Former French Open finalist, Henri Leconte, has tipped his fellow Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, to do well at Wimbledon this year and he is confident that Tsonga’s first Grand Slam win is just around the corner.
Leconte, whose best result at Wimbledon was a semi-final defeat to Boris Becker in 1986, feels that Tsonga’s game is well suited to the fast grass courts in London, “I think Jo has the skill and the game to play well at Wimbledon,” the 49-year old said. “He’s been to the semis before and he can produce some good tennis. He’s happy to play on grass, and he’s stronger physically and mentally,” he added, recalling memories of Tsonga’s semi-final defeats in 2011 and 2012.
Tsonga’s performances at Wimbledon have improved consistently over the last three years with 2011’s defeat to Novak Djokovic and 2012’s defeat to Andy Murray in the semi-finals having been preceded by a quarter final exit in 2010. Having reached the semi-finals of the recent French Open, Tsonga is one of the top tips from betfair for this year’s event.
For Leconte, Tsonga’s progress this year will have a lot to do with the way that the draw pans out but he is confident that the 28-year old’s first Grand Slam win is not too far away, “A lot will depend on the draw,” Leconte said. “I think he’s capable of winning a grand slam sometime, maybe Wimbledon or the Australian Open as those are the surfaces that suit him best,” he added.
Tsonga is certainly improving year upon year and his performances in the Grand Slams suggest that one day he will take home his first major title but it is hard to see that coming at Wimbledon this year.
Roger Federer may be a fading force but there still seems to be far too much quality in the men’s field to see Tsonga going any further than the semi-finals regardless of the draw.