Andy Roddick predicted the men's draw for Wimbledon with several surprises, including three American players in the quarterfinals and an unprecedented champion for the tournament. The former world No. 1 analyzed the first-round matchups and projected paths, predicting several upsets at SW19, with three of the top-8 seeds eliminated in the first week.
The 3-time Wimbledon runner-up expects a strong performance from Novak Djokovic through to the tournament's final and assured that we will see a rematch of the exciting rivalry between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals. According to Roddick, the Italian will emerge victorious and then lift his second Grand Slam title.
Roddick commented that the top favorite in the upper half of the draw is world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, whom he expects to secure consecutive victories over Yannick Hanfmann, Matteo Berrettini, and Tallon Griekspoor in the first week.
The American expects Sinner to face an unseeded player in the fourth round, as he doesn't believe Nicolas Jarry (19th seed) or Ben Shelton (14th seed) will live up to their rankings. Roddick anticipates that Alex Michelsen (No. 62) will surprise other names in his part of the draw and challenge Sinner in the fourth round.
By ranking, the second favorite in the quarter is Daniil Medvedev, though Roddick believes the Russian will only reach the third round and fall to German Jan Lennard Struff, who has never been to the second week of Wimbledon.
However, it won't be Struff who advances further in the draw. In the fourth round, he would potentially face Dimitrov, and according to Roddick, the Bulgarian will progress to the quarterfinals, defeating Dusan Lajovic, Christian Garin, and Adrian Mannarino along the way.
The second quarter of the draw is led by world No. 3 and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, who Roddick says has a "pretty comfortable draw." The Spaniard is expected to secure victories against Mark Lajal, Sebastian Ofner, and Borna Coric before reaching the fourth round.
The rival to beat will then be Brandon Nakashima, who reached the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2022. Roddick believes Nakashima can repeat the feat this year, overcoming 16th seed Ugo Humbert.
The second favorite in this part of the draw will be Casper Ruud, who is on the opposite side of Alcaraz. The 8th seed is predicted by Roddick to reach the third round and fall to Lorenzo Sonego, another unseeded player who could reach the second week at the All England Club. There, Sonego would face American 12th seed Tommy Paul, who Roddick expects to advance to the quarterfinals, where he would face Carlos Alcaraz.
The second part of the draw features Andrey Rublev (6th) and Alexander Zverev (4th) as the main seeds. However, Roddick doesn't expect either of them to reach the quarterfinals.
Roddick predicts that Rublev will be surprised in the third round by 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti, who will make it to the fourth round. There, Musetti would face 20th seed Sebastian Korda, who Roddick expects to eliminate Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round.
As for Zverev, Roddick predicts he will reach the fourth round, even defeating British favorite Jack Draper in the third round. However, the former world No. 1 predicts that his compatriot Taylor Fritz will have a great campaign at Wimbledon and will advance to the quarterfinals, defeating Zverev and Alejandro Tabilo.
In the last quarter, the favorites are Hubert Hurkacz (No. 7) and Novak Djokovic (No. 2), both of whom Roddick expects to live up to their rankings and reach the quarterfinals. According to the American, 'Hubi' will defeat Alex De Minaur in the fourth round and face Djokovic in the quarterfinals.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion, who will play just three weeks after undergoing knee surgery, is expected by Roddick to advance despite physical issues: "Maybe he has one leg, I don’t know, and I still have him."
Djokovic will leave behind players like Tomas Etcheverry and Karen Khachanov and meet Hurkacz in the quarterfinals, which would be the only projected quarterfinal matchup between two top seeds.
Roddick predicts the quarterfinals will feature three American players, although only one will advance to the semifinals. Jannik Sinner is the favorite to win the title for the American former world No. 1, who expects to see him avenge his defeat to Alcaraz in the semifinals after losing to him in the same round at the French Open.
On the other hand, Djokovic is expected to advance to the tournament's final, defeating Hurkacz and Fritz along the way. Thus, Roddick predicts a final between Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic, with the Italian winning his second Grand Slam title.
Quarterfinals:
Semifinals:
Final: