Wimbledon

2021 Wimbledon: Featured first-round match-ups

By Ed McGrogan

Published Friday, Jun 25, 2021 10:58 AM

Ranked 61st but always a threat at SW19, Nick Kyrgios—whose last Wimbledon match was a four-set loss to Rafael Nadal—will face talented youngster Ugo Humbert.
Roger Federer returns to the All England Club seeking his ninth Wimbledon title—and trying to wipe away the sting of the 2019 final. After pulling out of Roland Garros as a precautionary measure, the 39-year-old will face Adrian Mannarino in the first round. (He's also away from Djokovic's half of the draw.)
Iga Swiatek has never won a main-draw match at Wimbledon. She'll get another chance when she faces the crafty Hsieh-Su Wei.
If Novak Djokovic is to win his 20th Grand Slam title—and continue on his quest for a calendar-year Slam—he'll first need to get by 19-year-old Brit Jack Draper.
Sebastian Korda will play in the main draw for the first time, with the 20-year-old American drawing Alex de Minaur.
Daniil Medvedev said he didn't like clay, but he did pretty well at Roland Garros. How about grass? He's currently doing well in Mallorca; at Wimbledon, he'll face Jan-Lennard Struff in the first round.
Coco Gauff's last first-round match at Wimbledon was her coming-out party, having defeated Venus Williams. This year's opening-rounder won't be as star-studded, but it will still receive plenty of attention, as Britain's Fran Jones opposes the talented teen.
Sloane Stephens got one of the most difficult draws an unseeded player could ask for at the All England Club: a date with two-time champion Petra Kvitova.
For all Andreescu has already achieved, she's never won a main-draw match at Wimbledon. The 21-year-old Canadian will be asked to do plenty against veteran Alize Cornet.
Serena Williams has Grand Slam singles title No. 24 on her mind; before that, though, she'll only be thinking about her first-round opponent, Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
Andy Murray needed a wild card to get into Wimbledon, and his last memorable moment at the tournament came when he played mixed doubles with Serena. But the beloved two-time champion will try and rekindle great Centre Court memories when he faces Nikoloz Basilashvili.
French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova is 1-3 at Wimbledon—all in qualifying matches. Her first-rounder against 18-year-old Dane Clara Tauson won't be an easy introduction to the main draw.
Like Murray, iconic former champion Venus Williams needed a wild card into Wimbledon. But Mihaela Buzarnescu will try to make the most of her opportunity, as well.
Fresh off a runner-up finish at the French Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas will try to take the final step towards his first major at Wimbledon. In the first round, though, he gets a tough test in Frances Tiafoe.
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