We revealed our first edition of Wimbledon Expert Picks when the draws were made on Thursday—see the men's here, and the women's here. But it turned out that our roster of experts, including former players on both tours, was simply too vast to contain in just one edition.
Thus, a bonus edition of Wimbledon Expert Picks—where one person's champion is another's bust.
Men's Champion: Novak Djokovic
He is coming in hungry after failing to complete the non-calendar slam in Paris. He's still the holder of three out of four majors, and is plain and simply the toughest guy to beat if he’s on his game.
Women's Champion: Karolina Pliskova
Her play in Eastbourne was impeccable. Blowing players off the court with her kind of pace is magnified on grass. I also believe having Conchita Martinez in her corner can give Pliskova that final extra push she needs to win her first Slam.
Men's Dark Horse: Stefanos Tsitsipas
I feel he has the belief right now to win a Slam. That goes a long way for a young player. He also has wins over the each of the Big 3, including against Federer at a major. If he gets hot, his athleticism combined with his belief could put him over the top.
Women's Dark Horse: Alison Riske
She has a very strong sense of self-confidence on this surface, and won two titles during this grass season. She needs a little momentum, but if she starts rolling, I believe she can beat the best in the game.
Men's Bust: Dominic Thiem
Hasn’t shown me that he’s comfortable with the movement and timing of ball striking on this surface. He is an exceptional player, but he the biggest gap in his level when the surface changes from red to green.
Women's Bust: Naomi Osaka
Hasn’t looked quite settled in her play since the disruption in her camp. I also feels she needs a bit more time than grass allows to strike her devastating groundstrokes.
Men's Champion: Novak Djokovic
The defending champion always plays well at Wimby because he has the best return of serve in history. Also, he can't face Nadal or Federer in his half of the draw.
Women's Champion: Karolina Pliskova
Karolina is on fire on grass right now. Her big serve and aggressive returns should be very effective at Wimbledon. Also, she is in the much easier bottom half of the draw.
Men's Dark Horse: Sam Querrey
If Sam can get past his first-round match against Thiem (whose best showing at Wimbledon is the fourth round), his draw opens up. Sam's game is perfectly suited for Wimbledon as proven by his past wins over Murray and Djokovic.
Women's Dark Horse: Amanda Anisimova
Amanda is coming to Wimbledon with a lot of confidence having just made semi-finals at Roland Garros. Her backhand is already one of the best in the world. Although she is in the difficult top half, her nearby top seed, Kvitova, has serious injury concerns.
Men's Bust: Kevin Anderson
A lack of match play in 2019; a difficult-first round opponent, Herbert; runner-up points to defend: this is probably not Kevin's year to win.
Women's Bust: Naomi Osaka
Naomi has lost to her first-round opponent, Putintseva, twice in straight sets—including a few days ago in Birmingham. Also, she's not playing at her best level at the moment.