We’ve grown accustomed to the ladies' singles providing plenty of entertainment at every Grand Slam and it looks as if Wimbledon this year will be no different.
A loaded top quarter of the draw features three of last year’s four semi-finalists – Angelique Kerber, Serena Williams and Julia Goerges – while many big names have brutal openers with the potential to produce early upsets.
Here are five first round matches to savour in the ladies' draw.
Cori Gauff v Venus Williams
Less than 24 hours after declaring that her dream would be to play Venus Williams, 15-year-old American Cori Gauff had her wish granted as she drew the seven-time Grand Slam champion in Wimbledon's first round.
Gauff is the youngest player in the Open era to reach the Wimbledon main draw via Qualifying. She is 14 years younger than Williams, and says the only reason she picked up a tennis racket to begin with was because of Venus and her sister Serena.
This should be an intriguing clash between a legend of the game and one who is likely to be the future of tennis.
Sloane Stephens [9] v Timea Bacsinszky
Former US Open champion Sloane Stephens has a tricky opener against Switzerland’s Timea Bacsinszky, who made the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2015. While Stephens leads their head-to-head 2-0 – including a win over Bacsinszky in the Fed Cup earlier this year – the No.9 seed could probably have done with a different opening match.
Donna Vekic [22] v Alison Riske
Two players who thrive on grass, both Donna Vekic and Alison Riske come to Wimbledon in great form. Vekic, who made the last 16 here a year ago, reached the final at the grass court event in Nottingham earlier this month, while Riske lifted the trophy on the lawns of s-Hertogenbosch a couple of weeks ago, upsetting home favourite Kiki Bertens in the final.
Naomi Osaka [2] v Yulia Putintseva
In a repeat of their second round match at Birmingham just over a week ago, No.2 seed Naomi Osaka will be out to avenge her defeat by the Kazakh when they meet on Monday. Yulia Putintseva, ranked No.39, is a feisty opponent many would like to avoid in an opening round, but Wimbledon is not necessarily her best Grand Slam, having never made it past the second round in any of her previous appearances.
Su-Wei Hsieh v Jelena Ostapenko
A clash of styles is certain between last year’s semi-finalist, Jelena Ostapenko, and the magical Su-Wei Hsieh, who made the fourth round at Wimbledon 12 months ago. Ostapenko, a former Roalnd-Garros champion, is all about power and brute force, while Hsieh, the No.28 seed, is capable of hitting every shot in the book, and some which haven’t been invented yet.
