For Hubert Hurkacz and many other players, the short time between Roland Garros and Wimbledon doesn’t give much chance to prepare for the third slam of the season. The surface change from red clay to the green grass of the All England Club can also be very tricky.
Hubert Hurkacz is the No. 7 seed at Wimbledon. The Polish No. 1 tends to struggle a little bit on the grass. Since 2018, Hurkacz has played Wimbledon five times. His results have varied, from a first-round exit (2018, 2022) through a fourth-round (2023) to his best finish, the semifinal in 2021.
Can Hurkacz claim his maiden slam?
Although No. 7 in the world, the grass is not Hubert Hurkacz’s favorite surface. Wimbledon changed how it seeded players. Until 2019, the All England Club had a “surface-based” formula. Being the oldest championship in the tennis world and the only one on grass, grass court specialists tended to be favored as seeds.
The formula was used to determine seedings based on the grass court performances of the players in the preceding two-year period. After the COVID pandemic, Wimbledon decided that this formula had served its purpose and was abolished. Seedings now work the same as everywhere else, with world ranking used.
Hurkacz, as the seventh seed, should, in theory, make the last eight based on seeding. However, the Pole will be hoping to go further than that. With Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz as the favourites for the title, it will be a tough ask. Hurkacz made the final of the Halle Open, defeating Zverev in the semifinal. Only Jannik Sinner prevented the Pole from claiming a first title on grass.
Sinner took the match in straight sets, though it was very tight. Both were tiebreaks, which could have gone either way at that point. Hurkacz will take some comfort from that. Knowing he can perform on grass should boost his confidence going into Wimbledon.
The only downside is that Wimbledon is the best of five sets, as with all slams. This could be an issue on grass. However, Hurkacz knows that he can play on the surface. The Pole does stand an excellent chance of going deep into the Championships. He needs to channel his 2021 form.
Main Photo Credit: Peter van den Berg – USA TODAY Sports
