Someone mentioned to me the other day that it’s been 15 years since I won Wimbledon… It’s crazy how time flies.
Looking ahead to this year’s Wimbledon, I expect a good run from Serena Williams. There’s no question that losses motivate her much more than the wins, and the second round defeat in Paris was, I would imagine, a huge wakeup call.
She now goes into the end part of June with no Grand Slam titles for 2014 – she’s not really used to that. She’s now trying to get more Grand Slam titles, to surpass Chris (Evert) and Martina (Navratilova) and she’d be pretty disappointed if she doesn’t do that.
I would imagine that she has been practicing very hard, is very focused and very motivated to do well here at Wimbledon. I wouldn’t bet against her.
As for Maria Sharapova, she’s always going to be a threat at Wimbledon, irrespective of her success on clay, because the biggest obstacle for any player is whether you’re comfortable on the grass or not. It’s a mental block and a lot of players never get over that.
For Maria, I think her Wimbledon success changed after her shoulder surgery. It’s very heavy at Wimbledon, the balls are heavier, the courts play fast and it’s very tough on your arms. I think that is a factor in her lack of success the last few years compared to the beginning of her career.
The success she’d had on clay to me is just a direct result of her training incredibly hard, her wanting it so badly. It’s so tough to not be comfortable on that surface and then to master it. Very few champions have that mindset. Sharapova is always going to be dangerous but it’s very tough to be a threat at Wimbledon after you’ve done well at the French Open.
Mentally and physically, it probably took so much out of Sharapova, I think it would be a stretch to put her as the top favourite.
It was nice to see the next tier of players stepping up and living up to the hype in Paris. It would be great to see that at Wimbledon too.
The first one I go for is Eugenie Bouchard. Unfortunately for Bouchard she’s got Serena possibly in the round of 16. But I think that she is a player who enjoys the grass and that in the future, she will be a real threat at Wimbledon.
In the men’s side, it will be interesting to see Andy Murray start as the defending champion. Fortunately for Murray he’s got a pretty nice draw in the first week that will hopefully – if he can get through some of those matches – get rid of the nerves.
I was probably as surprised as anybody when he appointed Amelie Mauresmo as his coach. Amelie has got an amazing personality – she’s very open but she’s also very calm, especially since she stopped playing.
If you ever spent any time with her, she’s got this great light about her and she’s very relaxed and I’d imagine she will bring a certain aura of calmness around the Murray camp.
For Rafael Nadal, I would always hate to bet against him but he has been given a pretty brutal draw against a lot of players who have the big, power games.
He did such a great job doing so well on the surface, winning two titles and making the final five times. But it’s similar to Sharapova, it’s so tough to come back after the French and be ready for grass in two weeks time.
I have so much admiration for him doing well on grass, but I think it will be tough for him.
Of the other Americans we can look out for besides Serena, Madison Keys has just put on a great performance in Eastbourne. She hits the ball harder than anyone on tour and if she can rein that power in, if she can get more control, she’s going to be a huge threat on this surface.
Who knows if it will be this year, but certainly in the years to come, she’s a player to keep an eye out for.
(Lindsay Davenport is an HSBC Ambassador. As the Official Banking Partner to The Championships, HSBC is helping fans get closer to Wimbledon)
