Garbiñe Muguruza [14] vs. Venus Williams [10]
We love finesse and craftsmanship, but power tennis usually wins the day, or the fortnight, at women’s Grand Slams. That has held true in 2017: Serena Williams won the Australian Open and Jelena Ostapenko, firing with both barrels, won the French Open. It’s obvious that heavy artillery will rule again at Wimbledon, when two of the game’s hardest hitters square off.
Muguruza-Williams promises fireworks. Any player who reaches a major final is, by definition, playing well, but these two have really transcended their usual levels over the last three matches. Muguruza faced down two former Grand Slam champs who were on their games, Angelique Kerber and Svetlana Kuznetsova, in the fourth round and quarterfinals; and in the semis she ran over Magdalena Rybarikova. Venus handcuffed Ostapenko in the quarters, and dictated from start to finish against Johanna Konta in the semis. Judging by those performances, and the intense focus each woman brought to them, it’s hard to imagine either Muguruza or Venus losing in the final.