A keen contest on the cards

Muguruza has already won a Grand Slam title―last year’s Roland Garros tournament―but is starting to add more consistency to her game, while Williams has won Wimbledon five times already. At 37, she’s just one win away from adding another special mark to her resume. 

Williams’ resurgence has been remarkable. If she beats Muguruza, it will be her first Grand Slam title in almost a decade, with her most recent such triumph coming at Wimbledon in 2008. 

According to the WTA’s official website, the American leads the head-to-head 3-1. But Muguruza won their most recent encounter, earlier this year in Rome. Muguruza’s preparations for the tournament were rocky at best, highlighted by a one-sided beatdown at the hands of Barbora Strycova at Eastbourne in June. In years past, such a loss might have doomed her grass season, but the Spanish starlet picked herself up and altered her tactics going into Wimbledon. 

Aggression has been key for Muguruza, who has advanced to the net as often as possible on her way to the final. Per tennis writer Tumaini Carayol, that tactic has worked for her in the past―she made it to the final in 2015. Her serve has never been a major weapon, which makes her success on the faster grass courts all the more remarkable. 

Solid net presence and backhand winners are the name of the game for Muguruza. Williams has used her power and experience to make it this far, picking her spots to attack and shining from the baseline. Her work in the return game has been spectacular, something Johanna Konta found out the hard way.