will prepare for this match as she normally does (which is not any kind of defect on her part, to be clear – it’s normal professional business), all while Watson will treat it as a mini-Super Bowl of sorts. This match matters so much more to Watson, and that’s why she’ll win in three, so take her with your tennis picks.
Pick: Watson in three sets
Petra Kvitova vs. Sorana Cirstea
This is a match which could be an upset. Kvitova has lost to many players in the first week of a major. She is off balance when she takes the court. She tries to hit her way into a rhythm, but it doesn’t work, and she unloads errors from various corners of the court. Yet, for all the ways Kvitova can unravel, Wimbledon is the tournament where she often finds a comfort zone. She’s won two titles here and has made multiple other quarterfinals. She’s not likely to lose in the early rounds in England. The other thing you have to take into account is the opponent. Yes, Kvitova is liable to lose to almost anyone at any time, but this doesn’t look like an opponent that will really test her mettle. Sorana Cirstea is not someone you’ve heard of very often on the women’s tennis circuit because she has never really made waves. This would be a headline if she pulled it off but we’re not expecting that. Take Kvitova with your tennis picks.
Pick: Kvitova in straight sets
