The seedings for Wimbledon were announced on Tuesday, with Djokovic and Nadal being Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in the men’s draw because of the absence of Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev.
The top-ranked Medvedev cannot take part as a result of the All England Club’s decision to not allow players from Russia or Belarus to enter the event in 2022 over the invasion of Ukraine. Medvedev is Russian. The No. 2-ranked Zverev is out because of an ankle injury.
That means Djokovic and Nadal have been bumped up to being the top two seeded players and cannot now meet until the final. That wasn’t the case at the French Open last month, when Nadal beat Djokovic in the quarter-finals en route to winning a men’s-record 22nd Grand Slam title.
There will be a 23-time Grand Slam winner in the women’s draw in Serena Williams, but she will not be seeded.
The draw is Friday and the tournament begins Monday.