Serena Williams Has An Incredibly Tough Draw At Wimbledon

Serena Williams, the no. 1 ranked female tennis player in the world, is looking for her sixth Wimbledon title. Despite earning the tournament's top seed, Williams faces a gruesome quarter of the draw. Here's who she'll potentially have to play just to reach the final (barring no major upsets along the way) and why it's less than ideal for Williams.

• Alize Cornet - a relatively unknown player, Cornet still managed to beat Williams in straight sets (6-4, 6-4) in the semifinal of the Dubai Championship in February.

• Andrea Petkovic/Eugenie Bouchard - Both semifinalists at this year's French Open, and Bouchard is the only woman to reach the semis of both majors (Australian Open and French Open) this year.

• Maria Sharapova - The reining French Open champion could potentially face Williams in the quarterfinals. Sharapova is considered to be her best on grass, and won Wimbledon in 2005.

• Simona Halep - The 2014 French Open finalist.

It's an unquestionably brutal road for Williams, but then, nobody ever said winning Wimbledon was easy. The tournament begins Monday, June 23. Novak Djokovic earned the top seed in the men's draw. Check out the full draws here.

(h/t FTW.)