With Rafael Nadal Sidelined, There Are Just Two Former Wimbledon Champions in Men’s Field

Unseeded Andy Murray Hoping To Make Some More Magic at Wimbledon

It is a new era for the men’s singles field at Wimbledon as somebody not named Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic is seeded first for the first time since 2003. Djokovic is one of two former Wimbledon champions set to be in the field.

Carlos Alcaraz will enter the tournament as the No. 1 seed. However, the world’s top-ranked player is not the favorite, as that honor goes to Djokovic. When the players met in the French Open semifinals, Djokovic emerged victorious on his way to the singles title. With Alcaraz first and Djokovic seeded first and second, there won’t be a matchup before the championship match.

With Federer retired and a hip injury sidelining Nadal for the second straight Grand Slam tournament, only Djokovic and Andy Murray remain former champions in the men’s singles field.

Murray is nearing the end of his brilliant career, and he will certainly be a favorite of the fans turning out to the All-England tennis club. Perhaps there will be a scene reminiscent of when Jimmy Connors made a stunning run to the semifinals at the 1991 US Open.

Here’s a look at what might go down when Wimbledon gets underway next week and some tennis betting odds of note.

Djokovic Eyeing Title No. 8

During the Open era, Bjorn Borg and Roger Federer are the only players to win five straight men’s singles titles at Wimbledon.

Djokovic could join that group as he has won the last four tournaments putting his name into the record book as one of the most decorated former Wimbledon champions.

Djokovic has beaten four different players in the last four Wimbledon finals. He topped Kevin Anderson in 2018, won a five-set classic against Federer in 2019, recovered after losing the opening set to Matteo Berrettini in 2021, and did the same thing versus Nick Kyrgios in 2022.

If he wins, he would match Federer’s record total of eight Wimbledon men’s singles titles.

How Many More Wimbledons For Murray?

Murray defeated Djokovic to win his first Wimbledon title in 2013. It marked the first time a men’s player representing Great Britain won the title at Wimbledon since Fred Perry won three championships in a row from 1934-36. He won the title again in 2016 with two of the three sets against Milos Raonic heading to tiebreakers. That makes him one of the two former Wimbledon champions in the field.

He had a 10-year run of making it to at least the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.

The 36-year-old Murray is currently ranked 39th in the ATP rankings and unseeded, which could make for a challenging road. He will find out who he has to contend with when the draw is held on Monday.
He is currently listed at +4000 to win the title, which is the best among the unseeded players.

Murray did win a recent tournament at Nottingham. However, he faced just one player ranked in the top 100. That is not going to be the case when Wimbledon gets underway. That followed a title run at Surbitton. Murray skipped the French Open to prepare for a run at Wimbledon.

What’s Next?

Murray has delighted the home fans with his runs in Wimbledon since he debuted in 2005. What will the future look like when Murray decides it is time to retire?

The 27-year-old Cameron Norrie is the top-ranked player from Great Britain as he is currently 13th. He reached the semifinals in the 2022 event. When looking at the 2023 Wimbledon seedings, Norrie is the No. 12 seed.

The 33-year-old Daniel Evans, ranked 30th, has reached the third round twice.

Norrie was seeded ninth in last year’s Wimbledon event. He didn’t face another seeded player until dispatching of No. 30 seed Tommy Paul in straight sets in the Round of 16. His run ended with a four-set loss to Djokovic in the semifinals. Norrie has reached three finals so far in 2023, including a win over Alcaraz to win the title at Rio de Janeiro.

Norrie is priced at +6000 and Evans comes in at +15000 in the Wimbledon men’s singles outrights.

A player to keep an eye on in the future is 21-year-old Jack Draper. He reached a career-high of 38 in the ATP rankings in January. Draper will not be in the Wimbledon field as he announced via social media that he will miss the grass-court season with a shoulder injury.

Liam Broady was one of the surprises in last year’s tournament as the local product reached the third round before losing to Alex de Minauer, a player who also eliminated Draper from the tournament.

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