Seeds Grigor Dimitrov and Casper Ruud will continue their Wimbledon campaigns against two opponents at very different points in their careers. Dimitrov faces Jerry Shang, while Ruud is going up against Fabio Fognini.
(10) Grigor Dimitrov vs. Jerry Shang
The age gap is 14 years as Dimitrov and Shang prepare to square off for the first time in their careers during second-round action at Wimbledon on Wednesday. This should be fun one, because Dimitrov’s prime seems not too far gone and Shang’s prime looks not too far away.
At 33, the Bulgarian registers at 10th in the rankings and comes in with a 30-10 record so far this season. That includes a title in Brisbane, runner-up performances in Marseille and Miami, a quarterfinal run at the French Open, and a straight-set defeat of Dusan Lajovic on Monday. Shang, 19, made similarly quick work of Cristian Garin in his Wimbledon main-draw debut. The lefty from China has earned 11 of his 15 main-tour match wins in 2024, including a recent quarterfinal showing in Eastbourne as a qualifier. Shang should keep this competitive for a while, but Dimitrov’s experience and general grass-court prowess will likely be the difference.
Pick: Dimitrov in 4
Fabio Fognini vs. (8) Casper Ruud
We are only in the second round, but Ruud is already just one win away from his best-ever result at Wimbledon. That’s right; the eighth-ranked Norwegian has never reached the last 32 at the All-England Club and he is an anemic 5-7 lifetime on grass. On the bright side, Ruud should at least take some confidence from a 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-4 victory over Alex Bolt on Monday.
Additional good news for the 25-year-old is that he is 3-0 lifetime against his next opponent, Fognini, although they have never met on grass. At 37 years old and ranked 94th, the Italian’s career appears to be coming to a close in the near future. Nonetheless, he did well to destroy lucky loser Luca Van Assche 6-1, 6-3, 7-5 in the opening round. This is a winnable match for Fognini on grass, but Ruud is playing good enough all-court tennis this season to hold off the veteran.
Pick: Ruud in 4