Wimbledon 2013: Experts' picks for the women's draw

3. Dangerous floater

Zheng Jie – more than just an outside chance?

Haresh Ramchandani: Donna Vekic will turn 17 during Wimbledon and the British press are already comparing her with Sharapova, who won here at that same age. The Croatian teen reached the finals in Birmingham last week before going down to Hantuchova and is already ranked in the 60s. She’s also in a good section of the draw, with the struggling Caroline Woznaicki lined up in round two and Sloane Stephens lined up in round three. Vekic may not be ready to win in London yet but she can certainly go deep in the draw.

Anand Datla: Bojana Jovanovski, ranked 40th, and Daniela Hantuchova, ranked 48th, are my picks for this category. The two women could pose a serious threat to the opponents in their way.

Roh: Bojana Jovanovski is slowly making her presence felt as yet another gifted Serbian tennis prodigy. Though, not seeded at Wimbledon, Jovanovski is a player who could cause an upset or two and make her way deep into the tournament.

Varun Jog: Laura Robson has come of age in the past year or so, and playing in front of her home crowd will definitely spur her on. She has come close to creating an upset over the past few years at Wimbledon when she was a far more limited player, and this could well be the year of her big breakthrough. That said, she needs to find a way to enjoy the home support rather than feel pressurized by it.

Ram Narayanan: Former World No. 5 Daniela Hantuchova just won a title in Birmingham, defeating some big names along the way. Had it not been for the injuries that she suffered last year, her ranking would have looked better this season. As a former quaterfinalist in Wimbledon, she looks all the more fresh going into this year’s grasscourt fiesta.

Sudeshna Banerjee: The 36th-ranked Russian Elena Vesnina has been on a roll since completing a dream French Open where she captured the doubles crown with her good friend Ekaterina Makarova. High on confidence, she has gone all the way to the Eastbourne final this week, stunning several seeded players on the way. She has thundering pace off the ground and delicate hands at the net, which are mandatory ingredients for a good grasscourter. All of her grasscourt prowess was evident when she upset Venus Williams in the Wimbledon first round last year. Vesnina has a wonderful opportunity to make it to the fourth round this year if she can get past the difficult-yet-unpredictable challenge of Sabine Lisicki.

Musab Abid: Zheng Jie has always thrived on grass; her flat, skidding groundstrokes gain plenty of traction on the slick courts of London, and her ability to redirect the ball while hugging the baseline is second to none. Zheng reached the Wimbledon semifinals in 2008, and last year pushed Serena Williams all the way to 9-7 in the third set of their third round match. Guess where she’s placed in the draw this year? Even closer to the American – she is slated to meet Williams in the second round. Let’s just say Williams needs to watch her step.