Anderson to make Wimbledon last 16 - Koenig
The competition is almost too close to call, as a number of men and women are coming into the tournament in good form.
Locally, Kevin Anderson will fly South Africa’s flag high and his most recent performances bode well as he goes into the prestigious grass court event.
Anderson enjoyed a week of success at the Aegon Championships at the Queen’s Club. He made it all the way to the final, only to be beaten by a clinical Andy Murray.
Anderson will face Frenchman Lucas Pouille first up this week.
Former South African tennis pro and current ATP commentator Robbie Koenig believes Anderson will go into the tournament brimming with confidence.
However Koenig said Anderson will face a tough road, and expects the ATP 14th seed to make it as far as the last eight in the competition.
"A lot of people ask me about Kevin’s chances. He could face Djokovic in the fourth round,” Koenig said.
“Par score for Kevin would be fourth round, if he did anything better than that, it would be a fantastic achievement. Tennis is a funny old game; he could have been out in the first round last week at Queen’s.”
“Kevin won a set and won the match (in the Aegon Champs opener). But one thing is for sure, whenever you make the finals of a grass court tournament, especially one of the ilk of Queen’s, you will go into Wimbledon with a lot of confidence.”
“I think he would be disappointed if he doesn’t make it to the round of 16. For me, I’d like to see him get at least that far.”
Meanwhile Roger Federer is chasing a record eighth Wimbledon Gentleman’s title. He is currently tied for the record with Pete Sampras – both have won The Championships seven times.
Koenig said Federer can never be written off.
“I said the chances of him winning a major at the start of the year were two out of eight. Im looking forward to the next two years and I think his best chances of winning majors are at Wimbledon both this year and next year,” Koenig said.
“His grass court pedigree is undeniable but again he could have lost in the first round in Halle last week.”
Koenig also believes the fact that Wimbledon has always been a happy hunting ground for Federer will factor in massively.
“You have to remember that feel good factor. When he steps through those gates at the All England Club, if you’ve never played sport at the highest level it’s difficult to get that message across to somebody.”
“But it’s just the confidence it gives you at a place where you’re returning where you’ve had so much former glory – he’ll be able to draw on that energy.”
“Yes he has a chance of still winning majors, but my number would be 25%. I still think there a lot more guys now who have belief that they can beat him than ever before.”
Defending champion Novak Djokovic will take on Phillip Kohlschreiber in the first round while Murray takes on Kazakhstan's Mikael Kukushkin.
(File Photo: Gallo Images)
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