All you need to know- Dates, Venue, Top-Seeds, Draw, Format Explainer, Defending Champions, and Prize Money

The All England Tennis Championships famously known as Wimbledon is back again. It is going to be the 135th edition of the oldest Tennis Grand Slam when the Championships begin on June 27.

But even before the start of the tournament, the focus has completely shifted as its organising committee, the All England Lawn Tennis Club banned the entry of the Russian and Belarusian players citing Russia’s war on Ukraine and did not allow them to participate even as neutral athletes.

Courtesy of this arbitrary decision, the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) decided to strip the Championships of any ranking points, rendering it an exhibition tournament in reality. It will also be the first occasion since 1998 that Wimbledon’s heartthrob, the Swiss maestro, Roger Federer will not be able to take part in his favourite Grand Slam.

However, the craze around the tournament, which is famous for players dressed in dazzling whites, has increased even more. Here’s all you need to know about the 2022 edition of the grass-court Grand Slam –

What is the schedule for Wimbledon 2022?

The Championships, which begin on June 27, actually had a qualifying round which began on Monday, 20 June and went on till Thursday, 23 June.

The main draw of the competition will start on Monday, June 27, and will continue till Sunday, June 8. By June 8, all the rounds will be done and only the finals will remain. However, the Mixed Doubles final would take place on July 07 itself.

While the Women’s Singles final will be played on Saturday, July 9, the Men’s Singles Final will take place on Sunday, July 10, 2022.

Where will the Wimbledon game be held?

The All England Lawn Tennis Club in London, UK will host the Championships as always. According to Wimbledon’s official website, “The Club was founded on 23 July 1868 as The All England Croquet Club. Its name was changed in 1877 to The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club and in 1899 to The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.”

“On 1 August 2011 the Club was converted into a company limited by guarantee under the name The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club Limited,” the website adds further.

Who are the top seeds for Wimbledon 2022?

Novak Djokovic is the top seeded player in men’s singles

Since the Russian and Belarusian players were banned, it will be the first time in 49 years that world number one and world number two will not be part of the Wimbledon in Men’s Singles category. While world number one Daniil Medvedev could not participate due to the ban on Russian players, world number two Germany’s Alexander Zverev is out with an injury that he picked up during French Open 2022.

Thus world number three Novak Djokovic has been seeded one in Men’s Singles while French Open champion, Poland’s Iga Swiatek has been seeded number one in Women’s Singles.

What is the Draw of Wimbledon 2022?

The official draw for Wimbledon was made on June 24, setting up each player’s potential path to the final.

In the men’s draw, Number 1 seed Novak Djokovic enjoys a potential run where he will only be able to meet long-time rival Rafael Nadal in the final. However, he may have to face Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals. The Spaniard is widely considered a dark horse to have a deep run at the tournament.

Contrastingly, Nadal’s side of the draw may see a tough test against Matteo Berrettini if he wants to reach “Championship Sunday”. The reigning Queen’s champion has hopes of his own, making a potential matchup a mouth-watering prospect.

In the women’s draw, British hope Emma Raducanu enters Wimbledon as the 10th seed in 2022. She takes on Belgium’s Alison van Uytvanck in the first round. Although she is carrying an injury, last year’s US Open champion will hope for a strong showing on home soil.

Elsewhere, 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams makes her long-awaited return to competition. She starts against Harmony Tan in round one but will likely face seeded opponents at every round after this. For instance, she may face last year’s finalist Karolina Pliskova as early as round three.

Iga Swiatek is the top seeded women’s singles player

Women’s first seed Iga Swiatek will aim to beat her previous-best Wimbledon performance – making the fourth-round last year. In 2022, she comes in as Roland Garros champion and with an unbelievable win streak. She starts by playing qualifier Jana Fett.

What is the format of the Wimbledon?

As is the case with all Grand Slams, the 2022 edition of the Wimbledon will see knockout format wherein the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, whose winner becomes the tournament champion.  

Who are the defending champions of Wimbledon?

The Men’s Singles event was won by then world number one Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, who defeated Italy’s Matteo Berrettini, 6–7(4–7), 6–4, 6–4, 6–3. Croatia’s Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić won the Men’s Doubles event as they defeated the pairing of Spain’s Marcel Granollers and Argentina’s Horacio Zeballos, 6–4, 7–6(7–5), 2–6, 7–5.

For the Women’s Singles crown, Australia’s Ashleigh Barty had to defeat Czech Republic’s Karolína Plíšková, 6–3, 6–7(4–7), 6–3. In Women’s Doubles, the pairing of Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Su-Wei and Belgium’s Elise Mertens defeated the Russian duo of Veronika Kudermetova and Elena Vesnina, 3–6, 7–5, 9–7.

The Mixed Doubles event was won by the pairing of Great Britain’s Neal Skupski and United States’ Desirae Krawczyk, who defeated the all-British duo of Joe Salisbury and Harriet Dart, 6–2, 7–6(7–1).

What is the prize money for Wimbledon 2022?

The total prize money for Wimbledon 2022 has been kept at a record of £40,350,000, which is equal to almost $50 Million. The prize money for both men and women remains equal across categories.

SINGLES

Winner: £2,000,000

Finalist: £1,050,000

Semi-finalist: £535,000

Quarterfinalist: £310,000

Round of 16: £190,000

Round of 32: £120,000

Round of 64: £78,000

Round of 128: £50,000

DOUBLES (£ per team)

Winner: £540,000

Finalist: £270,000

Semi-finalist: £135,000

Quarterfinalist: £67,000

Round of 16: £33,000

Round of 32: £20,000Round of 64: £12,500