Business as usual at Wimbledon?

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Luke Massey

It seems to be a common talking point in sport right now – Is it more exciting to see multiple winners and open contests, or the very best competing for the biggest prizes time and time again?

I’ll give you a few examples… Seven wins from seven races in F1 this year is widely seen as refreshing. Yet by contrast, when Webb Simpson became the 15^th consecutive different major champion on Sunday, people moaned about the recent ‘lottery’ of golf’s biggest events.

Then you have tennis. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have gobbled up 26 of the last 28 majors between them. But the general feeling is still that this is a golden, hugely exciting era for tennis. Something doesn’t quite add up.

That takes me to my next question. Are the big 3 in tennis just streets ahead of their competition – much more so than the top 3 in any other sport? Or is it just that tennis is able to structure its biggest events in a way that enables it biggest and most talented stars to prevail?

I think it’s probably a bit of both. Beating Woods and Westwood over 72 holes is no mean feat – but with varied weather conditions and the nature of golf the game (where everyone competes against everyone), lesser names are able to peak at the right time and secure surprise success.

Beating the likes of Nadal and Djokovic over 5 sets is on a whole new level in terms of sporting achievement. Jo Wilfried Tsonga has the raw the ability to stun the very best, Andy Murray of course has an outside chance, but in reality this year’s Wimbledon will be another 3 horse race.

What would you rather see in tennis – The top 3 seeds monopolising the game, or a whole host of players contending for each major event? Oddslife’s Wimbledon 2012 Predictor is on the way…