The third slam of the season is upon us as the second round of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships begins on Day 3. The All England Club draw has given us some scintillating Round 2 matchups, including No. 3 seed Carlos Alcaraz vs Aleksandar Vukic. As always, we at LWOT have our roundtable predictions for all the Wimbledon action. Ateet Shrivastava, Damian Kust, and Shane Black offer their insights.
Wimbledon Men’s Day 3 Predictions
Grigor Dimitrov vs Juncheng Shang
Ateet
Dimitrov played two flawless sets of tennis before things got tricky for him. He was struggling with his elbow and was serving a lot slower in the third set. He got the job done with his sheer brilliance but his fitness will be a concern in the second round. Shang got a great win against Cristian Garin, who always performs well at Wimbledon. Although the 19-year-old Chinese player is extremely talented, it will be extremely difficult to upset Dimitrov. If the Bulgarian is fit he should win this easily.
Prediction: Dimitrov in 4
Damian
Shang had a surprisingly clean performance vs Garin in the opening round, firing 13 aces and not getting broken even once. That makes this match seem a bit more interesting than it initially did. But will it be enough for the Chinese talent to get a big win like that? He’s definitely a natural on grass, but a step up in quality like this will probably make him a lot less efficient on serve than against Garin.
Prediction: Dimitrov in 4
Shane
Grigor Dimitrov is having one of the best seasons of his career. Shang has done well to get to the second round, but he will not be able to stop the Bulgarian on the grass.
Prediction: Dimitrov in 3
Brandon Nakashima vs Jordan Thompsom
Ateet
These two have played each other many times and their last meeting was at this same venue last year, where Jordan Thompson came back from down two sets to win the match. Thompson had to do the same in his first-round match against Pavel Kotov. Nakashima, on the other hand, had a straightforward win. This match will be close and can go either way but I expect Nakashima to take his revenge from last year.
Prediction: Nakashima in 5
Damian
This should be quite entertaining and they actually faced each other at Wimbledon last year with Nakashima blowing a two sets to love lead. The American made use of getting one of the weakest grass seeds in Baez, while Thompson pulled off another fightback from two sets down. Both players really like the grass, maybe the Australian will be a bit more trustworthy in key moments again.
Prediction: Thompson in 5
Shane
Reaching the Wimbledon third round would be a massive result for the winner of this match. Nakashima, who has struggled with form and injuries over the past 18 months, blasted past No. 18 seed Baez in Round 1. Look for him to carry over that confidence to this match. His game is suited for the grass.
Prediction: Nakashima in 4
Miomir Kecmanovic vs Tallon Griekspoor
Ateet
These two played last month on the grass where all three sets went to a tiebreak. Griekspoor edged that one out and has been a better player on this surface over the years. Neither player has a clear advantage in this match and whoever plays better on the day will win. Griekspoor is the favourite to win this match.
Prediction: Griekspoor in 5
Damian
Kecmanovic isn’t poor on grass, but it does force him to play more offensive tennis than usual and he’s not always ok with that. Griekspoor’s weaponry and natural comfort zone is a better fit for the surface. When they played in Hertogenbosch a couple of weeks ago, the Dutchman barely survived as he just couldn’t break Kecmanovic until deep in the third set. If he can get some better rhythm on return here, he’ll win more comfortably.
Prediction: Griekspoor in 4
Shane
Kecmanovic and Griekspoor looked solid in their Round 1 victories. That said, Griekspoor has been the more adept grass-court player over his career. The No. 27 seed combines consistency and variety to best opponents on this surface and should ride that formula to a victory.
Prediction: Griekspoor in 4
Carlos Alcaraz vs Aleksandar Vukic
Ateet
Carlos Alcaraz faced a stern test in his first round from the wild card, Mark Lajal. It was a great test for Alcaraz to find his feet. He will get better with every match and he has a good draw early on, where he can win matches without having to play at his best. Aleksandar Vukic has played a lot of tennis on grass recently and is in good form, He won a very tight match in the fifth set tiebreak to set up this meeting with Alcaraz. I can’t see him troubling the Spaniard who is also much fresher.
Prediction: Alcaraz in 3
Damian
It was already a shock when Vukic defeated Alcaraz at Roland Garros way back, this would be even bigger. The Australian is likely doing enough to hang around on the main tour now and can produce upsets from time to time, especially if he serves well. But it will probably be a case of Alcaraz raising his level if necessary as he did in round one.
Prediction: Alcaraz in 3
Shane
Reigning Champion Carlos Alcaraz got his 2024 Wimbledon campaign off without a hitch. On the other hand, Vukic battled through five grueling sets to take down Ofner. Alcaraz should have no problem winning points in a variety of ways.
Prediction: Alcaraz in 3
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane – USA TODAY Sports
