Wimbledon 2018: Roger Federer remains the man to beat; Marin Cilic likely to be biggest contender outside Big Four

For the past 15 years, the poetry of one man, Roger Federer, has resonated through the hallowed grounds of Wimbledon. Even in the years when Federer’s star began to fade, and Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray rose at the tennis Mecca, the sheer presence of the Swiss was enough to make him the top contender. Last year, Federer came back to Wimbledon to break a five-year drought at the event that launched his record -reaking run of 20 Grand Slam titles. But that came in a year where he had re-emerged, was hitting levels that had once made him an unstoppable force, and won seven titles including two majors and three Masters. [caption id=“attachment_4544181” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Roger Federer lost the Halle final to Borna Coric. AFP[/caption] This year however, apart from successfully defending the Australian Open title and later becoming the oldest player to reach world no 1, Federer’s form has dwindled. He lost in the final of Indian Wells and was upset in the first round of Miami by then world no 175 Thanasi Kokkinakis a week later. At Wimbledon, Federer has always been comfortable and has used the prestigious tournament as a springboard to bounce back into form. He will enter the competition as the clear favourite again this year, and will hope to build the momentum for the rest of the year. While Federer, with a win-loss record of 92-11 at Wimbledon is the favourite, there is no clear hierarchy thereafter. His arch-rival Rafael Nadal is not a force on Wimbledon’s grass anymore and Novak Djokovic is yet to find a way back to top form, though the Serb is clearly putting in the effort. Marin Cilic, meanwhile, will lead the pack of challengers. The tall Croat, who won the 2014 US Open after beating Federer in the semi-final, lost to the veteran in the final of Wimbledon 2017 and the Australian Open earlier this year. Apart from the Big Four, he has been the most consistent at the majors. Djokovic, the 12-time Grand Slam champion — thrice at Wimbledon — has steadily been recovering from the elbow injury that had cut short his season last year. At the French Open, the Serb had shown glimpses of his genius. As the grass court season rolled on, he did manage to reach the final at Queens where he lost out to Cilic despite having a match point opportunity. Also returning to Wimbledon is two-time champion and home-favourite Andy Murray. The 31-year-old’s last major appearance was at the same tournament last year, where he lost to Sam Querrey in the quarterfinals. That, as it happened, was his last match of the season as he struggled with injury. He was expected to return at the Australian Open but instead opted to undergo hip surgery. His rank has plummeted to 156, but he was granted a wild card for the upcoming edition, where he will take on mercurial Frenchman Benoit Paire in the first round. Meanwhile, Nadal took some time off to recover from the fatigue of continuously playing on the tour. Wimbledon will be his first tournament since he won his 11th French Open title. The Spaniard however, hasn’t had much success at London. Though he’s won the tournament twice, he has failed to progress past the fourth round since he reached the final in 2011. Then there is the Tower of Tandil, Juan Martin del Potro. The Argentine was the first to beat Federer this year, the win coming in the final of Indian Wells. His record at Wimbledon hasn’t been the most impressive, but del Potro’s big game makes him a threat anytime, anywhere. Bringing up the younger guard, the much-publicised NextGen is Alexander Zverev. The powerful German has been impressive on the ATP tour but has fell short when it comes to the majors. At Roland Garros last month though, the 21-year-old progressed to the quarter-final of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career. Along with Zverev is Croatian youngster Borna Coric. The 21-year-old, only last week, scored his first win over Federer. He did it however, in the final at Halle, earning only his second ATP title. The win pushed Coric — who was once pipped as a future World No 1 by former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic — up the ranks to a career-high 21. Coincidentally, Coric is in the same half of the draw as Federer, with the two slated to meet in the fourth round. The Swiss though, who has an impeccable 92-11 record at Wimbledon, has the luck of the draw as he avoids Djokovic, Del Potro, Nadal and Murray till the final. The opening round though does have a few interesting clashes. Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka (who is only missing a title at Wimbledon to complete a Career Slam) will take on World No 6 Grigor Dimitrov. From an Indian point of view, world no 85 Yuki Bhambri will be making his debut in the Wimbledon main draw. The 25-year-old takes on Italian qualifier Thomas Fabbiano.