Wimbledon is one of the four Grand Slam tournaments in world tennis. In recent decades, more and more attention has been paid to playing on hard surfaces, and traditional grass courts have become exotic for many athletes. But Wimbledon remains a kind of tennis mecca. Therefore, every summer the best representatives of this sport come to England to identify the strongest on the grass.
Let’s consider the features of this tournament, the main news before the 2022 championship and preliminary odds, which were set by Mosbet bookmaker analysts.
Interesting facts about the tournament
Wimbledon is a suburb of London where the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club is located. It is on its courts that the championship has been held since the distant 1877. Almost a century and a half history of the tournament is conditionally divided into three periods:
- the first competitions – from 1877 to 1921;
- amateur era – from 1922 to 1967;
- period of professionals – since 1968.
Today, the main championship includes five categories: women’s and men’s singles, doubles plus mixed. In parallel, a tournament is held among juniors and wheelchair users.
In the men’s singles bracket, the most common (37 times) champions were the British. But this is taking into account the period of the first competition. In the professional era, the Americans took over. The British, on the other hand, rejoiced at the championship only twice – in 2013 and 2016, when Andy Murray shone.
Swiss Roger Federer remains the king of Wimbledon, who has won eight times (the first in 2003, the last in 2017). Two titles behind Novak Djokovic, who is the reigning champion. The Serbian has every chance to get closer to the Swiss record, because, unlike the last one, Novak will take to Wimbledon grass in 2022. American Pete Sampras is the seven-time winner of the trophy.
In women’s singles, the American Martina Navratilova has the most titles – nine -. From 1982 to 1987 she won six times in a row. Federer has an unbeaten streak of five championships. German Steffi Graff and American Serena Williams each have seven Wimbledon trophies.
The last three titles for men belong to Novak Djokovic. Overall, the Serb has won five of the last seven championships. In women’s tennis after the era of Serena Williams, such sole dominance has not yet been observed. The latest winner of the trophy is Australian Ashleigh Barty. But she will definitely not defend the title, as she announced her retirement after winning the home Australian Open.
Amazing betting history related to Wimbledon
In 2003, a Briton named Nicholas Newlife was extremely impressed with the game of Roger Federer on the courts of the All England Club. It was then that the 22-year-old Swiss won his first Wimbledon. Nicholas took the risk of making an amazing long-term bet. He bet £1,500 that Federer would win the tournament at least seven times.
Roger won his seventh trophy in 2012. By that time, the gambling Newlife had already died, but he bequeathed his property to a charitable foundation. Over £155,000 went to help poor families in West Africa.
Breaking news ahead of Wimbledon 2022
In the run-up to the 2022 tournament, the Wimbledon-related news feed is filled with messages that are not exactly sporting in nature. The fact is that because of the military aggression of Russia against Ukraine, the organizers of the championship decided to remove all Russian and Belarusian athletes without exception.Recall that in the ATP men’s singles ranking in the top ten there are two Russians at once – the second racket of the world is Daniil Medvedev, and the eighth is Andrey Rublev. In the WTA world rankings, Belarusian Arina Sobolenko is in sixth place, and Russian Daria Kasatkina is in 12th place.
The disqualification of these high-ranking participants, as well as other representatives of the two countries, led to a scandal. Many athletes and functionaries have declared the inadmissibility of individual discrimination for general political reasons.
In formal terms, the latter point of view was supported by the ATP and WTA. Associations have stripped Wimbledon 2022 of ranking points. Many tennis players who successfully play on grass will lose the opportunity to improve their position in the rankings. But little has changed for leaders. At the Grand Slam tournaments, the main thing is the struggle for titles, the possession of which forever inscribes your name in the history of world tennis.
Favorites according to Mostbet
The main draw of the tournament in 2022 will last for two weeks – from June 27 to July 10. But already today, on the official website of the Mostbet.com bookmaker, you can make long-term predictions for the winners in the men’s and women’s singles. For men, betting analysts call the main favorites (in brackets – the number in the ATP rating):
- Serbian Novak Djokovic (1) – odds for winning the tournament is 1.79;
- Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz Garfi (7) – 7.40;
- Spaniard Rafael Nadal (4) – 7.80;
- German Alexander Zverev (3) – 11.00;
- Italian Matteo Berrettini (10) – 12.00;
- Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime (9) – 12.50.
We note two important points. The first is that Djokovic is considered the favorite by a wide margin. The second – participation in general and successful promotion of Alexander Zverev in the tournament bracket is a big question. In the semi-finals of Roland Garros against Rafael Nadal, the German suffered an ankle injury and was operated on.
In women’s singles today, there is also a clear favorite – the first racket of the world Polish Iga Sventek. But the competition for reaching the decisive stages of the tournament is expected to be higher, so bookmakers accept long-term bets not only on the winner, but also on the entry of one or another participant into the final.
As you can see, if the list of favorites for men consists of representatives of the top ten of the rating, then for women, a more unpredictable and interesting struggle is expected. Australian title holder Ashleigh Barty does not defend her championship, so Wimbledon will definitely know the new winner.
It is also interesting that the seven-time winner of the trophy, American Serena Williams, showed up at Wimbledon 2022. Moreover, bookmakers do not consider her chances to be completely miserable. In the ranking of experts, she is in tenth place. You can bet on the final victory of Serena for 22.00, and for the exit to the decisive match – for 12.00.
Forecast
It is hard to argue with the forecasts of professional betting analysts this year. Yes, Rafael Nadal once again proved in Paris that he is a great champion by beating Novak Djokovic in the Roland Garros final. But being the king of the clay, the Spaniard does not feel as confident on the grass. He won Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010, but that was a different story. We think that in 2022 only health problems or an unfortunate injury can prevent the 35-year-old Novak Djokovic from defending last year’s title. Yes, and the motivation to win another TBSH from the Serb will be off the charts.
If among men the recognized aksakals continue to dominate, then among women the 21-year-old athlete has become the queen. Iga Šventek played the hard part of the season well, and didn’t give any opponent any chance on clay. Doubts arise due to the fact that the Pole sometimes fails matches on fast surfaces. So, in 1/8 at the last Wimbledon, she won the first game against Ons Jaber, but then merged 1:6, 1:6. And this year, in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, Danielle Rose Collins 4:6, 1:6 limply lost. But let’s hope that Iga will avoid such failures and at least reach the final, for which good quotes are also given.
