Wimbledon 2014 - Russell Fuller

We will all have to live a very long time to experience the historical resonance of last year's Championships again, but another unpredictable Wimbledon is fast approaching.

In 2013, Rafael Nadal and Stan Wawrinka failed to survive the opening day. Within a further 48 hours, Roger Federer had been beaten by Sergiy Stakhovsky and his triple digit ranking, and Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka and Jo Wilfried Tsonga were also heading home. Seven players either withdrew or retired through injury on that first Wednesday. Some appeared to be playing on black ice and grumbled about the state of the courts; some commentators suspect they were also getting their feet in a twist as they struggled to adapt to the grass.

The scoreboards on Centre Court still remind us of how the story ended. Marion Bartoli's 6-1 6-4 victory over Sabine Lisicki is captured by the electronic board at the Roller End, while next to the Royal Box, the clock remains stuck at 5.24pm - the precise moment Andy Murray ended Britain's 77 year wait for a men's singles champion by beating Novak Djokovic 6-4 7-5 6-4.

Murray's best performances since have come in the Davis Cup. September's back surgery and a March split from coach Ivan Lendl have checked his progress a little, but he has a good chance of retaining his title. Djokovic is once again the man to beat: even though the ATP rankings don't yet show his name on top, he has been playing like the world number one for the past eight months. Nadal has looked very vulnerable on the clay, and lower bouncing grass courts put extra strain on his knees, while Federer - for all his excellence this year - is yet to prove he can still come out on top over five sets against the very best in the world. Wawrinka has in some ways been the player of the year so far, but the Australian Open champion is still trying to puzzle out how to adapt to life as a Grand Slam winner. He was listless in defeat in the first round of the French Open and has lost in the first round at Wimbledon in three of the past four years.

Bartoli's retirement ensures there will be a different ladies' champion. Serena Williams is still hard to bet against, even if her early exit at Roland Garros has reminded us she's not yet the force of 2013, while Maria Sharapova is in fine form having recently won in both Stuttgart and Madrid. With Victoria Azarenka dogged by injury, there could also be another opportunity for a young player like Eugenie Bouchard, who reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open. That player won't, sadly, be Laura Robson who is waiting for her wrist to heal from surgery.

We will also miss Jonathan Overend at Wimbledon on 5 live this year, although his decision to move on from the role of tennis correspondent won't look too shabby when he joins us from Copacabana Beach. Wimbledon in a World Cup year is always very special on 5 live. Expectations of an England win may be on a par with those in Uzbekistan of a Denis Istomin Wimbledon win, but it will be a lot of fun bringing you commentary on the best afternoon matches as we build up to the World Cup action during Drive.

I have been covering Wimbledon for 5 live for more than 10 years now, and am hoping I paid sufficient attention in class. I have always considered our Centre Court commentary box, perched just a couple of metres above and away from the players as they stalk out the back of the court, to be the most treasured position in sport. My pulse races a little faster when assigned a Centre Court match, and the opportunity to work with a team which this year includes Pat Cash, Martina Navratilova, Richard Krajicek, Mary Pierce and Goran Ivanisevic.

Our year-round coverage of the Grand Slams has already taken us to Melbourne, where at 3.30pm on the afternoon of Thursday 16 January the shade temperature reached 43.4 degrees Celsius. One on-court thermometer showed a reading of 62 degrees. The Australian Open's extreme heat policy kicked in, and play was finally suspended after three days of exceptional temperatures. One Canadian player had started hallucinating about Snoopy and the former world number one Jelena Jankovic burnt her bottom when she sat down to rest at the change of ends. Many felt play should have been suspended earlier in the week, but the tournament's chief medical officer Dr Tim Wood disagreed.

'We evolved on the high plains of Africa chasing antelope for eight hours under these conditions', was the top line from his memorable conversation with Nicky and Rachel on 5 live Breakfast.

Our evolutionary instinct to rub two sticks together to create a nice warm fire may be of greater use at Wimbledon. Our coverage gets underway at midday on Monday 23 June. Don't be late, as for the first time in 77 years a British man will be the first to walk onto Centre Court.