All eyes on SW19 for Wimbledon 2024

Wimbledon 2024 got underway last week. A fortnight of grasscourt tennis from the best players in the world concludes on Sunday, July 14 with the Men’s Singles final, with the Women’s Singles final taking place a day earlier.

Before we have a look at the possible winners in this year’s championships, let’s take a look at the favorites in the Men’s and Women’s Singles competitions:

Wimbledon Men’s Singles odds

• Carlos Alcaraz (+175)
• Jannik Sinner (+175)
• Novak Djokovic (+400)
• Alexander Zverev (+1400)
• Daniil Medvedev (+1600)
• Hubert Hurkacz (+1600)
• Matteo Berrettini (+2000)
• Jack Draper (+2000)
• Alex De Minaur (+2000)

Wimbledon Women’s Singles odds

• Aryna Sabalenka (+275)
• Iga Swiatek (+350)
• Elena Rybakina (+450)
• Coco Gauff (+600)
• Naomi Osaka (+1200)
• Marketa Vondrousova (+1400)
• Ons Jabeur (+1600)
• Mirra Andreeva (+2000)
• Jessica Pegula (+2000)

Men’s Singles

Carlos Alcaraz is back to defend his title and is joint-favorite with good reason. The young Spaniard is in great form, having won three Grand Slam titles out of the last seven, including the recent French Open. At +175, he doesn’t offer great value to bettors but looks almost certain to be in the tournament late into the second week. ??

The swash-buckling, big-serving Italian has a game well-suited to grass

Also pitched at +175, is Jannik Sinner who won the first Grand Slam of 2024, the Australian Open, in thrilling style in January. The swash-buckling, big-serving Italian has a game well-suited to grass and, while it has taken him a while to fulfill his promise at the top level, his win in Melbourne confirmed his top-level credentials.

In last season’s semi-final, he was beaten in straight sets by Novak Djokovic but looks better prepared for the grass of Wimbledon this year and warmed up perfectly with a win in Halle last weekend – his fourth title of the season. Some will point to his recent defeat by Alcaraz in the French Open but that occurred on the slow clay of Roland Garros. The fizzing grass of SW19 will be much more to his liking.

Djokovic not 100%

Interestingly, Djokovic, who many expected to miss the tournament because of recent surgery on a torn meniscus, may yet have a say in who wins. If he has recovered fully – which seems a big ask given his operation was only three weeks ago – then he still has all of the tools needed to get to the final. At +400, there are certainly worse bets out there.

If there is going to be a surprise winner of this year’s men’s competition, then Poland’s Hubert ?Hurkacz has to be in the frame. Over the last few seasons, the 27-year-old Pole has been one of the ATP tour’s most reliable performers and has crept up to number seven in the world rankings. We know he can produce performances at Wimbledon because he made it to the semifinal back in 2021.

he should not be underestimated

Hurkacz’s form in 2024 has been good. A quarter-final appearance in the Australian Open was followed by a fourth-round exit in the French Open, so he should not be underestimated. At the weekend, he was runner-up to Sinner in the Halle final but only by a score of 7-6 7-6. At +1600 he looks great value.

British hope?

Another player worth keeping an eye on in the men’s draw is 22-year-old Brit, Jack Draper. While he may currently be a relatively low 29 in the ATP rankings, he recently knocked Alcaraz out of London’s Queen’s Club tournament in the round-of-16. With the Wimbledon crowd behind him, he may be inspired to dip into that same well again and go deep in the tournament. At +2000, he looks good value, especially for an each-way bet.

One big name missing from this year’s draw is Rafael Nadal, who has opted to prioritize wining gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics, which starts just two weeks after the end of Wimbledon.

Men’s Picks: Sinner to win (+175) / Hurkacz each-way (+1600)

Women’s Singles

As ever, this event looks even more wide open than the men’s, albeit the world’s top four are the top four in the listing of favorites.

Aryna Sabalenka heads the betting as +275 favorite and looks likely to go deep into the second week, while current world number one, Iga Swaitek?is listed at +350. To complete said top four, the winner of this tournament in 2022, Elena Rybakina, is +450 for the win, while the mercurial talent of US star Coco Gauff is listed at a fairly generous +600.

it’s Rybakina’s +450 that looks the most tempting

Sabalenka can never be overlooked, especially after winning this year’s Australian Open, but it’s Rybakina’s +450 that looks the most tempting. After claiming her maiden Grand Slam title at Wimbledon two years ago, she is now the current world number one, and the big-serving Kazakhstani has a game perfectly suited to the quick grass courts of ?Wimbledon.

Rybakina ready for challenge of SW19

In her three appearances in SW19, Rybakina has a fourth-round exit and a quarter-final appearance to go with her win, so it’s a tournament she likes. She has missed two recent warm-up events, in Berlin and Eastbourne, but due to illness rather than injury. This may work in her favor as she’ll be fresh for the challenge of the next fortnight. ?

Swiatek is another who mustn’t be ignored and is always there or thereabouts when the big tournaments come along. She has already won five titles on this year’s WTA Tour, winning all of the finals she has reached so far. Only Rybakina has reached as many finals in 2024. For Gauff, the issue has been in getting over the line at the end of tournaments, having built a reputation for doing a lot of the hard work only to fall at the semis or final.

yet to get over the line and win a Grand Slam but is getting ever closer

If it’s an outsider you’re looking for, then Ons Jabeur at +1600 looks to have a realistic chance and is good value. While she has had a few injury problems of late, the first Tunisian to make it into the world’s top ten has developed a healthy habit of delivering in the big tournaments in the last few seasons. She is yet to get over the line and win a Grand Slam but is getting ever closer and has been Wimbledon’s runner-up in the last two years.

The Tunisian responds to the big occasions and they get no bigger than Wimbledon. Her run to the quarter-finals of the recent French Open is proof she has lost none of her edge and her form is good. Jabeur has reached the last eight in six of her last 12 Grand Slam tournaments, and on her favored grass will be a difficult opponent for anyone.

Pegula in form at right time

For an even bigger outsider, look no further than Jessica Pegula at +2000. In the WTA rankings, she is fifth, behind only Swiatek, Gauff, Sabalenka, and Rybakina, and arrives at Wimbledon off the back of a WTA 500 title win in Berlin. After a hit-and-miss season, the 30-year-old American had slipped behind the big four but that tournament win has restored her confidence at the most opportune moment.

no surprise if she continues her good form and goes deep into week two

Pegula’s quality groundstrokes are well-suited to grass, which also gives her big serve an extra zip. It would therefore be no surprise if she continues her good form and goes deep into week two. While she lost last week to Britain’s Emma Raducanu at Eastbourne, the +2000 is well worthy of an each-way shot.

The two top Brits in the women’s draw – Katie Boulter and Raducanu – are both generously priced at +5000 and +2500 respectively with good reason. While both have potential to make it into the second week, it’s hard to make a sound case for either getting to the semifinals or beyond. ?

Women’s Picks: Rybakina to win (+450) / Pegula each-way (+2000)