Wimbledon 2024 Preview: Storylines to Watch at the All England Club
The Championships could determine the No. 1 ranking on the ATP Tour
The qualifying rounds for Wimbledon are underway, and the main draw begins July 1. Players are finishing tuneup tournaments to gain footing in the transition from clay to grass.
Me, I’m super excited.
There are so few grass-court tournaments that it’s hard to believe that up until the 1970s, most tennis events were played on grass, including the U.S. Open and Australian Open. The USTA used to be the U.S. National Lawn Tennis Association.
Fewer grass court tournaments contributes to Wimbledon’s prestige. Like a rare gem, Wimbledon sparkles brighter than the other Majors.
So I welcome Wimbledon, with all its restrictions and protocols, such as the Royal Box, calling its contests gentlemen’s and ladies’ singles, and the all-white dress code. I’m ready for all of it, even the strawberries and cream.
The draw ceremony is Friday, June 28. The following are the top storylines heading into Wimbledon 2024.
Rankings Races: Sinner and Swiatek Against the World
Iga Swiatek has a considerable points lead — more than 3,000 points — in the WTA rankings. However, the race for No. 2 is tight. Last year, Gauff lost in the first round, so any win beyond that strengthens her lead over No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka, who reached the semifinals last year, can’t afford to lose in the early rounds. She could find herself ranked No. 4, behind Elena Rybankina, winner of 2022 Wimbledon Championships. No matter who wins Wimbledon, Swiatek will remain No. 1 and seeded No. 1 at the Olympics and U.S. Open.
On the ATP side, Jannik Sinner’s spot at the top is less secure. Despite withdrawing from the French Open with a knee injury, Novak Djokovic moved up to No. 2 after Alcaraz failed to defend his title at the Queen’s Cup in London. Alcaraz is the defending Wimbledon champion and has the most to lose.
Will Djokovic Return from Knee Surgery?
When Djokovic announced he had knee surgery to repair a torn torn medial meniscus, I thought he’d miss Wimbledon, the Olympics and maybe the U.S. Open.
But the elastic man arrived at the All England Club this weekend and practiced on Monday. He spent two hours on the court while wearing a compression knee sleeve. He’s still unsure if he is fit enough to play.
Djokovic told the BBC Sport, “I didn’t come here to play a few rounds. You can never really know 100 percent once you start a tournament what’s going to happen after eventual first match or second match.”
If he does play it would be a remarkable comeback. Maybe he is made of elastic. How else do you bounce back so fast?
Can Naomi Osaka Break Through
It’s odd to talk about a four-time Major winner seeking a breakthrough, but Naomi Osaka is still searching for hers since returning from maternity leave. Unseeded, Osaka has drawn top players early in every tournament during her comeback. However, she’s getting back in form. Could this be the tournament where she finally breaks through?
Favorite Wimbledon Memorable Moments
There are many iconic Wimbledon moments but among my favorites are Boris Becker’s first title (1985) and Serena Williams’ all-aces game in the 2012 final.
Becker was an unseeded teenager, only 17. He would become the youngest player to win the title. Becker’s booming serves and cocky attitude made him fun to watch.
I remember feeling sorry for poor Kevin Curren. The dude defeated two-time defending champion and No. 1 ranked John McEnroe in the quarterfinals and No. 3 Jimmy Connors in the semifinals. Curren was the first man to defeat those two in the Grand Slam.
I recall a commentator saying something like imagine defeating McEnroe and Connors only to lose to some unseeded teenager. I’ll never forget that.
Serena Aces Her Way Out of Trouble
But my favorite Wimbledon moment happened in the 2012 women’s singles final. Serena dominated in the first set, winning 6-1 in 25 minutes. She appeared on her way to an easy win, especially after going up 4-2 in the second set.
However, Radwanska upped her game, while Serena lost focus. Somehow, Aga managed to steal that second set 7-5. The Wimbledon crowd buzzed. Could Aga become the first Polish woman to win a Grand Slam and the new No. 1?
With the fans behind her, Radwanska held serve twice, going up 2-1.
But then, Serena non chalantly served four aces in a row to tie the match at 2-2. Radwanska looked overwhelmed and confused. She would not win another game. Serena won 6-2, 5-7, 6-2.
Whenever someone talks about a player with the match resting on their racket, I think of this pivotal point. Serena snatched momentum from Aga. When Serena decided it was time to reclaim the match, she did.
What Makes a Great Grass Court Player?
One of the best things about grass courts is that they reward big servers and big hitters. Clay allows fleet-feet athletes time to retrieve balls that bounce high and wait.
Grass is unapologetic. You don’t get much time to react. The emphatic pop an ace makes coming off grass seems to yell, take that!
Players with a big, consistent first serve and soft hands at the net can usually triumph over baseliners. Grass-court royalty —Roger Federer, Pete Sampras, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Venus, and Serena Williams — is full of great servers who were also aggressive at the net.
In an effort to make courts more durable, safer, Wimbledon changed the makeup of the grass. Balls bounce a little higher and the game is a bit slower. Still, grass remains the fastest surface in tennis, which makes for spectacular shot-making. Check out winners Wimbledon considers the gentlemen’s singles shots of the decade.
The Best Coffee Drinks Start with Good Water
By Lisbeth Pacheo-Rios (excerpt from the Ethos Coffee Roasters blog).
Our first 2024 “RE: Summer Series” is about the one ingredient comprising 98.5% of our cups of coffee — water!
While easily overlooked, water quality can greatly influence the amount of coffee flavors extracted from your beans. The right water can enhance the coffee's natural characteristics, while poor-quality water can result in a flat, bitter, off-flavored, or unpleasant cup.
Three scientifically proven elements in water can significantly impact coffee brewing: purity, hardness, and pH.
These three attributes are officially recognized in the Specialty Coffee Association Brewing Water Standards as follows: (1) Purity (clean odor, zero chlorine); (2) Calcium Hardness between 50-175 ppm; and (3) pH 7-8.
Purity
Water purity is essential for any great cup of coffee, and a good water filter can easily influence the brew. Chlorine and other impurities can impart undesirable flavors to your coffee, and contaminants can lead to off-flavors. Spring, bottled, or good filtered water has always been—and will always be—behind any great cup of coffee.
Hardness
Water hardness refers (primarily) to its magnesium and calcium content (aka multivalent cation concentration). This means that " hard " water will have many cations, and “soft” won’t have as many.
If the water is too soft, your coffee won’t taste so good! There is, however, a limit to how hard you’d want your water to be, particularly if you care about the longevity of your coffee equipment - if the water is too hard and causes corrosion and leads to an eventual “early death” for your brewers, particularly Espresso brewers.
The easiest way to know how “hard” is your local water (without testing it yourself), is to search for “City, State Water Quality Report Hardness” - one of the first results should be the most recent test that your City conducted.
pH
The pH indicates acidity or alkalinity - below 7 indicates an acidic solution, and a pH greater than 7 indicates an alkaline solution. For coffee extraction, the amount of flavor extracted increases as the pH increases until you reach high alkalinity, which can lead to chalky flavors being extracted. A neutral to slightly alkaline pH, between 7 and 8, has been consistently found to be best.
Lisbeth Pacheco-Rioshas, is co-founder of Ethos Coffee Rosters and she has a Ph.D. in Food Science from Texas A&M.
How to Make a Flat White
Wimbledon is known for its breakfast, which features strawberries and cream. However, the flat white is one of the hot beverages offered year-round at the Wingfield Cafe, a restaurant at the All England Club.
A flat white's rich, creamy texture makes it an ideal pairing with strawberries and cream or yogurt parfait.
In the video above, they use a Sage Bambino, sold in the US under the Breville brand. You can use a single-serve espresso machine or a moka pot. The key is to make sure the steamed milk is creamy but not too frothy.
What you’ll need
19g of espresso grinds.
Whole milk (or milk of your choice).
Espresso machine.
Courtside Coffee’s power rankings go beyond the official WTA and ATP rankings. Like the late great Casey Kasem, long-time radio host of American Top 40, we’re counting down the hottest hits.
Power rankings are based on the most recent results. This includes those on a winning streak, getting past a milestone, or peaking at the right time.
So, who’s percolating heading into Wimbledon?
Honorable mentions: Coco Gauff, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Ons Jabeur.
Anna Kalinskaya
Up until last week, Kalinskaya was best known as Jannick Sinner’s girlfriend. But after reaching the final in Berlin, the Russian rises from No. 24 to No. 17. She was asked about Sinner in her post-match interview. "I'm just trying to be a little bit as good as him," she told the crowd. Her debut in the Top 20 might bring more eyes to her game and who she’s dating.
Yulia Putintseva
Putinseva, 29, is one of those veteran players who has never reached the Top 20 but is always a problem. None of the top players want this tenancious player in their draw. Last week, Putinseva defeated Ajla Tomljanovic to win a 250-level title in Birmingham. She moves up eight spots.
Sebastian Korda
The American broke into the Top 20 for the first time after reaching the semifinals at the Queen’s Club, where he lost to compatriot Tommy Paul. En route to the semis, Korda upset third-seeded Grigor Dimitrov.
Carlos Alcaraz
Alcaraz is the only person in the Courtside Coffee Power Rankings who actually dropped in the regular rankings. Alcaraz lost to British No. 1 Jack Draper in London. Still, Alcaraz is the defending Wimbledon Champion and winner of the last Grand Slam. Can’t leave him out of the Power Rankings.
Lorenzo Musetti
Musetti lost to Tommy Paul in the Queen’s Club final in London. This was Musetti’s second grass-court tournament since losing a tough five-setter to Djokovic that lasted past 3 a.m. at the French Open. This season, the Italian is 7-2 on grass.
Hubert Hurkacz
Hurkacz is the highest-ranked Polish male tennis player ever. Hubi reached the finals where he lost to Sinner. But he jumps two spots to a career-high No. 7. He also had one of the coolest shots of the season, a backward over the shoulder winner down the line. Insane! Watch the point at 4:07 in the video below.
Jessica Pegula
Pegula saved five match points in her 6-7, 6-4, 7-6 win over Kalinskaya in the 500-level Berlin tournament. It was Pegula’s first grass court title. Due to rain delays, Pegula had to finish off friend and doubles partner Gauff in the semifinals earlier in the day. Great to see JPeg back out there.
Tommy Paul
Paul is now the No. 1 ranked American male. After defeating Musetti in straight sets 6-1, 7-6 to win the 500-level Queen’s Club title. Paul moves to No. 12.
Iga Swiatek
Although Swiatek hasn’t played since the French Open, she’s still the player to beat on the WTA Tour. Swiatek skipped Berlin, which turned out to be a nightmare for top players. Jabeur, Sabalenka and Rybakina were forced to retire. Many players were forced to play two matches in one day. Swiatek leads the field by more than 3,000 points. No way any WTA player moves ahead of her in the Power Rankings.
Jannik Sinner
Sinner won his first tournament since ascending to No. 1, taking the title in Halle. Sinner is the top-ranked player and won his first grass-court title. He’s only the eighth man in ATP rankings history to win his first tournament after reaching No. 1 for the first time. But what was he asked about after the match? His girlfriend’s loss. You see, Kalinskaya is already turning the tables.
Wimbledon Week One: Upsets and Surprises.
Smash’n Fashion: Who wears white best?
Coffee Corner: The Blue Latte.