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Wimbledon Preview
By
The B Man
Outsports.com
The next major is upon
us, the Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam
event of the calendar year. Expect a rainy day or two over the
“fortnight.” Here’s a quick guide to some concepts, ideas, and
players you need to know, too.
The Grass Difference.
A dry, short-ut grass court surface is arguably the fastest
playing surface in the sport. This means points may last only a few
shots, definitely not the long rallies we were accustomed to
enjoying at the French Open. When grass is moist, the ball plays
“heavier” – it doesn’t move as quickly. The problem with moist grass
is that it’s slick, however, so don’t expect to see players out on
court too long if rain starts falling.
Spin City.
Although a number of top players are known to strike the ball
flatly rather than impart topspin, slices and spins really are the
name of the game at Wimbledon. Approach shots hit with a lot of
“junk”, or spin, bounce lower and more unpredictably, robbing an
opponent of her or his opportunity to set up for a shot and really
crank a groundstroke. Backspin, in particular, works magnificently
at Wimbledon because it ensures a low bounce from the ball, which
opponents may need to “hit up” and right into the aggressor’s range
of volley. Further, taller players like Venus Williams or Mark
Philippoussis have to be precise with their footwork and constantly
be bending well at the knees to get down for a heavily spun shot.
The Complete Grass Game?
Take one big serve, add a well-placed second serve, mix in a
propensity for defending the baseline and taking the ball early, and
add generous helpings of wizardry, or even just derring-do, at the
net, and you’ve got a real contender for the title.
Ones to Watch.
A handful of players are privileged to begin the elite event
having scored significant wins on the grass surface. Svetlana
Kuznetsova, a quarterfinalist here last year, and Daniela Hantuchova
just fought for the title at Eastbourne (Kuznetsova won). To her
credit, Hantuchova beat former Wimbledon semifinalist Amelie
Mauresmo en route to the final. Mary Pierce won her first title on
grass just days before play was scheduled to begin at The All
England Lawn Tennis Club, and just a week before Maria Sharapova
announced herself a force to be strongly considered, too, by winning
in Birmingham.
Perennial favorites include Serena Williams, of course, the two
time defending champion and her sister Venus, twice the titlist and
twice the finalist. Venus’s draw is lousy with old foes: Meghann
Shaughnessy and Magdalena Maleeva loom. French Open finalists
Anastasia Myskina and Elena Dementieva are seeded to potentially
meet in the quarters.
The top players elected to get their Wimbledon tune-ups early: Roger
Federer and Andy Roddick played and won events weeks before the
start of play at Wimbledon this year. A strong cast of capable
players were still on the courts scrapping for points until the last
moments. Guillermo Coria, never good on grass, earned a final berth
at The Ordina Open in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, much to
everyone’s surprise. At the popular Nottingham warm-up, Paradorn
Srichaphan dispatched a resurgent Thomas Johansson to earn his first
title of the year and his first title on grass. Both men had
impressive runs. Scrichaphan beat Wayne Ferreira and the big-serving
Robin Soderling of Sweden, while Johansson defeated defending
champion Greg Rusedski and American Taylor Dent, a player with a big
serve and potentially upsetting serve-and-volley game.
Have your say on the
Wimbledon threads on our Discussion Board.
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