Wimbledon 2021: Women's draw analysis, preview and prediction

Tennis action returns to the All England Club after a gap of two years, and the big names have arrived at SW19 in pursuit of one of the most coveted trophies in the world: the Venus Rosewater Dish. Defending champion Simona Halep is absent at this year's Wimbledon, but the 2019 finalist Serena Williams is very much in the mix.

The list of seeds has a good combination of grasscourt novices and experts. Petra Kvitova, Garbine Muguruza, Angelique Kerber and Venus Williams have all lifted the trophy in the past, but the likes of Ashleigh Barty, Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek will also be keen to make their impact felt.

Add to the mix a slew of in-form players including recently-crowned Roland Garros champion Barbora Krejcikova, French finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and grasscourt title winners from the season - Liudmila Samsanova and Ons Jabeur - and you have an incredibly competitive field.

With main draw action set to begin on Monday, here is a look at the prospects of the top names in the fray.

1st quarter: Victoria Azarenka, Barbora Krejcikova and Johanna Konta look to challenge top seed Ashleigh Barty

Top seeds: [1] Ashleigh Barty, [5] Bianca Andreescu, [12] Victoria Azarenka, [14] Barbora Krejcikova

Expected quarterfinal: Ashleigh Barty vs Bianca Andreescu

Dark horse: Marta Kostyuk

Ashleigh Barty will be playing for the first time since retiring from her second-round match at Roland Garros, and she finds herself in a tricky section of the draw. The top seed opens against Carla Suarez Navarro, who looked good on her return to the tour in Paris and stretched Sloane Stephens to three sets.

Johanna Konta is the first seed in Barty's path. Konta turned her season around with a title run at Nottingham earlier this month, but will need to continue playing at a high level if she wishes to get past dangerous floaters Katerina Siniakova and CoCo Vandeweghe.

Barbora Krejcikova (L) and Katerina Siniakova

Siniakova's doubles partner and reigning Roland Garros champion Barbora Krejcikova has an all-court game that is well-suited for grass. However, this could prove to be a big test for her mental strength as she enters the tournament with the spotlight on her.

Crowding the Czech's section are the likes of Clara Tauson, Andrea Petkovic, Anastasija Sevastova and Marta Kostyuk.

Victoria Azarenka will be the favorite to come through the other section, as she looks to have found some form on grass in the lead-up to Wimbledon. That said, the Belarusian could face some stiff resistance from the likes of Sorana Cirstea and Anett Konatveit en route the fourth round.

Azarenka's projected opponent at that stage, Bianca Andreescu, hasn't had the best of seasons so far. The Canadian will need to pull out something special to come through against in-form players like Alize Cornet, Daria Kasatkina and Jelena Ostapenko.

Predicted quarterfinal result: Viktoria Azarenka def. Ashleigh Barty

2nd quarter: Coco Gauff, Belinda Bencic and Elina Svitolina stand in the way of Serena Willaims' quest

Top seeds: [3] Elina Svitolina, [8] Serena Williams, [9] Belinda Bencic, [16] Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova

Expected quarterfinal: Elina Svitolina vs Serena Williams

Dark horse: Belinda Bencic

Serena Williams opens her quest for a 24th Major title against the flat-hitting Aliaksandra Sasnovic, who could well ask a few questions of the American. Serena would still be expected to progress at least until the third round, where she could face familiar foe Angelique Kerber.

Kerber, who beat Serena in the 2018 final of the Championships, looks to have struck form just in time; the German is currently into the semifinals of the Bad Homburg Open.

Another intriguing battle brewing in Serena's section is between Belinda Bencic and Coco Gauff, who are set to meet in the third round. While a lot has been said about Gauff's prospects in recent times, Bencic herself has posted a few big wins on grass.

The Swiss has incredible grasscourt acumen, and if playing at her best, should be one to watch out for.

Elina Svitolina will look to steady the ship after a largely hit-and-miss season, but faces a tough opener against the crafty Alison van Uytvanck. Things don't get any easier for Svitolina, as the likes of Amanda Anisimova and Paula Badosa loom ahead.

Elsewhere in the section, former quarterfinalists Karolina Muchova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova are on a collision course. If Pavlyuchenkova can come through her opener against the talented Ana Bogdan, she should have enough momentum to reach the third round.

Muchova, on the other hand, will need to be wary of the mercurial Camila Giorgi, who could potentially waiting in round two.

Predicted quarterfinal result: Serena Williams def. Karolina Muchova

3rd quarter: Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova look to renew their love affair with grass

Top seeds: [4] Sofia Kenin, [8] Karolina Pliskova, [10] Petra Kvitova, [13] Elise Merterns

Expected quarterfinal: Sofia Kenin vs Karolina Pliskova

Dark horse: Veronika Kudermetova

The Czech duo of Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova - who have a total of seven grasscourt titles between them - are projected to meet in the fourth round. That said, they have both drawn tough opening-round opponents.

The eighth-seeded Pliskova opens against Roland Garros semifinalist Tamara Zidansek. If Pliskova can manage a win there, she has a straightforward path ahead. But given the 29-year-old's recent form, the Zidansek match could prove to a bit of a battle.

Kvitova has arguably the toughest first-round encounter amongst all the seeds; the Czech has been drawn to play fellow Grand Slam champion Sloane Stephens. And while Kvitova has an edge over her opponent on grass, the American could certainly offer a big test.

Kvitova had injury concerns coming into the grasscourt season, but if fully fit, she could prove strong enough to navigate past her quarter. The two-time champion will definitely be eyeing a big run, and the match against Stephens, along with a prospective third-round match against Liudmila Samsonova, will be key in Kvitova's title ambitions.

Both Elise Mertens and Sofia Kenin have been given plenty of breathing room in their section. A hot-and-cold Madison Keys is all that stands in Mertens' path to the fourth round, but Kenin could have her work cut out against the big-serving Veronika Kudermetova in the third round.

Predicted quarterfinal result: Petra Kvitova def. Elise Merterns

4th quarter: Garbine Muguruza, Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka fight for supremacy

Top seeds: [2] Aryna Sabalenka, [7] Iga Swiatek, [11] Garbine Muguruza, [13] Maria Sakkari

Expected quarterfinal: Aryna Sabalenka vs Iga Swiatek

Dark horse: Ons Jabeur

Iga Swiatek's lack of familiarity with grass might come to the fore in her opening few matches. The youngster is set to take on a bunch of players who have staged big upsets at SW19 in the past.

Swiatek opens with a potentially tricky encounter against Hsieh Su-Wei. Hsieh has an unorthodox game featuring a lot of slice returns and quick redirections, which work well particularly on grass. She has also made the third round or better at Wimbledon in the last two editions, and will be sensing another opporutnity here.

The winner of the Swiatek-Hsieh matchup could take on 2010 runner-up Vera Zvonereva in the second round, with another strong all-court player in the form of Petra Martic awaiting in the third.

Ons Jabeur ended her long wait for a WTA title in Eastbourne last week, and will enter Wimbledon brimming with confidence. If she can get past the early round jitters, the Tunisian could set a mouthwatering third-round encounter against 2017 champion Garbine Muguruza.

Aryna Sabalenka enters the tournament saddled with the uncomfortable knowledge that she has never progressed past the second round. That could change this year though, as the second seed doesn't face a top 100 player until the third round.

Sabalenka's first real test could come in the form of the big-hitting Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova in the Round of 32.

Maria Sakkari and Elena Rynakina could find themselves locked in a close third-round tussle, assuming they come through the first couple of rounds. Rybakina has a game that is tailor-made for grass, replete with a strong serve and flat groundstrokes, and she could well cause an upset or two this year.

Predicted quarterfinal result: Garbine Muguruza def. Elena Rybakina