Wimbledon 2024: Gauff-Osaka, Sinner-Shelton among potential must-watch tennis matchups

June 28 (UPI) -- Potential paths for meetings between Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka and Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton were revealed through Friday's draw for Wimbledon 2024.

Main-draw play for the third Grand Slam of the tennis season will be held Monday through July 14 at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, a London suburb. The tournament will air on ESPN platforms and ABC.

A total of 256 men's and women's players will compete in the main-draw matches, with the winners of the singles tournaments earning $3.4 million apiece. The runner-up from each circuit will receive $1.7 million.

Sinner, the No. 1 men's player, is favored to win the men's tournament by many oddsmakers. The Italian, who is 38-4 this season, won the Australian Open in January for his first Grand Slam. Two of his four losses this year were to No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, who other oddsmakers list as a Wimbledon favorite. Alcaraz beat No. 2 Novak Djokovic of Serbia for the 2023 title.

Djokovic, No. 4 Alexander Zverev of Germany and No. 7 Hubert Hurkacz of Poland are among other expected contenders for this year's grass-court crown.

No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland, No. 4 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, No. 2 Coco Gauff of the United States and No. 111 Naomi Osaka of Japan are among the women's singles favorites. No. 6 Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic beat No. 10 Ons Jabeur of Tunisia for the 2023 crown.

Several high-profile matches could materialize if expected favorites advance through the early rounds. Swiatek will start her quest for a second-consecutive Grand Slam -- and sixth overall -- with a first-round match against No. 48 Sofia Kenin of the United States.

Swiatek could meet No. 13 Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia in the fourth round, if both players win their first three matches. Vondrousova and No. 11 Danielle Collins of the United States are among the top players Swiatek could meet in the quarterfinals.

Jabeur could face No. 5 Jessica Pegula of the United States as soon as the fourth round. Rybakina is the highest-rated player Pegula or Jabeur could meet in the quarterfinals.

Gauff, the 2023 U.S. Open champion and semifinalist in her last three Grand Slam runs, will start Wimbledon with a first-round match against No. 52 Caroline Dolehide of the United States.

If Gauff wins her first three matches, she could meet Osaka in the fourth round. Osaka, a wild card entry, will face No. 53 Diane Parry of France in her Wimbledon opener. The four-time Grand Slam champion could face No. 16 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus as early as the third round.

No. 7 Jasmine Paolini of Italy and No. 12 Madison Keys of the United States are the highest-ranked players Gauff could face in the quarterfinals.

In the men's circuit, Sinner will meet No. 95 Yannick Hanfmann of Germany in the first round. He could meet No. 14 Ben Shelton of the United States as soon as the fourth round. Djokovic will face qualifier Vit Kopriva (No. 123) of the Czech Republic in his opener.

No. 15 Holger Rune of Denmark and No. 21 Karen Khachanov of Russia are the top players Djokovic could meet before the quarterfinals.

Alcaraz will start his run against No. 262 Mark Lajal of Estonia. The Spaniard could meet No. 30 Frances Tiafoe of the United States in the third round, if both players beat their first two foes.

Coverage for first-round Wimbledon matches will start at 6 a.m. EDT Monday on ESPN. The respective women's and men's finales will be July 13 and 14 at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Wimbledon schedule

All times EDT

Monday

First-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN

Tuesday

First-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN

Wednesday

Second-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN

Thursday

Second-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN

July 5

Third-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN

July 6

Fourth round coverage from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ESPN and 1 to 4 p.m. on ABC

July 7

Fourth round coverage from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ESPN and 1 to 4 p.m. on ABC

July 8

Fourth round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN2

July 9

Quarterfinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN2

July 10

Quarterfinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN2

July 11

Women's semifinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ESPN

July 12

Men's semifinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on ESPN

July 13

Women's final coverage from 9 to 11:30 a.m. on ESPN; Women's final encore at 3 p.m. on ABC

July 14

Men's final coverage from 9 a.m. to noon on ESPN; Men's final encore at 3 p.m. on ABC