There are no shortage of storylines when Wimbledon begins next week, especially after what unfolded at Roland Garros.
That was where there were No.1 v No.2 men's and women's singles finals, but that might not happen at the All England Club given less players are truly comfortable on the lawns.
This could explain recent surprising results on the women's side at Wimbledon, and the unpredictability of this year's grasscourt season. Yet world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka will be looking to restore order while rediscovering the feeling of hoisting a Slam trophy.
All signs point to Carlos Alcaraz completing a Wimbledon hat-trick, but he'll have contemporary rival Jannik Sinner to fend off, as well as the legendary Novak Djokovic, who believes Wimbledon may be his best shot at another major title.
Or will the champion be a player not named Alcaraz, Sinner or Djokovic, becoming the first man to win a Slam outside of that trio since 2022?
We unpack all of this, and more, in our latest edition of Expert Picks.
Our experts
Casey Dellacqua: Former world No.26 and 2013 Wimbledon doubles finalist
Wally Masur: Former world No.15 and previous Australian Davis Cup captain
Simon Rea: Former coach of Sam Stosur and Nick Kyrgios
Sabalenka has reached three straight major finals, but lost her last two. Is Wimbledon where she bounces back and reigns again?
DELLACQUA: “I think we know her character and I think we know the type of resilience and fight that she has because we've seen it for years on tour now. In terms of mentally how she's gonna have to switch her mindset to get quickly back to: 'OK, now it's about the grass, now it's about Wimbledon and just focus on the next match'. I think as tennis players, that's something that we're so good at. For Sabalenka, she's played another event in Berlin since then, she looks happy from all the social stuff I've seen. Happy to be back at Wimbledon. But it definitely will be a big test to see how she bounces back mentally after those Slam final losses.
"Going into the French Open, all a lot of the commentators were talking about was around the fact that she had been the best performing, most consistent player; there was just so much that put her in the best position to win. But I think going into Wimbledon, it's much more open. Maybe that might just free up Sabalenka a little bit more, to be not the player on the tip of everyone's tongue of being in the best form?"
MASUR: "I think [Roland Garros was] maybe just a little bit of a wake up call for her, but I do think she's more damaging on grass because I think she's capable of forcing more errors. It's much harder for a player like Coco Gauff to defend on the grass as she might on the clay. You can't drop as deep, you can't slide to the point of contact necessarily consistently, the footing could be a little bit more unsure. A penetrating ball just has a bit more ability to get through the court. I've got Sabalenka and Rybakina in brackets here, because they're the two most powerful players, and in my opinion, if they get it right on the grass, they'd be the two to watch.
"You'd hope [Sabalenka would be] more motivated and she's obviously doing everything she can to be the best player she can. There's times in your career where you rely on the people around you to be a good sounding board: 'OK, the French didn't go our way. That was a major moment, that was a Grand Slam title gone. What are we gonna do about it at Wimbledon? How do we regroup, and, what's the mindset and what do we need to work on?' She's worked on her serve, she's worked on her mentality, she's worked on her confidence, she's worked on variety. And all of those things will hold her in good stead."
REA: "She looks the logical one, doesn't she? I think a game style that has to be incredibly well-suited to the grass courts. Loves to play from on top of the point, has plenty of weapons that enable her to do so. Has the fire in the belly, if you like, of the disappointment stinging from being so close at Roland Garros. And to be frank, has been the dominant player in the world so far across the 2025 season. So she goes into Wimbledon with conditions that suit, in my mind, as the deserved favourite."
The women’s game has become increasingly consistent, but Wimbledon feels more open than the other Slams, as does grasscourt tennis more generally. Who are the threats to watch?
DELLACQUA: "Grass is not a surface that a lot of players, besides the few weeks of the year, really play or practise on. So there's still that game style that definitely allows those players, like a Tatjana Maria, Marketa Vondrousova, or Barbora Krejcikova, with their variety, to really expose big hitting players. I definitely think it's much more of a even playing field. Particularly having won the championships before, and then obviously coming off the back Berlin, Vondrousova's probably one of my one to watch. The way that she takes returns early, as a lefty, her patterns of play, she's able to get that serve jamming those big-hitting returners like Sabalenka. She just has the ability to find her best tennis on the grass. She's obviously had a fair few injuries, but I think she's in a good place where she seems injury free, she seems happy and she seems like she's really grateful to be back playing."
MASUR: "I'm just writing some names here. I've written Vondrousova, who's just won a tournament, and we know that she can be on grass. Madison Keys. Svitolina doesn't do a lot wrong, ever, on any surface. Qinwen Zheng, she's obviously getting better and better all the time. Same with Mirra Andreeva. Gauff's gonna be there, or thereabouts. Don't discount Jessica Pegula. Paolini's done it once before [by reaching the final]; why can't she do it again? I think if Rybakina and Sabalenka play their best, they've got the grasscourt game to dominate most opponents. But I think there's a host of players that can either upset them or have a great run."
REA: "If I'm a good server and I've got some offensive weapons in my arsenal and I get on a grass court, the effect of that serve is amplified. I'm that much harder to break. I find myself still in the arm wrestle, and deep in sets, on serve at 5-5, and I get a little bit of luck. Sometimes the rub of the green - pardon the pun - does go my way, and all of a sudden I'm 15-30 at 5-5, whereas on a hard court or a clay court perhaps I've kissed goodbye to that opportunity in the first set.
"So who am I looking at? Vondrousova, that's been a surge kind of out of nowhere. I'm thinking that Madison Keys can be around the mark, potentially as someone that at her best on a grass court can almost take the racquet out of even the likes of Sabalenka's hands. I think someone like Emma Navarro could be a handy watch on grass. I think she's got some variety in her game, some terrific court craft and a high degree of skill and gets a little bit more value for her serve on grass than she might in in other conditions. And I think we're forgetting about Rybakina; if she's not back to her best, then she's not far off it."
Carlos Alcaraz is the two-time defending Wimbledon champion, and just won Queen’s again. Will he complete a hat-trick at the All England Club?
DELLACQUA: "Yes, he will win Wimbledon again... unless we're dealing with like an injury or something that gets a curveball that gets thrown Carlos's way, he will win Wimbledon. I don't even know what more to say, but I think he'll win Wimbledon (laughter). In terms of the tennis he's producing, the form, the confidence, the management of himself post Roland Garros - like going to Ibiza, just having some time off, being so smart with knowing what he needs - for me it's just that. He's smart in terms of taking the time off, getting his body properly right, then goes and wins Queen's. I think he's set for another Wimbledon win. I don't know how players kind of break his game down."
MASUR: "I've got him as my favourite, for those very reasons. It's a bit hard to go past him right now because what a preparation. [Wins] the French, no let down, wins Queen's. I mean, that's perfect. And he obviously got better as the tournament went on. But now he has a couple of days off. He can play a few practice matches, work on the little things he needs to. He's in a perfect position."
REA: "Probably a similar answer to what I gave on the women's side with Sabalenka. Logically, he looks at the peak of his powers. We know how well he operates on a grass court and he's got the form straight off the back of Roland Garros to prove that. He's healthy, he's fit, he's happy, and he's a daunting prospect at any time, particularly at SW19."
Novak Djokovic has reached the semifinals at the past two Slams, and the past two Wimbledon finals. How close is he to achieving that record 25th major title?
DELLACQUA: "I think Novak Djokovic winning Wimbledon is a very realistic prediction. I think things have to happen in the draw, like Alcaraz out of his way, or perhaps getting a surprise loss or something. But that's tennis, and you have to put yourself in the draw. You have to put yourself in the best position physically that you actually can. I think Novak would be going into Wimbledon feeling pretty confident. Because his Roland Garros, and claycourt season, was actually really good. He's beating some really good players pretty comfortably. I think if there's a chance that things fall in his way, I can imagine us sitting here post Wimbledon talking about the fact that Novak has won it, and it wouldn't surprise me."
MASUR: "I just cannot discount Djokovic on grass. I thought he played well at the French; he played well against Sinner. He kind of rolled the dice a bit on his forehand, he played a bit bigger than he might normally. He put a lot of scoreboard pressure on Jannik. And on grass he's a little better against the field, in my opinion, just given his experience and the way he sort of understands the nature of the surface. I don't think he's too far off [the level required to win]. This surface elevates him against the field.
"Not being seeded in the top four... It hurt him a little bit at the French, didn't it? So that's a little complicated, and depending on how the draw plays out at Wimbledon, it could be a similar scenario [where he had to beat three top-four seeds to win Roland Garros] and that's a massive ask for anybody, let alone a 38-year-old, because they're punishing matches irrespective of which round you meet them in. [But] is he there, or thereabouts? He sure is."
REA: "How far is he off the level? Not far. It just speaks to the mark of the man, the mark of the champion. When you think about Novak's 2025 campaign at face value, you're thinking 'disappointing', 'underwhelming', 'not to the same lofty standards that we've come to expect'. But then you think, at the pinnacle events in 2025 thus far, he's right there in the last four. And now I think, is it here at Wimbledon, or is it New York? I think it's more likely at Wimbledon where conditions suit. So is that enough to provide that additional boost to find his way through? I think if he gets to the final, rather than the semifinal, then strap in, because all bets are off. And can it be done? Yeah. I'm certainly not gonna sit here and deny arguably the greatest champion of all time.
"I think he's defied, at the Australian Open and in Paris at the French Open, the trend of perhaps his overall performance over the last year or two. And I think his chances of defying that trend are even better at Wimbledon."
If not Djokovic, who is best placed to stop Alcaraz or Sinner winning a 7th straight major title between them?
DELLACQUA: "You know who on a grass court I feel eventually would do some damage at Wimbledon? A Ben Shelton, for example. I feel like Shelton's just the lefty again, that ability to have big weapons and serve players off the court, hit big. The other one is Jack Draper. He's definitely a possibility there. I just don't know what position he is in physically, but I think at full health, with the British crowd behind him, I definitely think that he might be one. A couple of lefties in there that could really probably throw us all a curve ball and just come out and beat Alcaraz."
MASUR: "You've got Jack Draper playing some great tennis. Obviously the crowd would be right behind him, he's got a big lefty serve, dangerous player, improving all the time, his mobility, his strength, his endurance. Does he lift, or does he feel pressure? Zverev, he's there or thereabouts; anybody that serves that big [is a contender], and he competes. I watched some of the tennis Bublik played at the French, and I thought, why can't this guy be really good on grass? He got a cannon for a serve. He's got really penetrating flat ground shots, moves well, he's got great reach, he's pretty creative. And he went and played well in one of the lead up events [winning Halle]. Even though it hasn't quite played out for Ben Shelton on the grass, he lost 7-6 7-6 to Zverev [in Stuttgart] and then he lost 7-6 7-6 in the first round of Queen's. When you serve like that, you're in every set, in every match. Taylor Fritz always plays well on grass. I've always liked Jiri Lehecka; I had the fortune of commentating on him at United Cup and the AO, and he was great. Good mover, dynamic, competes, he won a few matches on the grass too [reaching the Queen's final]. And I would include Demon and Popyrin in that; they're not afraid of grass and can do damage."
REA: "You would need one of the following names I'm gonna mention to produce arguably their best possible level of tennis, and that may not be enough, and you'd be relying on either Sinner or Alcaraz or Djokovic being slightly less than than their best. If you have those two circumstances combining, I think potentially the upset's on.
"I'm thinking someone like a Ben Shelton; I think the weapons that he brings to the court, [plus] that ability to almost make the opponent irrelevant from the perspective of the firepower, the athleticism, the physicality that he possesses when he is at his best. I don't think Fritz has been beyond a quarterfinal at Wimbledon, but I think he gets great reward on the grass for his weapons and clearly for his serve. I'm not sure Draper's as well suited to the grass court as he may be to hard or even clay. But certainly the locals will be doing everything in their power to try to have him right there at the business end of the tournament. And I think Demon is a great chance for similar reasons. He's kind of flying under the radar and perhaps had a less-than-stellar preparation. But I still think he can find his way into the second week and certainly be around the mark come quarterfinal time."
Who will win the men’s and women’s singles titles?
DELLACQUA: "Alcaraz, and let's go Vondrousova. Why not? I feel like she's going to be a two-time Wimbledon champ. Or you know who could win it? It's Rybakina. She played really well against Sabalenka in Berlin. So there's some good signs for Rybakina. But let's go with Vondrousova."
MASUR: "Sabalenka and Alcaraz. Really going out on a limb (laughter)."
REA: "I did say Sabalenka and Alacraz go in almost as prohibitive favourites, but I'm gonna go heart over head. I can see Sinner responding to that heartbreak in Paris, and getting it done. I can see him turning the tables; I can see the camp really going to work on that match-up [against Alcaraz] which has been problematic for him in recent times. Only just, but still problematic. So I'm gonna pick Sinner in the men's, and I'm gonna pick Rybakina in the woman's. I think she brings her best, and I think she finds herself right around the mark."