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Everyone is eagerly awaiting the start of Wimbledon 2025, which gets underway on Monday, June 30. Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is the top choice to win the men's singles title. He successfully defended his French Open title and recently picked up another trophy at Queen's Club.
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner is another title contender, along with 24-time Major champion Novak Djokovic. Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff are the frontrunners on the women's side, along with some other notable names such as Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek, and Madison Keys.
However, not all top players are expected to survive the first few rounds at this year's Wimbledon for a multitude of reasons. On that note, here are five players one should not bet on at Wimbledon 2025:
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#5. Barbora Krejcikova
Krejcikova is the defending champion in women's singles, though expectations aren't high from her given her situation. She has played only six matches this year as she was sidelined for most of the season due to an injury. She returned to action a week before the French Open, where she made the second round.
She started her grass swing with a first-round exit from the HSBC Championships at Queen's Club. Things were falling into place for her at this week's Eastbourne Open. She staged an escape act in the first and second rounds, saving multiple match points to get over the finish line.
Unfortunately, Krejcikova withdrew from the tournament after that due to a thigh injury. The extent of the injury isn't known, though she wasn't going to take any chances with Wimbledon being days away. Venus and Serena Williams are the only two women to defend their Wimbledon title this century. A title defense was going to be a tall order for the Czech even without her injury woes.
#4. Ben Shelton
Shelton advanced to the semifinals of the Australian Open for the first time this year. He also made the fourth round of the French Open, a new career highlight for him. A semifinal showing in Stuttgart at the start of the grass swing resulted in his top 10 debut. He also reached the fourth round of Wimbledon a year ago.
In theory, this should make Shelton a good candidate to make a deep run at SW19. However, he will head to Wimbledon on a three-match losing streak. After his semifinal loss to Alexander Zverev in Stuttgart, he crashed out in the first round of his next two tournaments. His recent form doesn't point to a lengthy stay in London this time.
#3. Jack Draper
Draper has taken his career to the next level this year. He's currently at a career-high ranking of No. 4 and is a Masters 1000 champion as well. He made the semifinals at Queen's Club, which on paper should indicate that he's ready to make some noise at Wimbledon.
However, Draper has been absolutely dismal at his home Slam so far, with a 2-3 record. The pressure of performing in front of the home crowd has led to this. He usually registers a decent result in the lead-up to Wimbledon but ends up bombing at SW19. Carrying the burden of an entire nation is a heavy cross to bear, and it could weigh the young Brit down once again.
#2. Zheng Qinwen
Zheng is one of the few top 10 players who could bow out quite early from this year's Wimbledon. With a 5-9 career record on grass, her chances of doing well here are quite low.
Zheng made the third round at the All England Club on her debut in 2022, though she hasn't cleared the first hurdle for the past two years. She hasn't won more than two matches in a row on grass so far. A deep run from her would be quite surprising despite her considerable talents.
#1. Alexander Zverev
It's safe to say at this point that Wimbledon isn't Zverev's happy place. He has been on the tour for a decade now, and yet he hasn't made a breakthrough at the grass-court Major. Since his debut at SW19 in 2015, he has compiled a 16-8 record.
Zverev has only gone as far as the fourth round here, reaching this stage twice. A Major title is the only achievement missing from his impressive resume. However, there are too many candidates who could upset him on the grass right from the first round.
Despite some strong results, including a runner-up finish in Stuttgart a couple of weeks ago, one cannot count on Zverev to make an impact at the grass-court Major this time. He craves a Major title badly, but he will have to wait until the US Open to have a shot at Grand Slam glory.
