French Open Betting – Djokovic Goes for Career Slam

In winning his sixth Australian Open title, Novak Djokovic captured his 11th major championship, tying him with Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver for fifth all time. He is one major shy of Roy Emerson, three behind Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras, and six back of Roger Federer.

His greatness will continue to be questioned until he notches his first win at Roland-Garros, but when the French Open begins in late May, Djokovic will be a heavy favorite to complete the career grand slam.

2016 French Open Odds

Novak Djokovic (5/6)

Winner of four of the last five majors, Djokovic has reached the final at Paris each of the last two years. Nadal beat him in 2014 (and 2012) final and he was shocked by Stan Wawrinka last year. The Joker’s struggles at the French are a big part of why he’s only 11-8 in major finals.

Rafael Nadal (7/2)

The greatest clay court player of all time, Nadal has won this event a record nine times. But his career seems to be ebbing; Rafa hasn’t gotten past the quarter-final of a major since winning the French Open in 2014. Last year, Djokovic beat him in straight sets in the quarters. This year started out even worse for Nadal when he exited the Australian Open in the first round.

Stan Wawrinka (8/1)

Now a two-time major champ, Wawrinka won in Paris last year, just 12 months after being dismissed in the first round. Prior to 2015, he had reached just one quarter-final at Roland-Garros and had never been to the semis. The French wasn’t Stan’s only solid showing at a major in 2015; he also reached the semis at the Aussie and US Opens while going down in the quarters at Wimbledon. Wawrinka lost a five-set match to Milos Raonic in the fourth round of the Aussie Open this year.

Andy Murray (12/1)

Murray lost to Djokovic in the Australian Open final in January, his fifth runner-up finish in Melbourne. He is a two-time major champ with victories at Wimbledon in 2013 and the US Open in 2012. The Scotsman has reached the semis at the French Open three times, but he’s never made the final. Last year, he rallied from two sets down to force a winner-take-all fifth set in the semis against Djokovic, but then he ran out of gas and lost the deciding set 6-1.

Roger Federer (22/1)

Perhaps the greatest player of all time, Federer never dominated on clay like he did other surfaces. He has four wins in Australia, seven at Wimbledon, and five at the US Open, yet only one at the French Open (2009). Wawrinka dominated him in the quarters last year and he hasn’t reached the finals since 2011. He also hasn’t won any majors in the last three years (with his last coming at Wimbledon in 2012).

Betting Tip 

Djokovic has one void on his resume, but it is not like he is a bad clay court player. He is motivated, playing at his best, and easily the best player on tour at the moment. Less than even money is no fun to lay, but I can’t recommend anyone else.

(Photo credit: Yann Caradec [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.)