Kim Clijsters has broken down her bracket for the Wimbledon women’s singles event, which is now underway in London.
Clijsters never won Wimbledon during her glittering career, but did claim four Grand Slam titles and rose to world number one.
The legendary Belgian has now shared her verdict on this year’s tournament, predicting which WTA player will lift the prestigious trophy.
Kim Clijsters predicts the WTA Wimbledon champion
Speaking in a video on Love All with Kim Clijsters on X, she said: “On the women’s side, I am going to go for a top-half semifinal between [Aryna] Sabalenka and [Jessica] Pegula.
“I think Jessie is playing with a lot of confidence. I think she’s like [Alex] de Minaur, a great mover on grass, and she’s so good at staying on top of the baseline and not giving her opponent a lot of mistakes.
“So I think Jessie will actually beat Sabalenka and get to her first Wimbledon final.
“And then on the women’s bottom side of the draw, I think it’s going to be a semifinal between [Elena] Rybakina against [Elina] Svitolina.
“And then I think Rybakina is going to win that, just because I think she’s a better tennis player when it comes to the first two shots of the rally.
“Her serve and return game is really, really good. So I’m going to pick Rybakina for that one, and then I actually think Rybakina is going to win the final again as well.”
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Rybakina is the second seed at Wimbledon this year, and claimed her maiden Grand Slam title at the tournament in 2022.
She defeated Ons Jabeur in the final at the All England Club, with the Kazakh ace securing her second career title at this year’s Australian Open.
Concerning Clijsters’ other contenders, Sabalenka is the top seed at the tournament, while Pegula and Svitolina are seeded fourth and eighth respectively.
Kim Clijsters picks the ATP player she thinks will win Wimbledon
Clijsters also carried out the same process for the Wimbledon men’s draw, where top seed Jannik Sinner is looking to defend his title.
She said: “On the men’s side, for the semifinals, I picked Jannik Sinner to play against Novak Djokovic. And the other semi, I have De Minaur playing Frances Tiafoe.
“I do think the top half, Sinner will beat Novak. I absolutely love watching Novak on grass, the way that he’s able to slide, move on grass, it’s very, very efficient, very smooth, light on his feet.
“So it will be really, really fun to see him win some big matches up until the semifinal. But I do think Sinner is going to be a little bit stronger in the semifinal, and that Jannik will get to the finals on the top half of the draw.
“On the bottom half of the draw, I think Alex de Minaur, the level that he’s played in these last few Wimbledons, and unfortunately he had some bad injuries, but I think he’s ready to win some really big matches and to get to the final of a Grand Slam, and I think his biggest chance is on this surface.
“Because he moves so well, and he’s so good at trying to stay on top of the baseline, he’s so quick on his feet. It’s almost effortless the way that he moves on grass.
“So I think he will beat Frances Tiafoe, and then it will be a Sinner versus De Minaur final, and I think Sinner will pick up his level again and will win on the men’s side.”
Sinner won Wimbledon for the first time in his career last year, claiming his fourth career Grand Slam title with a final win over Carlos Alcaraz.
The Italian superstar is the top seed in London, while De Minaur is fifth, Djokovic is seventh, and Tiafoe is 17th.
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