Serena Williams faces sister Venus at Wimbledon

What should prove to be a fascinating second week of Wimbledon will begin, well before most on the West Coast of the U.S. arise for the day, with the biggest fascination.

That would be Venus versus Serena — the Williams sisters, far from their roots in Compton in their rise to a collective 27 major titles. They face off across the tennis net for the 26th time. Serena leads, 14-11.

Early risers (match start scheduled for 5 a.m. Pacific time) may catch some of it with the expectation that top-seeded Serena, a little more than a year younger than her sister at 33 and statistically more accomplished, will handle the 16th-seeded Venus.

At stake is a fourth straight Grand Slam title for Serena (as well as a career No. 21) and the third notch in a quest for a calendar year Grand Slam. It will be the first time the two have played each other in a major tournament in six years.

If seedings stay consistent for the rest of the week, the men’s semifinals will match No. 1 Novak Djokovic, the defending champion, against No. 4 Stan Wawrinka, the fourth-seeded player and the man who deprived Djokovic of a coveted career Grand Slam by beating him in this year’s French Open final.

The other semifinal would match No. 2 Roger Federer, seeking a record eighth Wimbledon title, and No. 3 Andy Murray, 2013 champion and always the apple of the eye of British tennis fans.

Djokovic and Wawrinka have breezed through to the quarterfinals without the loss of a set. Federer and Murray have each lost one set.

The women’s bracket is in place in the top half going into Monday, with Serena Williams and No. 4 Maria Sharapova playing to their seed. On the bottom, it is a toss of the coin.

Both No. 2 Petra Kvitova, the defending champion, and No. 3 Simona Halep have departed. That leaves Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki as the top-rated remaining player at No. 5, and may open a breakout chance for U.S. player Madison Keys. At No. 21, she is through to the quarterfinals.

The biggest upset in the making, however, might be the weather. The forecast, at a tournament that is known for rain and delays, is for mostly sunny and warm conditions the rest of the week.

bill.dwyre@LATimes.com

Twitter: @DwyreLATimes