Wimbledon 2022: Draws, dates, prize money and everything you need to know

The Hologic WTA Tour heads to Wimbledon for the culmination of the grass-court season. World No.1 Iga Swiatek leads a field that includes five former champions, including seven-time champion Serena Williams, who has taken a singles wild card.

Here's what you need to know:

When does the tournament start?

This year marks the 135th staging of The Championships at Wimbledon, which is held at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. Main-draw singles play begins on Monday, June 27. Play begins on all outside courts at 11:00 a.m, No.1 Court at 1:00 p.m. and Centre Court at 1:30 p.m.

This year will see the end of Wimbledon's traditional day of rest on Middle Sunday. There will be play on all 14 days of The Championships. The AELTC will be celebrating 100 years of Centre Court at its current location in a special ceremony on Middle Sunday.

What is the format? 

The Championships are played on outdoor grass using the Slazenger Wimbledon ball. There will be Electronic Line Calling on all courts. All matches will be played in a best-of-three set format. A 10-point final set tiebreak will be introduced this year, achieving consistency with the other Slams. 

When are the finals? 

The singles final will be played on Saturday, July 9 at 2:00 p.m. local. The doubles final will be played after the men's final on Sunday, July 10. The mixed doubles final will be played after the women's semifinals on Thursday, July 7.

Who are the top seeds?

World No.1 Iga Swiatek is set to be the youngest top seed at Wimbledon in more than a decade. No.40 Sara Sorribes Tormo is the 32nd seed. 

The numbers behind Iga Swiatek and the top seeds at Wimbledon

Top 16 Seeds

1. Iga Swiatek
2. Anett Kontaveit
3. Ons Jabeur
4. Paula Badosa
5. Maria Sakkari
6. Karolina Pliskova
7. Danielle Collins
8. Jessica Pegula
9. Garbiñe Muguruza
10. Emma Raducanu
11. Coco Gauff
12. Jelena Ostapenko
13. Barbora Krejcikova
14. Belinda Bencic
15. Angelique Kerber
16. Simona Halep

Who are the defending champions?

Ashleigh Barty achieved her lifelong dream of winning Wimbledon last summer, defeating Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 to win her second major title. 

In doubles, Hsieh Su-Wei and Elise Mertens saved two match points to defeat Veronika Kudermetova and Elena Vesnina 3–6, 7–5, 9–7 and win their first Slam title as a team.

What does the draw look like?

For a full draw analysis, click here.

Update: No.19 seed Madison Keys withdrew with an abdominal injury. Zhang Shuai moves to her position in the draw as the No.33 seed and Elena Rybakina will now face lucky loser CoCo Vandeweghe. 

What is the prize money on offer?

First Round: £50,000
Second Round: £78,000
Third Round: £120,000
Fourth Round: £190,000
Quarterfinal: £310,000
Semifinal: £535,000
Final: £1,050,000
Champion: £2,000,000 

Ranking points will not be awarded at Wimbledon this year.

Key Storylines

Top seed Swiatek takes streak to SW19: Swiatek was a junior champion at Wimbledon only four years ago. Now, having won her last six tournaments, including her second major title at Roland Garros, Swiatek looks to extend her 35-match win streak. A title run would extend Swiatek's streak to 42 matches, which would be the ninth-longest win streak in WTA history. Though she admits she's still learning how to efficiently deploy her devastating game on grass, Swiatek posted her career-best result at Wimbledon last year in the Round of 16. 

Serena Williams returns: The last time Serena was on a singles court she was forced to retire in the first round of Wimbledon last summer. After returning to competition in doubles in Eastbourne, the 23-time major champion is set to make her singles return at Wimbledon.

Jabeur puts Paris behind her: Jabeur went into Roland Garros in scintillating form only to be upset in the first round. So far, the Tunisian has not let the disappointment linger. She made good on her top-seed billing in Berlin to win her second title of the year and will go into Wimbledon as the World No.2. Jabeur posted her best Wimbledon result last year in a run to her second major quarterfinal. 

Gauff ready for a big step on grass: After making her first major final at Roland Garros, the 18-year-old American now turns to Wimbledon, where she has never lost before the Round of 16. So far, she has shown no signs of a post-Paris let-down. Gauff made her first grass-court semifinal in Berlin. 

Raducanu returns home: The reigning US Open champion put her name on the map at Wimbledon last summer, making the Round of 16 as a wild card. Needless to say, a lot has happened since then. The 19-year-old has not been able to play a grass-court event this summer due to injury, so Wimbledon will be her only tournament on home soil.

Veterans keen to have their say: Former champions Angelique Kerber, Simona Halep and Petra Kvitova have all enjoyed a solid set of wins in the week leading up to Wimbledon. In Eastbourne, after struggling through much of the season, Kvitova is into her first final since winning 2021 Doha.

Beatriz Haddad Maia earns the dark horse tag: The 26-year-old Brazilian won Nottingham and Birmingham and is into the quarterfinals of Eastbourne. That's a 12-0 record on grass, a run that has earned her a seeding at Wimbledon. The last Brazilian woman to win Wimbledon was Maria Bueno, who won the event three times in 1959, 1960 and 1964.