The Wimbledon tennis tournament completed roughly half of its matches on Tuesday, as rain arrived in the middle of the afternoon to slowdown the action and our tennis picks. A few first-round clashes have not yet been played, but they will wrap up early on Wednesday, weather permitting. Some of our tennis picks from Tuesday didn’t finish up as we’re still waiting on Heather Watson to finish up her contest with Annika Beck (which didn’t even get started) and we’re waiting on Petra Kvitova in her showdown as well. However, we did get one matchup finished and we were able to cash with Svetlana Kuznetsova. She took down Caroline Wozniacki as expected. Woz, the former world No. 1, has been a shadow of her former self and she showed that once again in this spot.
Later on Wednesday, you’ll see the second road kick into high gear, as the huge volume of matches whittles down the field, one by one. Here are our tennis picks for the day.
Samantha Stosur vs. Sabine Lisicki
This is a matchup of players who have both played Grand Slam finals, but only Stosur has won. Lisicki fell short in the 2013 Wimbledon final to Marion Bartoli. Some might think that since Stosur has won a Grand Slam title, and since she made the semifinals at Roland Garros a few weeks ago while Lisicki did absolutely nothing in the tournament, Stosur should be favored here. Stosur is also seeded at 14, while Lisicki is unseeded. Stosur is the pick, right?
Wrong.
Lisicki is not a consistent player at all, but people who follow tennis know she’s very strong at Wimbledon. She reached a semifinal in 2011 before losing to Maria Sharapova. She’s made the quarterfinals three other times at Wimbledon. She hasn’t gotten past the fourth round of any of the other three Grand Slam events. This is her specialty. This is where she feels comfortable. This is where a lot of her problems might not necessarily go away, but they cease to be especially difficult and insurmountable. Lisicki loves playing on grass, and Stosur does not. Stosur would be favored on clay or hardcourt, but not at Wimbledon.
Pick: Lisicki in three sets
Simona Halep vs. Francesca Schiavone
This is a matchup of players who love to hit the ball with all sorts of speeds and angles and trajectories. They can hit any style of shot, but not necessarily hit the ball harder than anyone else – that’s not their game. Schiavone, now in her late 30s, is simply playing for the love of the game. This makes her relaxed, because she realizes she’s no longer playing with pressure. She’s a clay specialist, so this means that on grass, she has nothing to lose.
Halep made the semifinals of Wimbledon in 2014. She has a lot to lose. She’s in her mid-20s and is trying to become the best female tennis player in the world. However, injuries keep getting in her way. She has suffered an inconsistent season and is searching for any way to get out of her slump. Halep has gone through a rough year, but Schiavone – who lacks power from the baseline – is not the kind of opponent who is likely to give her trouble. Take Halep with your tennis picks in this spot.
Pick: Halep in three sets
Jana Cepelova vs. Garbine Muguruza
This is a match which should be very straightforward. Muguruza dealt with a much tougher player than Cepelova in the first round. Camila Giorgi pushed Muguruza deep into a final set. After getting through that challenge, Muguruza should be relaxed and ready when she takes the court on Wednesday. We did see Mugurzua struggle at a recent event in Madrid right after she won the French Open, but we can attest that to the fact that she had a little bit of a hangover from her first grand slam victory. That was understandable. In this particular situation, she should be far crisper. This should be a blowout, so take her with your tennis picks.
Pick: Muguruza in straight sets
