Wimbledon: Sinner, Djokovic in same half of draw, Alcaraz to start against Fognini

LONDON: Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz will kickstart his Wimbledon campaign against 38-year-old Fabio Fognini in round one, while the world number one Jannik Sinner will play his first-round game against compatriot Luca Nardi.

The tournament will start on Monday, and the draw for the tournament took place on Friday. Sinner’s pursuit of his first Wimbledon title could depend on a semifinal clash against Novak Djokovic, a seven-time champion in London.

The number one player, Sinner, competes against Nardi, while Djokovic, competing at sixth-seeding, his lowest since 2018, will kickstart his tournament for a record-tying eighth Wimbledon title against Frenchman Alexandre Muller, as per ATP’s official website.

Djokovic, who prevailed over Sinner in the quarterfinal of the 2022 Wimbledon and the 2023 semifinal, is seeded for a quarterfinal match with British number one Jack Draper. Draper will kickstart against Sebastian Baez and could face an in-form Halle champion, Alexander Bublik, in round three.

In the bottom half of the draw, Alcaraz, who is on his career-best 18-match win streak, will start against Fognini and could meet eighth seed Holger Rune in the quarterfinals, and if he wins, his semifinal opponents could be Oliver Tarvet or Leandro Riedi, both of them Grand Slam main draw debutants.

The world number three and three-time major finalist Alexander Zverev, whose campaign will start against Arthur Rinderknech, is seeded for a quarterfinal clash against Taylor Fritz, who faces Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in his opener and maintains an 8-5 lead over Zverev head-to-head. (ANI)