Wimbledon 2025 preview – preparing for the greatest Grand Slam tennis event

The third Grand Slam of the year may mark Novak Djokovic's last good chance to secure that elusive #25 win on the biggest stage of tennis, but Alcaraz, Sinner, and others will have quite a lot to say about that.

If you are not a committed tennis fan, this year's Wimbledon event is a great time to get involved with the sport – and if you already live and breathe the world of Grand Slams, you know you should pay close attention to all details of the premier tennis tournament of the year.

Wimbledon 2025 – schedule and format, explained

Also known as "the Championships" or "SW19" (after the All England Club's geographic postcode), Wimbledon is one of the most storied and prestigious tennis tournaments in the entire world. Its 2025 edition will take place between June 30 and July 13, with the qualifiers scheduled for the period beginning on June 23 and ending on June 26.

The gates open at 10:30 each day, with the infamous Wimbledon queue stretching far and wide for fans hoping to get into the event. Play typically begins thirty minutes after that, at 11:00, with matches on the Center Court generally scheduled to start at 13:30.

As always, the tournament features a 64-player knockout format where the top 32 players are seeded into the bracket. Here is the round-by-round schedule for Wimbledon 2025:

• Qualifying: June 23 – June 26
• Main draw 1st round: June 30 – July 1
• 2nd round: July 2 – July 3
• 3rd round: July 4 – July 5
• 4th round (R16): July 6 – July 7
• QFs: July 8 – July 9
• Mixed Doubles Final: July 10
• Women's Semis: July 10
• Men's Semis: July 11
• Women's Final + Men's Doubles: July 12
• Men's Final + Women's Doubles: July 13

For an alternative breakdown of the schedule, here is the day-by-day description of the Wimbledon 2025 tennis action:

Wimbledon 2025 daily schedule: Week 1

June 30 – July 1

• Gentlemen's and Ladies' Singles: 1st round

July 2 – July 3

• Singles: 2nd round
• Gentlemen's and Ladies' Doubles: 1st round

July 4

• Singles: 3rd round
• Doubles: 2nd round (men's and women's)
• Mixed Doubles: 1st round

July 5

• Singles: 3rd round
• Doubles: 2nd round
• Mixed Doubles: 1st round
• Juniors (U18 Boys' and Girls'): 1st round

July 6

• Singles: 4th round (Round of 16)
• Doubles: 3rd round
• Mixed Doubles: 2nd round
• Juniors: 1st round continues

July 7

• Singles: 4th round
• Doubles: 3rd round
• Mixed Doubles: Quarter‑finals
• Juniors: Girls’ singles 2nd round & Boys’ doubles 1st round begins

Wimbledon 2025 daily schedule: Week 2

July 8

• Singles: Quarter‑finals
• Doubles: Quarter‑finals (men's and women's)
• Mixed Doubles: Semi‑finals
• Wheelchair Singles: 1st round (men's and women's)
• Juniors: Boys’ singles 2nd round, Girls’ doubles 1st round
• Invitation doubles events (men's, women's, mixed)

July 9

• Singles: Quarter‑finals
• Doubles: Quarter‑finals
• Wheelchair Singles: Quad quarter‑finals
• Wheelchair Doubles: Men's & Women's quarter‑finals

July 10

• Ladies' Singles: Semi‑finals
• Mixed Doubles: Final

July 11

• Gentlemen's Singles: Semi‑finals

July 12

• Ladies' Singles Final
• Men's Doubles Final

July 13

• Gentlemen's Singles Final
• Ladies' Doubles Final

As is often the case in Britain, the weather will likely wreak havoc with this schedule, so expect changes and adjustments – and related controversies – to come along the way, as they always seem to do at every Grand Slam. It is also worth noting that this will be the first Wimbledon event in the competition's history that introduces electronic line calling instead of line judges, catching up with 21st-century standards in a key respect that is otherwise very conservative and focusing on traditions.

The history of Wimbledon – records and past winners

As one of the most storied tennis tournaments in the entire world, there are some incredible sporting records involved with the Wimbledon Grand Slam. Of course, records are always meant to be broken, and Wimbledon 2025 will serve as yet another opportunity for the greats of the game to try and do so, but some of the most notable accomplishments by past tennis titans will no doubt continue to stand the test of time for a long while yet.

No one has won more Wimbledon titles in the Open Era on the men's side than Roger Federer, whose eight titles surpassed Pete Sampras' seven, which is exactly the number Novak Djokovic is standing on. It is tough to imagine anyone getting to nine anytime soon.

On the men's side, that is. Martina Navratilova's nine wins stand tallest in the Open Era (including six in a row between 1982 and 1987, which is a record in its own right), something not even the legendary Serena Williams could catch up to, ending her triumphant run at seven over an illustrious career, level with Steffi Graf. More to the point, Navratilova has won Wimbledon tournaments in four different decades, with her earliest triumph coming in 1977 and the latest in 2003, making for a truly remarkable record.

On the topic of consecutive titles, the record stands at five straight in the open era on the mens' side, first achieved by Björn Borg from 1976 to 1980, then replicated by Roger Federer, from 2003 to 2007.

The youngest-ever Wimbledon champion in the men's game is Boris Becker, who won the Grand Slam in 1985 at the age of 17 years and 7 months. For the women's side, the record holder is Maria Sharapova, who defeated Serena Williams in the 2004 grand final at the age of 17 years and 75 days.

As for the oldest-ever champs in the Open era, Roger Federer won his eighth and final Wimbledon Grand Slam at the age of 35 years and 342 days – so very shortly before his 36th birthday – in 2017, defeating Marin Cilic in straight sets. A year before that, Serena Williams did the same at 34 years and 287 days in a straight-set victory of her own over Angelique Kerber. Soon, these records will be a decade old themselves.

While the value of records from the amateur era is a constant debate among tennis fans, Billie Jean King's six titles won on both sides of the great divide, ranging from 1966 to 1975, warrant a special mention even today.

For some fun trivia, most tennis fans will be familiar with the longest-ever match of the Wimbledon Grand Slam, the Isner-Mahut marathon from 2010 that lasted over three days of play and clocked in at eleven hours and five minutes. At that time, there was no super-tiebreaker rule in place for the final set, with the idea that you should have to break your opponent to win the match. Well, neither player managed to get ahead by two for a stunning segment of play, with Isner ultimately triumphant with a fifth-set score of 70-68.

In terms of grand finals, Djokovic's epic duel with Federer in 2019 stands tall above all else, with just three minutes shy of five hours. Often referred to as the "War of 13-12," the Serb triumphed over his great rival in the fifth-set tiebreaker, with the final score reading 7-6(5), 1-6, 7-6(4), 4-6, 13-12(3).

Who played in the past 10 Wimbledon Gentlemen's Singles finals and who were the winners?

As listed by Reuters, the list of the past decade's Wimbledon title deciders is as follows:

2024: Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) beat Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 6-2 6-2 7-6(4)

• 2023: Alcaraz (Spain) beat Djokovic (Serbia) 1-6 7-6(6) 6-1 3-6 6-4
• 2022: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Nick Kyrgios (Australia) 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3)
• 2021: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Matteo Berrettini (Italy) 6-7(4) 6-4 6-4 6-3
• 2020: The tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
• 2019: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Roger Federer (Switzerland) 7-6(5) 1-6 7-6(4) 4-6 13-12(3)
• 2018: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Kevin Anderson (South Africa) 6-2 6-2 7-6(3)
• 2017: Federer (Switzerland) beat Marin Cilic (Croatia) 6-3 6-1 6-4
• 2016: Andy Murray (Britain) beat Milos Raonic (Canada) 6-4 7-6(3) 7-6(2)
• 2015: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Federer (Switzerland) 7-6(1) 6-7(10) 6-4 6-3
• 2014: Djokovic (Serbia) beat Federer (Switzerland) 6-7(7) 6-4 7-6(4) 5-7 6

Of course, the biggest hometown hero of Wimbledon will always be Sir Andy Murray, who may no longer be competing on the tennis circuit, but will nevertheless play a key part in the proceedings for 2025, at least as far as honors are concerned: the Brit made the headlines again by the announcement that let the world know that he will be given a statue on the grounds, set to be revealed in 2027, the year of the Championships' 150th anniversary. This is, of course, much like Rafael Nadal's recent memorialization at Roland-Garros.

Who played in the past 10 Wimbledon Ladies' Singles finals and who were the winners?

Over on the women's side, the list of finalists and winners looks like this:

• 2024: Barbora Krejčíková (Czech Republic) beat Jasmine Paolini (Italy) 6-2 2-6 6-4
• 2023: Markéta Vondroušová (Czech Republic) beat Ons Jabeur (Tunisia) 6-4 6-4
• 2022: Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) beat Ons Jabeur (Tunisia) 3-6 6-2 6-2
• 2021: Ashleigh Barty (Australia) beat Karolína Plíšková (Czech Republic) 6-3 6-7(4) 6-3
• 2020: The tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
• 2019: Simona Halep (Romania) beat Serena Williams (United States) 6-2 6-2
• 2018: Angelique Kerber (Germany) beat Serena Williams (United States) 6-3 6-3
• 2017: Garbiñe Muguruza (Spain) beat Venus Williams (United States) 7-5 6-0
• 2016: Serena Williams (United States) beat Angelique Kerber (Germany) 7-5 6-3
• 2015: Serena Williams (United States) beat Garbiñe Muguruza (Spain) 6-4 6-4
• 2014: Petra Kvitová (Czech Republic) beat Eugenie Bouchard (Canada) 6-3 6-0

Now that we are done discussing the past, it is high time to turn towards the tennis future and predict the most likely outcomes at Wimbledon 2025. Are you ready?

Which players are the most likely to win Wimbledon 2025? – Gentlemen's Singles

While there are the usual suspects to consider, Wimbledon 2025 and its grass surface inevitably throw up some other interesting contenders, too, when discussing which players have the best chance to take down the prestigious Grand Slam title for the Wimbledon Men Singles.

Carlos Alcaraz

With back-to-back Wimbledon wins to boast and fresh off an epic title win at the French Open, Alcaraz has to be seen as the favorite heading into Wimbledon 2025. But those who closely follow the Spaniard's exploits know that the story isn't quite so clear-cut. After all, there is a good reason why there are memes going around about second sets and Alcaraz: while it would be tough to argue that he does not have the highest heights in the men's game today – and his shotmaking variety is also second to none – there are also characteristic dips in intensity and form throughout his matches, and you can often see him switch off somewhat after winning the first set of a match.

While he has emerged rapidly as one of the best grass players on the tour, there is still a bit of an inconsistency in his otherwise excellent game, which means there is always a bit of jeopardy involved with his Grand Slam tournament runs.

However, you could also make a good argument that the tour in general is at its weakest right now when it comes to the grass season, with many otherwise good players struggling to master the intricacies of the surface. In that sense, there are fewer strong immediate competitors to worry about for Alcaraz than at the other Slams – and, again, he is the back-to-back champion for a reason. But no matter how you slice it, the inherent variance in his current level of play, both across an entire tournament and even during an individual match, can not be ignored from a fan's and bettor's perspective.

Novak Djokovic

The GOAT of tennis continues to rage against the dying of the light. But is it going to be enough to claim the elusive record of the twenty-fifth Grand Slam? Last year, the Serbian legend picked up the one title that had eluded him for so long: the Olympic gold. However, that was his only notable performance throughout the year – at least by his impeccable standards – and a combination of disappointing showings and skipping more and more events led to a dip in his ranking.

However, while it is clear that Djokovic is only focusing on Grand Slam events these days – apart from the occasional warmup and practice, and bagging a cheeky 100th career event win in Geneva – he is still putting everything on the line at tennis' biggest showpiece events. And having reached the semifinals in Australia and Paris, he can make a good claim for still being there or thereabouts, stamina permitting.

In terms of matchups, Sinner is the big question mark here: while their career record is fairly even, Djokovic's wins came early on, and the Italian phenom is seen as his younger, stronger version in game style for a reason. While the Serb gave a good account of himself at Roland-Garros, and the 3-0 scoreline wasn't reflective of how close their match was, it remains tough to see how and where he might get the better of him deep into a grueling tournament. If anything, Wimbledon's grass surface serves as his best bet for one more big win over his new rival.

While Alcaraz is clearly the favorite here, it's perhaps the less concerning matchup for the Djokovic camp, considering his victory over him in Melbourne. As for the rest of the top five, he is clearly still ahead of them in raw skill – clearly including Zverev –, and it's a question of stamina and avoiding injuries to see how far he can go this time. Going all the way will only get harder and harder as the months roll by, and who knows whether this is going to be the last time we see him playing at the All England Club?

Jannik Sinner

While Sinner's meteoric rise to the top of men's tennis wasn't without controversy – a quick look at his recent absence from the tour should make this very clear to everyone – he was seen as *the* player to beat heading into Roland-Garros, and it still seems like the only player who can truly give him a run for his money is Carlos Alcaraz.

As discussed in the context of Djokovic's chances above, the young Italian has a game that is in many ways quite similar to the tennis GOAT's, with many, many fewer years in his engine alongside it. "Post-puke Sinner" has long been a meme in the tennis fandom and community, as he seemingly turned a corner with his fitness issues overnight after vomiting in a bin at the 2023 China Open.

Nowadays, it is tough to imagine Sinner losing a contest of stamina on the tennis board, and the sheer power and pace of his shots make it almost impossible for everyone to keep up, and it really is just the variety of Alcaraz that sometimes seems to get this cerebral player on the back foot.

As for his doping-related ban and controversy, no intentionality has been proven, and the lenient final sentence – a short time off the tour that almost seemed to be specifically scheduled between the year's first two Slams – clearly suggested that the authorities didn't have a strong case by their own estimation. And if anything, Sinner has come back stronger in the break, and was only a legendary Alcaraz performance away from going two out of two at Slams in 2025 – and it feels like we will be writing a variety of this sentence over and over again as the tennis calendar progresses along over the next few years.

Alexander Zverev

The mere fact that Zverev has this high a seeding means that he warrants at least a small segment of this extended Wimbledon 2025 conversation, but truth be told, it would be a huge surprise if he were present at the business end of this year's tournament.

Evaluating Zverev's prospects at any tennis tournament can be somewhat of a tricky proposition, simply because many fans of the sport have polarized and very emotional opinions about him. Whether it is about his general demeanor on the court or his highly publicized assault allegations in his relationship, it is easy to take a personal dislike of a player and turn it into incorrect analysis.

However, even a cold and objective look at Zverev's Wimbledon 2025 prospects would tell you that he is far from likely to live up to his seeding. Not only has he had a poor year so far – reaching the Australian Open finals courtesy of a Djokovic retirement in their semis match – but he utterly failed to take advantage of the ratings opportunity presented by Sinner's ban and Alcaraz's spotty performance in the first half of the year, choking opportunity after opportunity to climb to the number #1 spot. Despite all the off-court boasts, Zverev rarely finds another gear when the going gets tough, and despite his great athletic attributes, his overly careful, baseline-grinding play style just doesn't get the job done at the business end of Grand Slams.

His patchy grass record is also a key factor here, as is the fact that his path through his quarter is actually quite difficult: not only would he face Taylor Fritz in the quarters, who has a fantastic recent record against him, including an important win in this grass season, but his path to that point is already much alike a minefield because of the likely matchups against Berrettini and Cerundolo. You'd be better served by looking elsewhere if you tried to find the Wimbledon 2025 winner.

Taylor Fritz

The world number five is among the strongest contenders at Wimbledon 2025, no matter what his surprise early exit at Roland-Garros would have you believe. Fritz has long been seen as one of the better grass court players on the tour, and he has won back-to-back ATP 2025 events on the surface heading into the Grand Slam (Stuttgart and Eastbourne), not dropping a single serve in the former event and winning a record-extending fourth title in the latter. His powerful serve and aggressive play make him well-suited for the surface, and he should definitely be in the semifinals conversation at the minimum.

Of course, it's his recent showings and general record against the very best that serve as a cause for concern. As impressive as his 2024 US Open run was, he offered no resistance against Sinner in the final, and his infamous 0-10 record against Djokovic is an obvious concern, too.

Jack Draper

Here is a plus one contender for you: Britain's new great hope is now seen as the best chance to emerge as the hometown hero now that Andy Murray is out of the picture, and he is peaking at the right time to be a strong candidate for a deep run at Wimbledon 2025.

Seeded as the fourth-best player in the world heading into the showpiece tennis tournament, Draper will have a quarter of the draft all to himself. His powerful forehand and his affinity for drop shots make him a formidable contender, and "according to Tennis Viz, which uses data metrics to quantify the quality of strokes, Draper is the only player other than the world No 1, Jannik Sinner, to average a rating of more than eight (out of 10) for serve, return, forehand and backhand quality this year."

Some small health concerns remain, however – Draper was dealing with tonsillitis over the last few weeks as he was playing the tournament at Queen's, and the first few rounds of play will serve as an important indicator as to whether he is at full swing health- and energy-wise as he tries to make British tennis history.

Which players are the most likely to win Wimbledon 2025? – Ladies' Singles

Over on the women's side of things, Wimbledon 2025 is shaping up to be an extremely open tournament with many potential winners, compounding what has already been a topsy-turvy season in the ATP with many surprises. Last year's winner, Barbora Krejcikova, has slipped from the list of most likely winners because of health issues, having to withdraw from the Eastbourne Open because of her right thigh.

This, of course, makes the field even more open. Recent history has shown that it is much more likely for a lady to make a complete dark horse run at a Grand Slam to completion, but there are still some notable favorites to keep in mind at the All England Club for the Wimbledon Women Singles – and here they are.

Aryna Sabalenka

Though the three-time Grand Slam winner has not yet managed to win Wimbledon, and fell short in both grand finals this year (to Madison Keys in Australia and to Coco Gauff in Paris), she still remains the immovable object in the women's game. Her power and dynamic play offer here a dimension of play that some competitors simply cannot match, and she will no doubt remain among the co-favorites for any Grand Slam events for a long while to come.

Elena Rybakina

Whatever the specific facts may be about the odd coaching-grooming-relationship-ing thing that has been causing controversy with Vukov, Rybakina's game and tennis results have taken a serious plunge in the second half of the 2024 season. Today, it is fair to say that the situation is a far cry from where it used to be, but any positive evaluation of Rybakina's Wimbledon 2025 chances has more to do with her genuinely impressive past accomplishments on the surface than what we have seen this year.

But what we have seen of her in the past on grass courts is more than enough to still lift her into a favorite designation for Wimbledon 2025, even if the 2022 winner will have a tough path through the bracket if she wants to prove the doubters wrong this year.

Iga Swiatek

It has not been that long ago that it felt like Swiatek was on top of the tennis world, with Williams-like vistas in her sights. These days, those seem much more like a mirage. Whether it is a case of confidence, being figured out, exhaustion, or a bit of all three, certain catastrophic matchups and one-off poor showings have led to Swiatek bleeding many points on the ATP tour, and with grass being her least dominant surface to begin with, a Wimbledon 2025 win would be a huge surprise from the Pole, even if you factor in her first grass finals appearance in Bad Homburg earlier this month.

Coco Gauff

Winning Roland-Garros does not make you an automatic favorite for Wimbledon 2025, and Coco Gauff is a key example of this. She has not yet made it past the fourth round of the grass Grand Slam in her career, and the aggression required on the surface does not play into her strengths. Form, however, is a key component to consider, so it is not out of the question that the French Open champion finds a new dimension to her game – just be aware of how much of a dark horse run that would ultimately turn out to be. For what it is worth, even she described herself as "cautious" heading into Wimbledon 2025.

Madison Keys

Having finally won her first Grand Slam title in Australia earlier this year, it's as if a weight had fallen off Keys as she managed to unlock the gates to tennis nirvana. Even last year, she was giving a good game to Jasmine Paolini, the eventual runner-up, before her injury – and her form this year has been excellent even once you look past that glittering achievement in Melbourne.

There you have it, a thorough primer for Wimbledon 2025 and a list of all likely winners of the most prestigious grass tennis tournament on the planet. Enjoy the action with us – check out the Bitsler blog for more great sports and esports content, and make sure to register an account and check out everything the site has to offer if you have not yet done so!