The battle for the 2017 men's Wimbledon singles title

Wimbledon isn't just the biggest event in professional tennis - it's a British summer staple, with crowds flocking to south-west London from all over the country each June to take in two weeks of enthralling sporting action. The women's competition this year is wide open due to Serena Williams' pregnancy absence, but what of the men's tournament?

The big four

Men's tennis has been dominated by the 'big four' of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray for over a decade, with 43 of the last 48 Grand Slam tournaments going to one of the quartet. All four men have won the Wimbledon singles title on multiple occasions, with Federer's seven a joint record.

Scotsman Andy Murray will be looking to defend the title he won for a second time in 2016, beating Canadian Milos Raonic in the final. However, since rising to world number one late last year, Murray's form has been mixed: the Brit exited the Australian Open early, leaving old rivals Federer and Nadal to turn back time and do battle in the Melbourne final. Murray has also struggled with an elbow injury in recent weeks, but in front of a home crowd will be confident of at least making it to the semi-finals for the eighth time in nine years.

What happens at Roland Garros may not necessarily forecast events at Wimbledon; the clay court has always been Murray's weakest surface, but the British favourite will be hoping to lay down an early marker, especially considering Federer is absent with injury and Djokovic is struggling for form after changing coaches. Nadal, who has had physical problems over the past few years, can never be written off, although he's only made it into the second week at Wimbledon once since losing his last final to Djokovic in 2011.

The best of the rest

Last summer, Raonic became the first man from outside the 'big four' to contest a Wimbledon final since Tomas Berdych in 2010, and he'll be looking to go one better this time round. Triple Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka would complete the full set of major titles with a win at Wimbledon, and 888sport are offering 40/1 odds, which looks generous considering the Swiss always seems to make it to the business end of tournaments. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - twice a losing semi-finalist - will be aiming to end his Grand Slam heartbreak by finally emerging victorious.

The 'big four' have been able to sustain their dominance partly through a lack of emerging talent, but that seems to be changing now, with Grigor Dimitrov, Dominic Thiem and Nick Kyrgios all more than capable of beating the men at the top of the rankings on their day.

There hasn't been a real shock at Wimbledon since 2001 when Goran Ivanisevic won as a wildcard. With so many talented pros set to do battle, we're unlikely to see a repeat this year, but the outcome is still hard to call.