ESPN Wimbledon 2007

WIMBLEDON, England -- The rain seems eternal here. On Sunday morning, the eve of Wimbledon's annual fortnight, it was coming down again in a steady drizzle.

The pastoral grounds at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club were eerily quiet. The tarps were puffed up over the 19 tennis courts like so many emerald loaves rising in the oven. The indoor practice courts across Somerset Road were where the action was.

The six-day forecast in the Sunday Times features rain on every single day.

The defending champions, Roger Federer and Amelie Mauresmo, fielded questions from the assembled media. The rain, Mauresmo said, didn't bother her.

"It's OK," she said. "I practiced a lot this week. It's not, obviously, the best conditions to get ready for those guys who haven't played so much. Patience. That's sometimes a key word here at Wimbledon."

Patience will be a virtue this first week as players dodge the raindrops. In the meantime, as a public service, here are 10 questions to ponder:

1. Is Federer healthy as he goes for his record-tying fifth consecutive title?
There were whispers after he pulled out of the Halle, Germany tournament -- a successful warm-up event for Federer that set the stage for each of his four straight Wimbledon titles -- that seven matches at the French Open had left him battered and beaten. He seemed to confirm this on Sunday.

"It was obviously a tough call because of the success I've had there," Federer said. "I have to look after my health first. I felt my back and my groin, and I didn't want to take a chance because the last two years were already difficult enough.

"I just wanted to do it differently this time. Yeah, I'm confident it was the right decision. In practice, I'm hitting the ball fine."

2. Will Andy Murray (right wrist injury) play?
No, the 20-year-old Scotsman said at 5:01 p.m., Wimbledon time on Sunday.

"I played practice sets the last few days but still cannot hit a topspin forehand properly," Murray said in a statement. "The doctor has advised me not to play and that I probably need about 10 days to be ready. Unfortunately, I don't think it is going to rain for the next 10 days."

Murray, the top-ranked player in the United Kingdom, was the No. 8 seed. According to an ITF rule on scheduling, if he had withdrawn before noon, the No. 9 seed James Blake would have taken his spot in the draw. Then Blake's spot would have been taken by the player that was next in line for the 32nd seed, American Mardy Fish. This is significant, because Fish would have been dropped into Blake's slot in the draw and played Igor Andreev. Lucky loser (American Kevin Kim) would have been forced to play the No. 2 seed, Rafael Nadal. As it is, Fish will still meet Nadal and Kim has a far easier match against Nicolas Lapentti.

3. After a disappointing start to the 2007 season, can Mauresmo defend her title?
Considering she took Justine Henin all the way to a third-set tiebreaker in Saturday's final at Eastbourne, the answer has to be yes. Mauresmo, who missed two and a half months following surgery to remove her appendix, has a lyrical game made for grass.

"Everything is just coming back into the mind," she said. "The great memories of last year, of course, and the atmosphere that I like to feel here."

4. Will Justine Henin finally win her first Wimbledon title?
She is the No. 1 seed here, the top-ranked player in the world and, following victories at Roland Garros and Saturday at Eastbourne, Henin is the on-paper favorite. Can she win it? Make that a maybe.

"She's unbeatable for the last three or four weeks," Mauresmo said. "Let's hope she's not for the next couple."

5. Can the U.S. men win a match here?
After going 0-for-9 at Roland Garros, chances are the American men will ring up a few Ws on the slick grass. Still, they had some incredibly bad luck in the draw. Robby Ginepri must play No. 5 seed Fernando Gonzalez in the first round, while Fish drew No. 2 seed Nadal.

"Is very difficult first round," Nadal said. "I know that. I need to be with good control with my serve and play with more calm."

6. What's new at Wimbledon?
The most dramatic change, in terms of history, is the debut of equal prize money for women. On the court, Hawk-Eye will be in use for the first time to monitor the accuracy of line calls. Aesthetically, the half-roof over Centre Court has been removed in anticipation of a more permanent structure in 2009. Players believe wind might be more of a factor this year.

7. Will Serbia land three more in the semifinals?
After hitting the historic trifecta with Novak Djokovic, Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic at the French Open, it will be a tougher go here. Ivanovic must get by Mauresmo in the quarterfinals and Djokovic has 2006 semifinalist Marcos Baghdatis, 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt and David Nalbandian in his quarter of the draw.

8. What about the Williams sisters?
Mauresmo considers Serena and Venus, who have combined for five Wimbledon championships, two of the five legitimate favorites here.

"They're big servers," Mauresmo said. "On grass, obviously, very important. And having the experience of playing these big events, winning many of them. I definitely put both of them into that group."

9. Is Rafael Nadal a legitimate threat to return to the final?
Definitely. Clay is certainly his best surface -- as three consecutive French Open titles will attest -- but he has been able to adapt his game on grass with startling swiftness.

"For my style of game, [Wimbledon] is the most difficult Grand Slam for me, no?" Nadal said. "Is difficult to play here with the same topspin. We have to change. One of the things is [to] try to play the ball without that topspin."

10. Can Andy Roddick (finally) beat Federer?
He's lost to Federer three times here -- in the 2003 semifinals and the 2004 and 2005 finals.

"Well, I mean, it's disappointing," Roddick said. "But at the same time, you know, I'm going to get questions about it after every single match, at every single press conference. But I can't do anything about it until we get to that point.

"I've said it before. I just want to keep giving myself that opportunity. In order for me to be successful here, I have to beat him one time, and that's kind of the way you look at it. What are you going to do? You wake up, you work hard, you go after it again. That's what I'm going to keep doing."

Greg Garber is a senior writer for ESPN.com.