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| Andy Roddick is seeded sixth© Getty Images |
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| Venus and Serena Williams practice at the All England Club© Getty Images |
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| James Blake looks to advance past the third round this year© Getty Images |
By Matthew Cronin, special to USTA.com
Until Roger Federer came along as a prime-time player in 2003, Wimbledon was some sense an American tournament on the men's side for the better part of two decades, with U.S. legends Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors and Andre Agassi combining for 12 titles from 1981 through 2000.
While Croat Goran Ivanisevic and Aussie Lleyton Hewitt chipped in crowns in 2001 and 2002, Americans were still firmly in the mix, but Federer has stopped the red, white and blue train cold since 2003, tying Bjorn Borg with five straight titles.
But on the women's side, after seeing Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf dominate the tournament for much of the 1980s and 1990s, there has been a clear U.S. renaissance. Since 1999, the U.S. has won seven titles, with four from the new queen of Venus Rosewater Dish, Venus Williams, two from her younger sister, Serena and one from Lindsay Davenport.
Venus has learned to negotiate the cool, green grass like a new 25 horsepower riding mower with a full tank of gas.
"It's really not about being at the top of your game; it's about knowing what to do at the right time," said Venus.
Unlike in Paris, where the Americans once again had trouble imposing their all-court games, Wimbledon presents multiple opportunities for at least six Americans: the Williams sisters and Davenport, as well as two-time finalist Andy Roddick, ninth-seed James Blake and dangerous floater Mardy Fish.
Roddick has said that had it not been for the existence of Federer, he could have added two to three Wimbledon titles to his sole Grand Slam crown, the 2003 US Open. The last two years -- where he was foiled by the inventive young Scot Andy Murray and then was stunned by France's Richard Gasquet -- weren't kind to his resume, but Roddick does own the biggest serve on the planet, has improved his volley and owns wins this season over the world's vaunted top three - Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
“I think if you were to pick five guys to win, I'd like to think of myself in those five," Roddick said. "This year I've played some of the best stuff I have in the last couple of years when I've been on the court. I always feel like I'm going to be able to grind out matches, kind of figure out a way to win sometimes.
"There have been times this year when I played very well, so going into Wimbledon, I probably feel a little bit better than the last couple of years. I haven't forgotten about that match against Gasquet last year. I haven't forgotten about the successes I've had on grass, either. I think it all plays into it.
"It definitely left a sour taste in my mouth, and I'm sure I'll think about it from time to time. But once you get out there, it's not something that is in my thought process when I'm having breakfast in the morning."
Blake has had far less success than Roddick, never having worked his way past the third round. But he reached the semifinals of a warm-up tournament in Halle, and if he can serve consistently well, use his speed about the court and close successfully at net, he could work his way into the second week.
But for the first time in a major, Davis Cup teammates Roddick and Blake could meet each other -- this time in the fourth round. Situated in the bottom half of draw with No. 2 Nadal, Roddick would be slightly favored in that match and should be tipped to reach the semifinals, since the only man seeded higher than him there is No. 4 Nikolay Davydenko, who has never had success on grass.
The bottom half of the men's draw is loaded with U.S. hopefuls, including Fish, who upset Federer at Indian Wells and gets a shot at Gasquet for Roddick in the opening round; huge-serving John Isner, who will face Latvian up-and-comer Ernests Gulbis in the first round for a chance to take on Nadal; young lefties Jesse Levine and Donald Young, who will face off in the opening round; and another lefty, Wayne Odesnik, who turned heads by reaching the third round of the French Open.
Two other American hopefuls, Robby Ginepri and Sam Querrey, will have to face seeds in the top half, when the Georgian Ginepri faces the fiery Chilean, Fernando Gonzalez, and Californian Querrey confronts Juan Carlos Ferrero.
The Williams sisters were both disappointed in their French Open results, but that will surely give them more motivation to make hay at the All-England Club. Venus is in Los Angeles-resident and second-seed Maria Sharapova's half of the draw, where the two could meet in the semifinals.
Last year, after some severe bumps in the road in her first three matches, Venus busted up Sharapova, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Ana Ivanovic and Marion Bartoli. "I was really in that zone," said Venus. "No one was going to beat me."
There are some doubts surrounding Venus, who has yet to win a title this year. But with just a couple of exceptions, when healthy, it hasn't mattered what has occurred prior to the opening of the birthplace of Grand Slam tennis, as the elder Williams rediscovers her smoking serve, fleet feet on grass and long reach at the net. Since the turn of the century, no other player has impressed both offensively and defensively over quality competition as Venus, who won titles in 2000, 2001, 2005 and 2007.
Venus' 9-7 in the third-set victory over Davenport in the 2005 final is considered one of the most dramatic and well-played title bouts ever, and the two would like to meet each other again, but this time it will have to be in the semifinals, where should they get there, it will be their 28th meeting, with Davenport leading their head-to-heads, 14-13.
But the 32-year-old Davenport will be hard pressed to work her way to the final four, as she just suffered a knee injury and hasn't played since March. Her main goal during her comeback as a new mother was to be named to the U.S. Olympic team and, ranked No. 26, it appears that the 1996 gold medalist will realize her dream. But she has also stated that she wants to be a factor at the majors, and for the 1999 Wimbledon champion, that means reaching the second week.
She could face Russian veteran Elena Dementieva in the third round, whom she might be able to blast off the court, and should she get past the streaky baseliner, she might face French Open finalist Dinara Safina, who is no grass-court lover, but who has been on a tremendous roll. Should she put down those two Russians, the third one will likely be the most difficult: 2004 champion Sharapova, who destroyed her at the Australian Open.
Fortunately for the Williams sisters' fans, Serena and Venus can't meet until the final. But unlike in 2003, when an all-Williams final was all but guaranteed, it won't be this fortnight. As well as Serena played in between the Australian and French Opens, winning Bangalore, Miami and Charleston, she faded in a 6-4, 6-4 defeat to Slovenia's Katarina Srebotnik in the third round of Roland Garros, perhaps because she knew that with the shocking retirement of No. 1 Justine Henin, she had her best chance to win the tournament in years.
"Maybe it's a good thing," her mother and coach Oracene said after the loss. "I really think she'll come out swinging."
Seeded No. 6, Serena is in Ivanovic's half of the draw and has a difficult opening match against up-and-coming Estonian Kaia Kanepi. Should she find her form early, Serena, who won the Wimbledon titles in 2002 and 2003, might face 2006 champ Amelie Mauresmo in the third round or possibly U.S. Fed Cup standout Ashley Harkleroad, who will play the French veteran in the first round.
Outside of new No. 1 Ivanovic, though, there is no player who should threaten Serena on a great day. But she must beware of the powerful 20-year-old Serbian, who is brimming with confidence after her remarkable French Open run.
“The Williams sisters are playing really well on grass, and Maria has a game that suits grass very well,” Ivanovic said. “But I have a game, and I beat most of them before. I would really like to be able to keep the form from Paris and stay here the whole two weeks.”