Sinner, Alcaraz in same half following Wimbledon draw ceremony on Friday

Jannik Sinner may be the world No. 1 and top seed at the All-England Club, but he was not given any favors when the Wimbledon draw ceremony was held on Friday morning. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is Sinner’s half of the bracket and the Italian could go up against Matteo Berrettini in the second round.

Berrettini was the Wimbledon runner-up in 2021 and he is coming off a runner-up performance in Stuttgart. That all-Italian showdown probably wouldn’t be an easy one for Sinner. If the Italian does get through it, he could meet Tallon Griekspoor in the third round, Ben Shelton in the fourth, and either Daniil Medvedev or Grigor Dimitrov in the quarters.

Not only is Alcaraz the defending champ in SW19, but he also won the French Open earlier in June. On his way to La Coupe des Mousquetaires he edged Sinner in a five-set semifinal thriller. Alcaraz is in a much weaker section of the Wimbledon draw compared to Sinner. The No. 3 seed will likely coast into the quarterfinals, where he could see Queen’s Club champion Tommy Paul on the other side of the net.

Novak Djokovic is on course to face Hubert Hurkacz in a quarterfinal clash at the bottom of the draw. They went head-to-head in London in last year’s round of 16, with Djokovic surviving in four very tight sets. Djokovic is a question mark heading into Wimbledon this season due to his medial meniscus tear at Roland Garros. Meanwhile, Hurkacz’s grass-court swing already features a runner-up performance in Halle (lost to Sinner). Djokovic could play against either Holger Rune or Karen Khachanov in the round of 16; Alex de Minaur is a potential fourth-round foe for Hurkacz.

Alexander Zverev’s section has to be considered the most wide open. Among the other contenders are Taylor Fritz, Sebastian Korda, Jack Draper, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Lorenzo Musetti. Zverev vs. Draper is a potential third-rounder.

First-round matchups to watch include Korda vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Adrian Mannarino vs. Gael Monfils, Andy Murray vs. Tomas Machac, Alexander Bublik vs. Jakub Mensik, and Felix Auger-Aliassime vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.