LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 11: Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Jannik Sinner (R) of Italy shake hands after their Gentlemen’s Singles Semi Finals match on day twelve of The Championships Wimbledon 2025 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 11, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Shi Tang/Getty Images)
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World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic. were drawn to meet in the Wimbledon semifinals in a rematch of last year’s encounter won by the Italian in straight sets en route to his first Wimbledon title.
Sinner is the betting favorite to win the title, with Djokovic the second favorite. World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz, last year’s runner-up to Sinner, will miss the tournament with a wrist injury.
Sinner dominated the early portion of the calendar, winning 30 straight matches and five ATP Masters 1000 titles to open 2026 before his streak was snapped at Roland Garros due to a battle with cramps.
“It’s just a physical issue,” seven-time major champion Mats Wilander told La Gazzetta dello Sport of Sinner.
“He played a lot in the two months leading up to Roland Garros with little recovery and little opportunity to train hard, so he found himself without energy.
“Now I see he is rested, so we will see him in great shape when he returns … but at Roland Garros, I think that he had a better chance. Grass can always be tricky.”
Speaking on MSNBC on Friday morning, former women’s world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki tabbed Sinner to repeat.
“I think Sinner…if the weather calms down and cools down in England, I think he would be a heavy favorite,” she said.
Sinner will open play against Serbian Miomir Kecmanović and appears to have a relatively straightforward draw until the quarterfinals where he could face former Grand Slam champion Daniil Medvedev, two-time French Open finalist Casper Ruud or American Tommy Paul.
Sinner could face No. 7 Djokovic in the semis in a rematch of last year’s semis and this year’s Australian Open semifinal won by Djokovic.
Sinner leads the head-to-head 6-5.
In the final, Sinner could face No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev, the newly-minted Roland Garros champion, or Americans Taylor Fritz or Ben Shelton, both of whom are seeking their first Grand Slam titles.
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic celebrates winning against Denmark’s Holger Rune during their men’s singles tennis match on the eighth day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 8, 2024. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)
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As for Djokovic, the seven-time Wimbledon champ who withdrew from a pre-tournament exhibition without explanation, his draw looks like this.
He opens against Yibing Wu of China on Monday and could face former French Open finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas, now ranked No. 88 in the world, in the second round.
Djokovic could get tested in the fourth round against Russian Andrey Rublev or Brazilian Joao Fonseca, the French Open quarterfinalist now ranked No. 27.
There are several popcorn matches on the men’s side in the first round, highlighted by No. 6 Fritz against Britain’s Jack Draper, the former U.S. Open semifinalist now ranked No. 160 in the world. He missed the claycourt swing due to an aggravated tendon in his right knee and a bone condition in his left arm.
Marin Cilic, 37, will face Medvedev in a battle of former Grand Slam champions, while three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka, 41, faces former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini.