Playing his own game
Just because you’re seeded at Wimbledon, you don’t have to become an establishment figure.
Take the wonderfully subversive Alexander Bublik, with his love of underarm serves, his tattoo of a skeleton holding a tennis ball, and the way he refreshed his career, when he was feeling “burned out” this season, by going to Las Vegas for three days.
And not for anything as conventional as practising, he has said, but “Vegas, Vegas, like a Hangover-thing Vegas” trip, which was a reference to The Hangover, the frat boy comedy starring Bradley Cooper and involving a cameo from Mike Tyson and a scene in which they wake up to find a tiger in the bathroom.
According to the seedings, Bublik is the 28th most likely player to win the gentlemen’s singles title this summer.
What the seedings don’t tell you is that he’s the only man on the grass who might
hit six underarm serves in a game, or who dares to smack a 135mph overarm second serve
when facing a match point, and who sometimes skips practice if he doesn’t feel like
it that day.
According to Bublik, everyone in tennis “is like robots, and crazy, crazy performance guys”, but that approach doesn’t suit the Kazakhstani, who plays Spain’s Jaume Munar in the opening round.
The outsiders to look out for
Arriving in Las Vegas, Bublik was telling himself he was “useless”. Since then, he has been playing some of the best tennis of his life, including beating Jack Draper to reach a first Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland-Garros and taking down Jannik Sinner at a grass court tournament in Halle for what was his first victory over a world No.1 (the only other man to have defeated the Italian since last August is Carlos Alcaraz).
Bublik went on to win the Halle title. Not bad for a man who once said: “I hate tennis with all my heart.”
Munar vs Bublik is scheduled second on Court 14
A fond farewell
“My special place,” Petra Kvitova says of Wimbledon.
It’s where she won her two Grand Slam titles, in 2011 and 2014, as well as where her husband Jiri Vanek proposed.
Kvitova: Wimbledon means everything to me
Their son, Petr, even has a Wimbledon birthday – he was born during last summer’s Championships (though not, for the avoidance of doubt, inside the Grounds).
Given a wild card, Kvitova is making her final appearance on the grass this summer before retiring later this year.
She meets American Emma Navarro in the opening round.
Kvitova vs Navarro is scheduled second on No.1 Court
Breathe easy
Jack Draper (main picture) is about to have the full Andy Murray experience at Wimbledon, where everything you do on the grass is replayed in slow-motion, clipped for social media and analysed by an expectant nation.
In fact, by talking about the work he has been doing with his breathing coach, there could be a new dimension to the scrutiny of Draper’s tennis, character and title hopes.
In the first summer since Murray’s retirement, Draper could have just given the British tennis public a new obsession for this Fortnight.
Take a deep breath: Draper's key to success
When Draper plays Argentina’s Sebastian Baez, there will doubtless be spectators worrying that he is breathing too much through
his mouth and not enough through his nose (which apparently helps to increase his
oxygen intake and make his body more efficient).
Draper vs Baez is scheduled third on No.1 Court
Time for title defence
Defending champion Barbora Krejcikova hasn’t had the ideal preparation for this summer’s Championships.
She didn’t start her season until May because of a back injury and withdrew from her quarter-final in Eastbourne last week because of a sore thigh.
However, two Grand Slam titles - she lifted the trophy at Roland-Garros in 2021 as well as on Centre Court last year - and 27 career titles in singles and doubles means the Czech brings plenty of experience into her opening round encounter.
Krejcikova feeling privileged and prepared
She faces a dangerous opponent in Alexandra Eala, a 20-year-old from the Philippines who reached the Eastbourne final.
Krejcikova vs Eala is scheduled for 1.30pm on Centre Court
Young guns go for it
At 19, he’s half Novak Djokovic’s age.
He’s also the only teenager among the 32 seeds in the gentlemen’s singles.
Five to watch: Gentlemen's first round
Jakub Mensik won his first ATP title in spectacular style this season by beating Djokovic, winner of 24 Grand Slams, in the final of a hard court tournament in Miami.
Now we get to see what he can do on the Wimbledon grass.
The Czech opens against France’s Hugo Gaston.
Gaston vs Mensik is scheduled fourth on Court 18