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Wimbledon - Tennis: Five To Follow - Men's Singles

Novak Djokovic has dominated at Wimbledon in recent times, lifting the trophy at five of the last seven tournaments, and is the warm favourite to triumph at the All England Club this year.

However, there is a wave of fresh talent coming through and it will be fascinating to see if any of them can make a major breakthrough.

What: Wimbledon Championships

Where: All England Club, London

When: Monday 27th June-Sunday 10th July

How to watch: BBC, Eurosport and Sports Live Streaming

Odds: Novak Djokovic 5/6, Rafael Nadal 13/2, Matteo Berrettini 7/1, Carlos Alcaraz 50/1, Felix Auger-Aliassime 11/1

Big-serving Italian Matteo Berrettini is one to watch after finishing runner-up to Djokovic in last year's Wimbledon final, while Denis Shapovalov is another to consider after a semi-final appearance at Wimbledon last year and a run to quarter-finals at this year's Australian Open.

Powerful Pole Hubert Hurkacz - another of last year's semi-finalists - and talented Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime are other rising stars worth considering, while Croatian veteran Marin Cilic could also give the market leaders a run for their money.

Berrettini bidding to go one better

Berrettini ran out of steam in last year's Wimbledon final against Djokovic - losing 7-6 4-6 4-6 3-6 - but he was hugely impressive over the course of the tournament and looked every inch a future Grand Slam winner.

The Italian is not a youngster - he turned 26 in April - but it is quite possible that his late twenties could be more fruitful than his early twenties, as long as he learns to iron out his main weakness, which is on the backhand side.

Berrettini's big serve and penetrative forehand make him well suited to grass courts, although he has had decent runs at all four Grand Slams.

Reaching the Wimbledon final should have been a springboard, but he suffered an injury to his right hand in March this year and missed the entire clay court season.

Berrettini made a triumphant return to action by winning the grass court Stuttgart Open in June and could be among the leading contenders at the All England Club.

Heavy-hitting Hurkacz could go well

Berrettini's vanquished semi-final opponent at last year's Wimbledon was Hurkacz, who reached the last four of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.

Hurkacz is a late bloomer, who was 24 when he landed his first Masters title at the 2021 Miami Open.

However, the most notable win of his career came in last year's Wimbledon quarter-finals when he romped to a 6-3 7-6 6-0 success over Roger Federer.

Hurkacz's big serve works to his advantage on faster courts and he is happy to mix up his game by serving and volleying at key moments.

He had another decent run in Miami this year, reaching the semi-finals and reached the fourth round at the French Open, losing to Casper Ruud, who went on to finish runner-up.

The Pole has shaped up well before the start of the grass court season and could be a tough opponent at Wimbledon.

Serve and volley may help Shapovalov

The other beaten Wimbledon semi-finalist from 2021 was aggressive left-hander Shapovalov, who has fantastic attributes but who has lacked the consistency to make the most of his talent.

Shapovalov looked at ease on the grass courts last year and was far from disgraced in his 6-7 5-7 5-7 loss to Djokovic in the last four.

The Canadian's bold style of play and willingness to serve and volley on the big points make him a dangerous player when he gets into the groove.

He can be guilty of making a few too many unforced errors, but it would not be a surprise to see him go deep once again.

Related Tennis News

Tennis - Wimbledon Championships All You Need To Know

Auger-Aliassime striving for senior breakthrough

Another Canadian widely touted for future Grand Slam success is Felix Auger-Aliassime, who posted his best effort at Wimbledon with a run to the quarter-finals last year.

Auger-Aliassime was a talented teenager, who reached two Junior Grand Slam finals - winning the 2016 US Open and finishing as runner-up at the 2016 French Open - but he has struggled to make a major breakthrough at the senior level.

The 21-year-old has reached ten ATP finals, losing nine of them, and is yet to reach a Grand Slam final, but his strong all-court game makes him a threat on any surface.

Paris progress could spur Cilic on

The last few years have seen some lean times for Cilic, but the 33-year-old Croatian was a semi-finalist at this year's French Open and has shown that he has the game to compete on all courts.

Cilic's solitary Grand Slam triumph came at the 2014 US Open where he defeated Kei Nishikori in the final.

He was a Wimbledon finalist in 2017 - losing to Federer - but has not advanced beyond the third round in his last three visits to the All England Club.

However, he has bounced back this year, returning to the top 20 in the ATP rankings and cannot be discounted.

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