Wimbledon 2022: Top 3 favourites to win men's singles title

Wimbledon, the most prestigious tennis tournament, started on Monday with Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz and Andy Murray registering wins in the first round of men's singles.

While Alcaraz had to fight it out in a five-setter, Djokovic, Nadal and Murray lost one set each as they made their way to the second round.

However, last year's runner-up Italy's Matteo Berrettini and Marin Cilic, the 2017 runner-up, withdrew before hitting a ball after testing positive for Covid-19.

Eight-time champion and the most successful men's player at Wimbledon, Roger Federer, is also absent as he is still recovering from a knee surgery.

Men's world number 1 Daniil Medvedev and other Russian and Belarusian players will also not be participating in the tournament after Wimbledon banned them following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

We take a look at three players who according to us are the favourites to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon:

NOVAK DJOKOVIC

The world number 3 Djokovic is chasing his seventh Wimbledon, and his fourth in a row. If he goes on to win the title this year, he will become the most successful men's player here after Federer.

Last year he defeated Berrettini in the final. The Serb has not lost a game at Wimbledon since the quarter-finals in 2017.

He won his first title of the season in Rome earlier in May as he went past Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets. Djokovic's campaign in Paris also started with easy wins against Yoshihito Nishioka and Alex Molcan. He had a good run at Roland Garros before it was ended by Nadal in a tight quarter-final.

Djokovic became the first player to win 80 matches at all four Grand Slams as he made a successful start to his Wimbledon title defence on Monday defeating South Korea's Kwon Soo-woo 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

RAFAEL NADAL

After winning his 14th French Open title and his 22nd Grand Slam, Nadal has already cemented his place as the greatest of all time men's tennis players. But that doesn't mean he is going to stop.

The Spaniard has already collected the Australian Open and French Open this year to put himself halfway to a first men's calendar Grand Slam since 1969.

Up and running at #Wimbledon 2022 ????@RafaelNadal overcomes a stern Centre Court test from Francisco Cerundolo#CentreCourt100 pic.twitter.com/qt6b7t9bCF

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 28, 2022

The 36-year-old world number 4 has lost just three matches this season out of 33 he has played. He holds a 53-12 tournament record at Wimbledon and has lifted the trophy here in 2008 and 2010.

Nadal started his Wimbledon campaign on Tuesday defeating Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 in four sets.

CARLOS ALCARAZ

Carlos Alcaraz, though yet to prove his mettle on the grass court, can be a dark horse at Wimbledon.The Spaniard's record this season is an impressive 32-4. After a long time, men's tennis has found a player in Alcaraz who can replace the Top 3 (Federer, Nadal and Djokovic).

Teenage kicks ??@carlosalcaraz, the youngest man in the draw, secures a brilliant victory against Jan-Lennard Struff#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Z66hBU8qVq

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 27, 2022

Alcaraz's season-best four titles helped him reach a career-high of No 6 in ATP rankings this year.

He won two ATP 1000 crowns (Miami, Madrid) and two ATP 500 titles (Barcelona, Rio). Two of his losses were to Nadal at Indian Wells and Zverev in the French Open quarterfinals.

Alcaraz looks confident on the court and has almost every shot in the game. In the first round on Monday, the 19-year-old defeated Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 after four hours and 11 minutes.