Wimbledon 2026 gets under way on June 29 with the lush green courts of the All England Club presenting the players with a different kind of challenge.Much of the season these days is played on hardcourts, while more recently the top stars have been dashing around Europe on the clay.While there has been plenty of talk about the ‘homogenisation’ of court surfaces in recent times, grass still offers up unique challenges.The likes of Boris Becker and Pete Sampras reigned supreme here in the past with their strong serves and a big delivery is still a major weapon to have on the grass where the ball skids through that bit more, bouncing slightly lower on average. A good slice – to keep the ball low – is another shot worth having in the arsenal.The top players have often found a way to adapt to conditions they only see for five weeks a year. For example, Jannik Sinner is the defending champion, while Carlos Alcaraz is already a two-time winner.However, others struggle to get to grips with the grass. Gone are the days of the claycourters simply not turning up but big beasts like Alex Zverev have been unable to translate form on other surfaces to this one.This year, Zverev returns for another crack as a Grand Slam champion having won the French Open earlier this month. However, Sinner is the one to beat despite his 30-match win streak being surprisingly broken in Paris. Alcaraz, sadly, remains sidelined with a wrist injury.On the women’s side, world number one Aryna Sabalenka is most people’s favourite but she’s yet to make the final in SW19, so perhaps reigning champ Iga Swiatek will become the first back-to-back winner since Serena Williams a decade ago.Williams, of course, returns from retirement but at the age of 44 and with no matchplay under her belt, it is fanciful to suggest she can challenge for what would be an eighth Wimbledon singles crown.Let’s take a look at who can though… Wimbledon 2026 quick tipsTaylor Fritz each way in the men’s singles – 18/1 with talkSPORT BETFrances Tiafoe each way in the men’s singles – 66/1 with talkSPORT BETMadison Keys each way in the ladies’ singles – 30/1 with talkSPORT BETKarolina Pliskova each way in the ladies’ singles – 100/1 with talkSPORT BET Who’s in form ahead of Wimbledon?With the grasscourt season so short, there’s never a great deal of surface form to go on – some players don’t even contest a warm-up tournament on this surface, opting instead to play an exhibition match or two or simply practice.On the ATP side, Jannik Sinner – the player of the season so far – has been among those to opt out. In his absence, American players have shone with Frances Tiafoe winning in Halle and Ben Shelton in Stuttgart. Taylor Fritz has also won plenty of matches, while Francisco Cerundolo emerged as a surprise champion at Queen’s Club.As for the women, the big guns have failed to impress at their prep events. Aryna Sabalenka was beaten by Jessica Pegula In Berlin, while Iga Swiatek lost her one and only grasscourt warm-up match in Bad Homburg.Instead, Linda Noskova won in the German capital, while Donna Vekic scooped the Queen’s Club title, beating a certain Emma Raducanu. Sinner a worthy favourite – but odds-on not for everyoneFew would dispute that Jannik Sinner has been the best player of 2026 and he’s a worthy favourite to successfully defend his Wimbledon title.However, two of his three losses so far this year have come at the Grand Slams, with the one at the recent French Open of most concern.Seemingly cruising to victory against Juan Manuel Cerundolo, the Italian ‘hit the wall’ with his body letting him down in what were sweltering Paris conditions. It wasn’t the first time he’s struggled in the heat and the manner of that defeat has to be a concern for potential backers, not to mention the player himself.You could argue that 8/13 is still a price worth taking. After all, he was 4/11 going into that French Open.Still, I want to be totally convinced someone at that price is going to win and that’s not the case – we should also remember Sinner was on the brink of going out of last year’s tournament before Grigor Dimitrov tore a pectoral muscle when two sets to the good.Looking for value elsewhere looks a better ploy so maybe Taylor Fritz is worth a try at 18/1.He’s been a regular in the latter stages of Wimbledon in recent years, making the semis 12 months ago and the quarter-finals in 2024 and 2022.A return to the grass has sparked the big-serving American to life and he arrives here having made back-to-back finals in Stuttgart and Halle.Admittedly, his problems with long-term knee tendinitis are a concern but the grass is a more forgiving surface on the joints.Fritz is a decent each-way price who fits the profile of recent ‘surprise’ finalists in SW19 – Nick Kyrgios, Matteo Berrettini and Kevin Anderson have all served their way through the draw here – and Fritz, a former US Open runner-up, has the tools to do the same.Further down the market, maybe Frances Tiafoe can build on his impressive success at the warm-up event in Halle.The American showman is a player who thrives on confidence – and getting the crowd onside – and I wonder if his victory in Germany could work wonders for him in SW19.He’s only reached the last 16 here before but if he keeps the error count low (that can be a problem) then his Halle form suggests he can do deep. Back Fritz each way for Wimbledon at 18/1 with talkSPORT BET Madison has Keys to the crownMany of those towards the top of the ladies’ singles market can have holes picked in their title credentials.Favourite Aryna Sabalenka has never made the final here before and her form appears to have slipped at the wrong time with a couple of worrying losses of late – an early-career problem of being unable to stem the tide when things start to go wrong seems to have returned.Defending champion Iga Swiatek lost her only grasscourt warm-up match and, like Coco Gauff, hasn’t won a title of any sort since last autumn.In a tournament which has produced plenty of surprise winners and finalists in recent years – think Marketa Vondrousova and Barbora Krejcikova – it could pay to look further down the market.Few hit the ball harder than Madison Keys and she knows what it takes to win at Grand Slam level having captured last season’s Australian Open.The experienced American has looked good in the warm-up events, beating Karolina Muchova in Berling before losing in two tie-breaks to Jessica Pegula in the last eight. At time of writing, she’s still going strong in Eastbourne having posted two dominant wins.As ever with Keys, keeping the unforced error count down will be crucial for her to succeed but if she does that, her explosive game could well reap rewards on this surface.For something even bigger – and hitting that triple-figure price trend created by the aforementioned Czech champions – it could be worth backing Karolina Pliskova.The 2021 runner-up has quietly started to move back up the rankings by winning 18 of her 26 matches in 2026. They include wins over Amanda Anisimova, Victoria Mboko and Ekaterina Alexandrova.On grass, she’s made the latter stages at Queen’s Club and in Nottingham, losing to the eventual champion at both events.With a strong first serve, Pliskova has a big weapon for this surface and while she’ll likely need a bit of help with the draw, she’s potentially overpriced at 100/1. Click here to back Keys each way for Wimbledon at 30/1 with talkSPORT BET British chances high in men’s doublesThe last three years have all seen a British player triumph in the men’s doubles and there’s a strong chance of a repeat.Five of the world’s top 15 doubles players are British with specialist coach Louis Cayer having helped transform the nation into a doubles powerhouse.Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool are the defending champions but world number one Harry Patten and his Finnish partner Harri Heliovaara may be the ones to beat this time around.They lead the season-long ‘Race to Turin’ having won four titles already this season, and they know how to win here, too, having done so in 2024.While Patten’s compatriots should mount a strong challenge, perhaps their biggest threat will come from Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos.Despite both having reached the age of 40, the pair won the recent French Open and have twice finished runners-up in SW19. With time running out on their careers, they will be determined to finally add this trophy to their considerable collection.The ladies’ doubles will be dominated, at least in terms of headlines, by two more 40-somethings.Serena and Venus Williams have won this six times before and it will be interesting to see if they can get back in the groove given they’ve not played together for so long – Serena is back from retirement, while Venus doesn’t play too often these days.Still, if ever a partnership could shake off such rust it is two sisters with an incredible track record of success.That said, it remains more likely that a duo playing more regularly will emerge as champions with Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend the leading candidates.They won here together in 2024 and recently added the French Open to their respective CVs. Japanese to shine in wheelchair events?The great Diede de Groot could be the story of the wheelchair events this year at Wimbledon.The Dutch star dominated the sport for many years, famously winning 145 matches in a row between 2021 and 2024. However, having won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, hip surgery put her out for eight months and she struggled upon her return.That changed at the recent French Open where she won title number 24, ending a drought of almost two years.Now she’ll be determined to win a seventh Wimbledon crown, having won six of the last eight editions.On the men’s side, Briton Alfie Hewett will bid to add to his 2024 victory but he may fall short with Japan’s Tokito Oda the current dominant force – he’s won the last five Grand Slams. Recent Wimbledon winnersCurrent world number one Jannik Sinner captured the Wimbledon men’s title 12 months ago – his first success at the All England Club.Prior to that, Carlos Alcaraz had won back-to-back crowns, his 2023 success bringing to an end a 20-year period entirely dominated by the ‘Big Four’ of Roger Federer (8 titles), Rafael Nadal (2), Novak Djokovic (7) and Andy Murray (2).The ladies’ singles has seen eight different winners in its last eight editions, Iga Swiatek winning in 2025. Elena Rybakina and Barbora Krejcikova were among those champions and both will return for another shot at glory this year.So, too, will the last multiple winner – Serena Williams won her sixth and seventh Wimbledon crowns in 2015 and 2016 and is now returning after ending her retirement.Raducanu buoyed by Queen’s Club runFormer US Open champion Emma Raducanu will carry British hopes after her recent run to the final at Queen’s Club. She’ll bid to become the first home champion since Virginia Wade in 1977.She’s had plenty of injuries since that incredible win in New York as a qualifier when only 18 but looked fit and firing at Queen’s where her old coach Andrew Richardson – the man who helped guide her to US Open glory – was back in her box.It should also be remembered that Raducanu’s breakthrough came at Wimbledon earlier in that memorable 2021 season when she reached the last 16.Katie Boulter also impressed at Queen’s, reaching the semis, and could make an impact but, sadly, Sonay Kartal is out injured at present.In the men’s draw, Jack Draper is arguably the biggest British hope but he’s only just returned from another injury, so perhaps Cam Norrie can repeat his 2022 heroics when he reached the semi-finals. Wimbledon betting markets explainedBelow, you’ll find the most popular markets for betting on the oldest Grand Slam:Match winnerThe most simple tennis bet is about who will win the match. Nothing complicated here, although picking the right one may be more difficult!HandicapsA good way of getting decent odds out of a perceived mis-match. Basically, one player gets a head start – it could be a number of sets (the set handicap) or a number of games (the game handicap). The odds of the two players are then fairly similar and the punter decides whether the handicap will be ‘covered’ or not.Example: Jannik Sinner is the firm favourite to beat Novak Djokovic so the latter is given a 5.5-game ‘head start’ (shown as +5.5 in the market). The match is then played out and ends 6-4 6-4 7-6 to Sinner.He has won 19 games to Djokovic’s 14. However, now we add Djokovic’s head start of 5.5 to take him to 19.5. He has therefore won the handicap so his backers are paid out as winners.Those who backed Sinner in the market (-5.5) lose.Total sets/total gamesA fairly obvious one this – you are betting on how many sets or games there will be in a match. A line is set by the bookmaker – for example, 35.5 games. If you think the match will be won comfortably and settled in less than 35.5, you back the ‘under’ option.However, if you believe it will be a long, drawn-out affair then you would choose to go ‘over’ the line.Set betting (scores)You are betting here on the match score in terms of sets. At the Grand Slam tournaments, such as Wimbledon, the men play best-of-five so there are six options – 3-0, 3-1 and 3-2 for each player.The women only play best-of-three sets, so their matches have fewer options (4). By focusing on specifics, you are able to get bigger odds than in the match winner market.Tournament winner (outrights)Basically, this market is asking, who wins the tournament? It can be of particular interest to punters seeking an interest across the whole event.This market usually offers an ‘each way’ option. If you bet each way, you are placing two bets – one on your selection winning the tournament and the other on him/her reaching the final.The latter usually pays out at half the odds.How to bet on Wimbledon 2026Online betting via websites and apps has become the norm these days and the bookmakers make it easy for you to place your bets via these methods. Just follow the step-by-step process.Log in/register with one of our recommended bookiesSelect ‘tennis’ via the menu optionsFind the ‘Wimbledon’ sectionBrowse the markets and find the bet you wantClick on your selection – it should then appear in the ‘betslip’ on screenChoose your stake and – after double-checking everything – click ‘place bet’About the authorAndy SchoolerAndy Schooler is a journalist of more than 20 years’ experience. He has covered a wide range events from EFL football, Davis Cup tennis and the World Athletics Championships. More recently, he has focused on sports betting. Previously betting editor at Sporting Life, he is now working as a freelance, mainly writing about tennis and football.Find Andy on Twitter: @SchoolerSportCommercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to talkSPORT. 18+. T&Cs apply.Remember to gamble responsiblyA responsible gambler is someone who:Establishes time and monetary limits before playingOnly gambles with money they can afford to loseNever chase their lossesDoesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressedGamcare – www.gamcare.org.ukFind our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to www.gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.