Wimbledon loses its usual fervour to war ban, injuries

Shorn of big names and points, Djoko, Nadal, Swiatek and Serena will look to bring spark back to the ChampionshipsLONDON: The weather forecast for the championships is cloudy; it's also a reflection of things on the ground. Wimbledon 2022 kicks off on Monday without Russian and Belarussian players and sans the currency of ranking points. The men's top-10 - world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev and compatriot Andrey Rublev are paying the prize for nationality and No. 2 Alexander Zverev is injured - looks significantly tapered. The women's heft will be without last year's semifinalist No. 6 Aryna Sabalenka, French Open semifinalist Daria Kasatkina and No. 20 Victoria Azarenka, all for reasons of flag and country. Roger Federer, the eight-time champion, will miss the tournament for the first time since he debuted here 23 summers ago. The 40-yearold is pushing an ageing frame to get match fit after an injury enforced break of 12-months and counting. Naomi Osaka, a former No. 1, whose burgeoning business interests contrasts with her appearances on the tennis court. The Japanese will sit out of what she called an 'exhibition' because of her Achilles. The All England Lawn Tennis Club took a stand on the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the ATP and WTA Tours hit back with the sharpest shot in the gunroom - the prize of points. While the target was the grass-court major, it is the players who've been hit the hardest - some more than others, unable even to defend their gains from 2021.

Matteo Berrettini, who made the final last year, could drop to No. 17 while Karolina Pliskova could go down to 18. Belarussian Sabalenka, with pickings of 780 from the tournament 12 months ago, could hold on to her top-10 position. It doesn't augur well