TENNIS:DEFENDING CHAMPION Novak Djokovic and 2004 winner Maria Sharapova are the top seeds for this year's Wimbledon Championships. Both players will top the pile at the All England Club for the first time in their careers, with Djokovic having guaranteed the number one ranking by reaching the final 12 months ago.
Sharapova won the title as a 17-year-old eight years ago, but her career has been disrupted by injury and Wimbledon will be her first tournament as world number one for four years after she won the French Open earlier this month.
The women’s seedings match the rankings exactly, with Victoria Azarenka in second, Agnieszka Radwanska third and defending champion Petra Kvitova, who beat Sharapova in the final last year, seeded fourth.
US Open champion Sam Stosur is fifth, one place ahead of four-time champion Serena Williams, while last year’s top seed Caroline Wozniacki is seventh this time.
The only changes to the seedings reflect the absence from the tournament of world number 16 Kaia Kanepi and number 18 Andrea Petkovic through injury.
In the men’s draw, Djokovic is followed by the man he beat in last year’s final, Rafael Nadal, who is fresh from winning a record seventh French Open title. Six-time champion Roger Federer is seeded third, one place ahead of British number one Andy Murray, while last season’s semi-finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is sixth.
Former finalist Tomas Berdych swaps places with David Ferrer, the Czech seeded sixth ahead of the Spaniard, while Mardy Fish is promoted to 10th ahead of John Isner and Nicolas Almagro.
Other climbers include three-time quarter-finalist Feliciano Lopez, who is elevated from 17th to 14th, and Marin Cilic, the winner at Queen’s Club last weekend, who is seeded 16th.
The biggest leap is made by Australian teenager Bernard Tomic, who reached the quarter-finals last year and climbs from 27th to 20th, while three-time finalist Andy Roddick is seeded 30th.
Meanwhile, Murray endured a further setback in his preparations for Wimbledon after slipping to defeat against Janko Tipsarevic at The Boodles tournament.
Murray crashed out of the AEGON Championships in the opening round last week, and in only his second match on grass before SW19 begins on Monday, the 25-year-old was beaten 6-7 (5/7) 6-4 10-7 by Tipsarevic at Stoke Park.
Meanwhile, Gael Monfils has withdrawn from Wimbledon because of a knee injury, having already missed the French Open.
Holland’s Michaella Krajicek has pulled out of the women’s draw through illness.
WIMBLEDON SEEDS (Top 16)
Men: (1) Djokovic (Ser), (2) Nadal (Spa), (3) Federer (Swi), (4) Murray (Brit), (5) Tsonga (Fra), (6) Berdych (Cze), (7) Ferrer (Spa), (8) Tipsarevic (Ser), (9) Del Potro (Arg), (10) Fish (USA), (11) Isner (USA), (12) Almagro (Spa), (13) Simon (Fra), (14) Lopez (Spa), (15) Monaco (Arg), (16) Cilic (Cro).
Women: (1) Sharapova (Rus), (2) Azarenka (Blr), (3) Radwanska (Pol), (4) Kvitova (Cze), (5) Stosur (Aus), (6) Williams (USA), (7) Wozniacki (Den), (8) Kerber (Ger), (9) Bartoli (Fra), (10) Errani (Ita), (11) Li (Chn), (12) Zvonareva (Rus), (13) Cibulkova (Svk), (14) Ivanovic (Ser), (15) Lisicki (Ger), (16) Pennetta (Ita).
