There is no clear favourite for the Wimbledon Women’s Singles event this year.
Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Coco Gauff, and defending champion Iga Świątek – the usual candidates for major honours over the past few years – have all demonstrated poor form in the lead-up to this year’s grass-court extravaganza.
Mirra Andreeva, who recently won her first major title at Roland Garros, has also failed to impress on the grass so far.
Who will win the women’s Wimbledon title this year?
Vote now!
The Russian was defeated in her first grass-court match of the year by Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Rick Macci, the former coach of Serena and Venus Williams, has offered his take on the Wimbledon frontrunners.
Rick Macci picks Elena Rybakina to win the Wimbledon title
Macci, who aided the tennis development of the Williams sisters during the early stages of their tennis careers, has selected his favourites for the Wimbledon singles titles.
The American coach, who has also worked with Andy Roddick and Maria Sharapova, believes Jannik Sinner will win the Wimbledon Men’s Singles title.
“Sinner is my pick but the heat could be the wildcard with him again,” Macci said on social media platform X, referring to Sinner’s struggles at Roland Garros last month.
“The Joker [Novak Djokovic] moves unreal on grass and he is next in line but could play Sinner in the semis,” Macci continued.
Macci, born in Greenville, Ohio, then turned his attention towards the women’s singles event.
“My pick is Rybakina if her serve and mindset are locked in,” the 71-year-old said.
Rybakina, the world number two, has been in poor form over the past month.
Elena Rybakina’s grass-court results this year
- Queen’s: defeated Tatjana Maria 6-7, 7-5, 6-0
- Queen’s: lost to Katie Boulter 5-7, 6-2, 4-6
- Berlin Open: lost to Alexandra Eala 5-7, 4-6
The Kazakhstani player, who triumphed at the Australian Open earlier this year, has won only one of her three grass-court matches heading into Wimbledon this year.
However, tennis fans know all too well about Rybakina’s ability on the surface.
The 27-year-old won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2022, beating Ons Jabeur in the final.
Who are you most worried about heading into Wimbledon – Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Coco Gauff, or Iga Swiatek?
Some of the biggest names on the WTA Tour are in poor form…
Macci has also named Jessica Pegula and Karolina Muchova as his dark horses for the Wimbledon title.
Both players have performed well on the grass in the lead-up to Wimbledon.
Muchova won the Bad Homburg title on Saturday, while Pegula reached the Berlin Open final earlier this month.
Elena Rybakina’s 2022 Wimbledon title
Rybakina was not among the favourites for the 2022 Wimbledon title.
The Kazakhastani star was seeded 16th at the event and had failed to advance past the fourth round in her two previous attempts.
Rybakina defied the odds in London, dropping precisely zero sets on her way to the quarter-finals in London.
Rybakina defeated Coco Vandeweghe, Bianca Andreescu, Qinwen Zheng and Petra Martic on her way to the last eight.
The youngster then defeated Alja Tomljanovic 4-6, 6-2, 6-3; booking her place in her first Wimbledon semi-final.
Rybakina comfortably defeated former champion Simona Halep in the semi-finals, winning 6-3, 6-3.
She then fought from a set down in the final to defeat Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.
Rybakina became the first Kazakhstani and the first Asian singles player to win Wimbledon.
“Maybe I proved that not always you have to have great team from the young age, because I didn’t ’til the age of 17, 18,” Rybakina said afterwards. “So I think this is the most important thing, that everybody, no matter their financial situation, no matter who they are, they can play and achieve many great results.
“And to myself that I can actually win a Grand Slam. Believe more in myself, and maybe I can win more Grand Slams. Who knows? But for sure that’s the goal, and that’s what I’m going to work for.”
