Even as Fifa World Cup 2018 is hogging all the limelight, one of tennis' annual spectacles — Wimbledon — kickstarts in London on Monday, July 2.
How to watch the Wimbledon 2018 tennis matches on TV, online
Star Sports Select 1 and Star Sports Select 2 provide live television coverage of the matches in India. The live stream will be available on Hotstar and Jio TV.
What to expect from Wimbledon 2018
The season has gone according to the script so far. Like last year, world number two Roger Federer won the Australian Open and numero uno Rafael Nadal dominated the red dirt before winning an 11th title at Roland Garros.
As we head into the grass-court major, the two are considered favourites to go deep into the tournament in London.
Former champion Novak Djokovic is slowly but steadily regaining his peak form following elbow injury concerns. The Serb will be eager to make an impact at the SW19 this year.
Two-time champion Andy Murray announced his withdrawal from the tournament on Sunday, June 1 despite having recovered from a hip surgery that kept him out of the second half of 2017.
Young guns Alexander Zverev, Nick Kyrgios, and Kyle Edmund among others will also be keen on making their mark at Wimbledon over the next two weeks.
Wimbledon men's singles draw preview
Defending champion Federer starts as the top seed in London and headlines the first half of the draw. The Swiss great, eyeing his 21st Grand Slam title, faces Dusan Lajovic of Serbia in the first round.
He has an easy passage at least until the fourth round where he is expected to face Borna Coric, against whom he lost the Halle Open title match last month.
Federer may face eighth seed Kevin Anderson in the quarter-final. Having avoided the likes of Nadal and Djokovic, the 36-year-old will be hoping to reach the last-four stages despite having been haded a tricky draw.
Meanwhile, last year's runners-up Marin Cilic, seeded third, is also drawn in the half that has Federer. He is likely to take on sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov in the semi-final, provided the Bulgarian overcomes a stiff opening round test against comeback man Stanislas Wawrinka.
13th seed Milos Raonic, who lost to Federer in Stuttgart Open final last month, is also one of the key contenders for a quarter-final berth.
India's Yuki Bhambri, who will be making his Wimbledon main draw debut, is also drawn in the first half. The 25-year-old opens his campaign against French qualifier Thomas Fabbiano on Monday.
Global TV listings and live stream
- UK: TV - BBC; Live stream - BBC Sport Website and app
- US: ESPN
- Africa: Canal Plus
- Asia: TV - Fox Sports, Star India; Live stream - Fox Go, Hotstar
- Australia: TV - Fox Sports, Seven Network; Live stream - Foxtel Go
- China: CCTV 5, Beijing TV
- Canada: TSN Canada
- France: beIN Sports
- Germany: Sky Deutschland
- Japan: NHK and Wowow
- Serbia: Eurosport, RTS, Sportklub
- South Africa: Supersport
Second seed Nadal starts his Wimbledon campaign against Dudi Sela and may face in-form Mischa Zverev in the third round. A quarter-final clash between the Spaniard and fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro is on the cards. David Goffin, Diego Schwartzman and youngster Denis Shapovalov have also been drawn in the last quarter.
Meanwhile, fourth seed Alexander Zverev and seventh seed Dominic Thiem, both of whom were impressive on clay, may face each other in the quarter-final.
Predicted quarter-final line-ups (Seeding inside parentheses)
- Federer [1] vs Kevin Anderson [8]
- Cilic [3] vs Dimitrov [6]
- Thiem [7] vs Zverev [4]
- Nadal [2] vs Del Potro [5]
Seeding information - Wimbledon 2018
- Roger Federer
- Rafael nadal
- Marin Cilic
- Alexander Zverev
- Juan Martin del Potro
- Grigor Dimitrov
- Dominic Thiem
- Kevin Anderson
- John Isner
- David Goffin
- Sam Querrey
- Novak Djokovic
- Milos Raonic
- Diego Schwartzman
- Nick Kyrgios
- Borna Coric
- Lucas Pouille
- Jack Sock
- Fabio Fognini
- Pablo Carreno Busta
- Kyle Edmund
- Adrian Mannarino
- Richard Gasquet
- Kei Nishikori
- Philipp Kohlschreiber
- Denis Shapovalov
- Damir Dzumhur
- Filip Krajinovic
- Marco Cecchinato
- Fernando Verdasco
- Stefanos Tsitsipas
- Leonardo Mayer
Daily schedule - Wimbledon 2018
Key matches to watch out for on July 2
At SW19
- Federer vs Lajovic: 1 pm local time, 5:30 pm IST
- Followed by Wawrinka vs Dimitrov.
At Court 8
- Yuki Bhambri vs Fabbiano: Not before 1:30 pm BST, 6 pm IST
