The Wimbledon 2026, year’s third grand slam, is about to start on June 29 in England and a lot of stories waiting to play out with 23-gran slam winner Serena Williams’ comeback being the highlight.
It was also Serena who had last won the Championship back-to-back in women’s singles – 2015 and 2016. It has been nearly a decade since then but not other female player has been able to achieve the same feat. In fact, women’s singles have seen a different champion every year since 2017 with 2020 being cancelled due to Covid-19. At this year’s championship, Iga Swiatek comes in as the reigning champion but would she be able to defend the crown remains to be seen.
WION spoke to former Indian tennis player and JioStar expert Vijay Amritraj during the JioStar Media Day ahead of Wimbledon 2026 about why it is hard to repeat the success at Wimbledon for female players and he said that the “players have been of same level ever since the Williams sisters (Venus and Serena) left.”
“Swiatek had a bit of great run as she was unbeatable for a while but at the end, I think the girls are much better in terms of standard, performance, and temperament than the way Alcaraz and SInner have moved a little bit beyond than the rest of the bunch.”
Who could win Wimbledon 2026 women’s singles?
Picking out the winners, Amritraj noted, “among the female athletes today, it was very hard to pick up a winner,” but picked out Aryna Sabalenka as the favorite to win. Sabalenka, a four-time grand slam winner, has reached the Wimbledon semis thrice in 2021, 2023, and 2025 but hasn’t been able to win the title.
“Sabalenka has been a overpowering player like Serena, so yes she is a clear favorite on the grass in my opinion. She has the best chance to win, but she got one dimensional game and she is starting to mix it up. The serve is definitely better but other players have found a chink in her armour,” he added.
Comparing to what has changed over the years at the Wimbledon, Amritraj said, “the grass today is less quick compared to our playing days which also used lighter balls.”
As for women’s tennis, he opined that the competition is “quite wide open, upsets can happen in the early stages of the tournament, especially on this surface. It is not a clear two-three men rivalry like in men’s tennis over the decade. It’ll be great to see who ends up holding up under the pressure and on the surface,” he concluded.
Where to watch and stream Wimbledon 2026 live in India?
Wimbledon 2026 can be watched from June 29 – July 12, LIVE on JioHotstar and Star Sports Network.