Seventh-Ranked Alexander Zverev 40-1 Odds to Win Australian Open After First Round

• Alexander Zverev’s odds to win the Australian Open men’s singles title are at +4000
• The German player defeated Marco Cecchinato in first-round play
• Zverev was at odds of +1667 to win the tournament as recently as January 13th

Evidently, Alexander Zverev is more willing to put money into Australia than bettors are willing to put on him to win the Australian Open.

After the word’s #7 player won his opening-round men’s singles match at the tournament, Zverev announced that he’d be donating all his prize money from the event, as well as an additional $10,000 for every match he wins in the tournament, to the Australian bushfire relief fund.

Were Zverev to be successful at winning the Australian Open, that would amount to a $2.84 million donation. However, bettors and betting houses don’t seem to be of the opinion that such a windfall will be coming the fund’s way.

Books currently lists Zverev as the eighth betting choice to win the tournament in the Australian Open odds.

2020 Australian Open Men’s Singles Odds

Odds taken Jan. 21. 

He’s listed at odds of +4000.

Follow the Sinking Rock

In he were on the stock market, investing in Zverev futures would severely hamper your portfolio.

Despite being situated in the top 10 of the ATP singles rankings, Zverev gets little love from the oddsmakers.

Asked #Zverev about mindset after he doublefaulted twice and got breaked in the first
"I stayed calm. Somehow it was normal for me because Im in a process. It wont be perfect from one day to another. No secret anymore. I had problems with my serve. I worked hard. It gets better" pic.twitter.com/FpRO2Q5MhI

— Jannik Schneider (@schnejan) January 21, 2020

He’d bounced around in the +1400 to +1600 range of the Aussie Open future book for much of the past year. As recently as January 13th, Zverev was given a line of +1667.

On the eve of the opening of the tournament opening, his odds jumped to +4000.

Success for Openers

In 19 career Grand Slam appearances, Zverev has exited via a first-round loss four times. Most recently it happened last year at Wimbledon.

That wasn’t the case this time around. While he had some blips, most notably with his service game, Zverev was able to dispatch Italy’s Marco Cecchinato 6-4 7-6 (4) 6-3.

Even though it was a straight-set victory, based on the fact that his future book line didn’t move an inch, it’s a safe bet that Zverev’s performance didn’t inspire anyone to hammer down some bets on him winning the tournament.

That he was forced to dig himself out of a 4-2 hole in the first set certainly didn’t inspire confidence in Zverev going a long way in the tourney.

Nothing Grand About Zverev and Slams

Only twice in his career has Zverev reached the quarterfinal stage of a Grand Slam event. Both times, it was on the clay of Roland Garros at the French Open, in 2018 and 2019.

Last year, Zverev produced his best performance in an Australian Open. The #4 seed, he reached the fourth round of the tournament, one step away from getting to the quarterfinals. But he was bounced 6-1, 6-1, 7-6 (5) by 16th-seeded Milos Raonic of Canada.

Medvedev an Australian Open Contender

Even if he does get back to the fourth round, Zverev will likely find Russian Danill Medvedev waiting for him. If there’s one player outside the Big three of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer who looks like a legitimate threat to win the Australian Open, Medvedev is that guy.

Currently #4 in the ATP rankings, Medvedev reached six straight finals, including the US Open, in an impressive run late in the 2019 season. That was his first appearance in a Grand Slam final.

Zverev isn’t going to beat Medvedev.

In fact, no one might this year.

Pick: Danill Medvedev (+700)