The long wait is almost over. After being cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wimbledon Championships returns with a bang in just a couple of days' time.
Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Serena Williams will all be back in action at the All England Club as they look to add another Grand Slam title to their already glittering tennis careers.
With the draw of this year's Championships just announced, let's take a look at the paths these three legends might possibly take on the road to the title.
Federer and Djokovic handed great draws
Much to the relief of tennis fans around the world, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic landed on opposite sides of the draw for this year's Wimbledon Championships, setting up the possibility of them again meeting in the final, in a rematch of their epic 2019 title clash.
All the momentum is with Djokovic heading into the year's third Grand Slam tournament. The world no. 1 is coming off an emotional and satisfying win at the French Open, outlasting King of Clay Rafael Nadal in the semifinals before coming back from two sets down in the final to beat Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas.
With titles at the Australian Open and at Roland Garros in the bag, Djokovic now has a grand opportunity to achieve the calendar year Grand Slam, a feat last done by the great Rod Laver in 1969.
The Serbian star will begin his Wimbledon title defense with a first round clash with British wild card Jack Draper. If he manages to get through that meeting as expected, matchups with big-serving Kevin Anderson, Frenchman Gael Monfils and German teen sensation Jannik Sinner possibly await Djokovic in Week 1.
In the quarterfinals, the 34-year-old could meet another Next Gen star in fifth-seeded Russian Andrey Rublev. Djokovic, who comes into the grass-court major with an impressive 72-10 record in the event, may need to beat British star Andy Murray or Tsitsipas in the semifinals.
Roger Federer, on the other hand, was placed in the bottom half of the Wimbledon draw. The eight-time champion will begin his campaign against France's Adrian Mannarino in the opening round. The sixth seed will be confident of his chances in that matchup, though, as Federer has beaten Mannarino six times before, including twice here at Wimbledon.
A tougher test possibly awaits Federer in the third round with this year's Queen's Club runner-up Cameron Norrie looming large. If the 39-year-old manages to reach the second week of the tournament, he might face big-serving Russian Daniil Medvedev, who has just reached his first grass final this week at the Mallorca Championships.
Related Article: 2021 French Open: Djokovic, Krejcikova Crowned Roland Garros Champions
Serena Williams' road to Grand Slam win no. 24 opens up
Serena Williams' path to a record-tying 24th Grand Slam title looks to be opening after a spate of big-name withdrawals in the event, including defending champion Simona Halep and four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka.
The only possible tripping point for Williams in Week 1 is a possible fourth-round clash with rising star Coco Gauff. A meeting with top-seeded Ashleigh Barty looms large though for Serena in the semifinals.
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