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It’s a special Wimbledon for Italian tennis fans, the one that opens on July 1st (it will close on the 14th). With an Italian number 1 in the world for the first time in history, the already high expectations for the most prestigious tournament on the circuit (the first time it was played in 1877) are raised even further. Alongside Jannik Sinner are all the big names, from number 2 Novak Djokovic, on the court after the knee surgery done in a hurry in Paris, to the reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz (no. 3) and then Zverev, Medvedev, Rublev and all the others.
The Italian patrol in London is strong and can do well in the third Slam of the year, which boasts a record prize pool of 50 million pounds, 11.9% higher than that of 2023 (doubled compared to ten years ago): the champion of this edition will take home 2.7 million pounds, the finalist exactly half, the semi-finalists 715 thousand, but even those who play in the first round aren’t doing too bad with 60 thousand pounds.
Sinner’s path and the other Azzurri
Jannik Sinner, 23 years old on 16 August, fresh winner on the German grass in Halle (in the final against Hubi Hurkacz) after successes in the Australian Open, in Rotterdam and Miami, last year in London he lost in the semi-final to Djokovic (the which he then handed over to Alcaraz). The draw was not kind to the Italian, who fell on the side of the Spaniard who defeated him in the semi-final at Roland Garros: he would find Alcaraz again in the semi-final, after a path that would include the possible derby with Matteo Berrettini in the second round, the American Shelton in the round of 16, Medvedev or Dimitrov in the quarterfinals. The debut will be Monday 1st July on court 1 against the German Yannick Hanfmann. There are many Italians competing, the most challenging test in the first round falls to Matteo Arnaldi, who will face the American Francis Tiafoe; for Lorenzo Musetti, finalist at Queen’s (where he lost to Tommy Paul) the first match is with the Frenchman Constant Lestienne. Also in the field are Lorenzo Sonego (with Mariano Navone), Fabio Fognini (with Luca Van Assche), Flavio Cobolli (with Rinky Hijikata), Luca Nardi (with Tomas M. Etcheverry), Luciano Darderi (with wild card Jan Choinski). There is also great anticipation for the doubles, where our Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori – already finalists in Melbourne and Paris, fresh winners in Halle – have an excellent chance of reaching the end.
The women’s tournament
Iga Swiatek, world number one, fresh from the success in Paris, aims to improve his performance on grass. Her best performance at Wimbledon was last year (when Czech Marketa Vondrousova won the tournament), in which she stopped in the quarterfinals. She will face number 2 Coco Gauff, but not number 3 Aryna Sabalenka, who withdrew due to injury. Jasmine Paolini will certainly say about her too, seventh in the ranking and in a golden moment after the final at Roland Garros and the semi-final on the grass at Eastbourne: for her, her debut is with the Spanish Sara Sorribes. Alongside Jasmine, the other blues, apart from Elisabetta Cocciaretto who unfortunately withdrew due to a viral illness: there will be Lucia Bronzetti (with Leylah Fernandez), Sara Errani (with Linda Noskova), Martina Trevisan (with Madison Keys). All eyes are also on the doubles, in which the Paolini-Errani pair – winners in Rome and finalists in Paris – are seeded number 5.
The Rise of Italian Tennis
The victory in the Davis Cup last November and Jannik Sinner’s journey culminating in the victory at the Australian Open in January marked a before and after in the history of Italian tennis: it had been since 1976, the year in which Italy won the Davis Cup in Chile and Adriano Panatta triumphed in Paris, who expected similar results. It is not enough. Today Italy has nine players in the top 100, six of whom are between 20 and 23 years old, and is therefore looking with confidence to the next goals, starting with the Olympics (where Sinner will play doubles with Musetti). The response of fans is felt with 820 thousand Fitp members: after football, tennis is the most popular sport at the moment.
