Wimbledon’s daily Order of Play can seem more like chaos, with dozens of matches taking place around the grounds. Each day during The Championships, we’ll write about three must-see matchups.
Justine Henin vs. Nadia Petrova (Centre Court, first match)
Henin has won her first two matches in straight sets, but her latest performance still raised questions about her form. Facing Kristina Barrois, the Belgian served for the match up a double-break. It was a good thing she had the insurance, as her 5-1 lead evaporated in minutes. Henin held on in the end, but she hasn’t convinced me that she’s a serious threat to win Wimbledon, the only Grand Slam title that eludes her. In fact, she may not even reach the fourth round. Petrova’s flat, penetrating strokes work well on grass, and her serve is more consistent than Henin’s. If the Russian can keep the ball in play, she has a great shot to advance. The pick: Petrova in three
Gael Monfils vs. Lleyton Hewitt (Centre Court, second match)
Monfils has never been past the third round of Wimbledon and I don’t expect that to change this year. The Frenchman makes a living off of first-strike tennis, pouncing on short balls with huge, uppercut swings. But Hewitt’s too smart and accurate to give Monfils those looks. He’ll move him around the court—like he did to Roger Federer in the Halle final—and keep the atomic forehands to a minimum. One thing Monfils could benefit from is his serve, which nears 140 m.p.h. on occasion. Hitting a few of those wouldn’t be a bad idea; it’s all Hewitt once the rallies begin. The pick: Hewitt in four
Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Andy Roddick (Court 1, third match)
The last time these two met was in the third round of the 2008 Australian Open, where Kohlschreiber won 8-6 in the fifth. The German rode his one-handed backhand to victory, putting the shot wherever he pleased and doing so with tremendous pop. That’s much harder to do on the grass, where the ball stays lower to the ground. But Kohlschreiber’s bigger problem is his opponent, who’s improved tremendously since then. Roddick is much more patient nowadays and has developed a reliable slice backhand that could trouble Kohlschreiber on turf. Revenge is coming. The pick: Roddick in three
Ed McGrogan is an assistant editor for TENNIS.com. Follow him on Twitter.