Wimbledon Fantasy Draft: It's on Like Donkey Kong

With Wimbledon upon us, so are 2 weeks of unbelievable tennis. If you missed the Australian and French Open make sure you tune into Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. Unlike the golf majors the last two tennis slams escalate in stature and are shaping up to be dandys. With tennis on the brain as the NBA and NHL have faded away, Mark and I decided to partake in a bit of a competition; the first ever Wimbledon fantasy draft. May the best man win.

Here’s how it works. Each of us drafted 8 men, and 8 women. 5 were allowed to be ranked in the top 16, 2 in the top 32, and 1 that was unranked. Nadal and Federer were off limits in the men’s bracket, however were eligible in the “predicting the final” section. Scoring will be applied as follows:




-For each player that loses his/her 1st round match = -16 points (16 points will be deducted for each 1st round loss!)
- For each player that wins his/her 1st round match = +16 points
- For each player that wins his/her 2nd round match = +16 points
- For each player that wins his/her 3rd round match = +16 points
- For each player that wins his/her 4th round match = +16 points
- For each player that wins his/her QF round match = +24 points
- For each player that wins his/her SF round match = +32 points
- For each player that wins his/her finals match = +64 points
- You will receive 32 bonus points for each unseeded player on your team that makes it to the 4th round and you will receive 16 bonus points for each player seeded 17 to 32 on your team that makes it to the 4th round.
- If you correctly predict a finalist you will receive 32 points per player, and if you predict the winner you will receive 64 points. You will also receive +16 bonus points for each of your 8 drafted players that made the finals.

For example, if Sharapova, seeded 14th, is on your team and she is defeated in the semifinals, then you receive a total of 16 + 16 + 16 + 16 + 24 points = 88 points. If she was unseeded then you would get an additional 32 bonus points.

Men’s Draft

1.) Djokovic (2) - John
2.) Murray (4) – Mark
3.) Soderling (5) – John
4.) Berdych (6) – Mark
5.) Tsonga (12) – John
6.) Roddick (8) – Mark
7.) Monfils (9) – John
8.) Ferrer (7) – Mark
9.) Melzer (11) – John
10.) Fish (10) – Mark
11.) Gasquet (17) – John
12.) Youzhny (18) – Mark
13.) Dolgopolov (22) – John
14.) Del Potro (24) – Mark
15.) Isner – John
16.) Lopez – Mark

Finals Predictions

Mark – Federer vs Nadal – Nadal winning
John – Federer vs Nadal – Federer winning

Quick analysis: (by Mark) - First, let it be known how much more American I am than John because I have two Yankees on my team to his miserable total of one. Second, picking first was a huge advantage because I think there is a huge gap between Djokovic and Murray. I can only hope that the "home" crowd can push Murray to at least the semi-finals. Also, John may have gone with his heart instead of his head in the Final, picking his boy Federer to win it all. Obviously you may think I'm crazy, but Federer has been Nadal's play thing for a while... Or so I hope. I think the third round picks (Tsonga for John, Roddick for me) could be the difference-makers in this competition. Both are capable of deep runs but both are also vulnerable to the early round upset.

Women’s Draft

1.) Wozniacki (1) – Mark
2.) Na (3) – John
3.) Azarenka (4) – Mark
4.) Sharapova (5) – John
5.) V. Williams (23) – Mark
6.) Zvonareva (2) – John
7.) S. Williams (7) – Mark
8.) Kuznetsova (12) – John
9.) Jankovic (15) – Mark
10.) Schiavone (6) – John
11.) Kvitova ( 8) - Mark
12.) Ivanovic (18) – John
13.) Hantuchova (25) – Mark
14.) Kirilenko (26) – John
15.) Oudin – Mark
16.) Bondarenko – John

Finals Predictions

John-Sharapova vs Azarenka – Sharapova winning
Mark-Wozniacki vs V. Williams – V. Williams winning

Quick analysis: (by Mark) - Once again, I carry the torch of our beloved country in this fortnight of tennis. Three Americans on my squad, compared to John's zero. He might as well have spit on the American flag. I also stole John's proclaimed "favorite athlete in the world" at number one, and yes, I mostly did so not because I think she will win, but for spite, just like Jerry Seinfeld returning that suit to spite Elaine's love interest. Obviously, the stretch pick was Venus at five but let's be honest, what tournament brings out the best in the Williams sisters (besides the "controversial tennis clothing tournament" hosted by Hustler)? That's right, it's Wimbledon. John also insulted my team mid-draft by calling my 9th overall pick "ugly." While that assessment may be true, let's hope for the sake of Team Mark that karma comes back around and brings a victory to my door via a deep tournament run by Jankovic. John obviously disagrees with the old adage that "beauty is only skin deep", as he has Sharapova winning it all.