Wimbledon Betting – Federer Meets Djokovic for Title

Roger Federer (+100) vs. Novak Djokovic (-125)

After downing crowd favorite Andy Murray in the semifinals, the road doesn’t get any easier for Roger Federer, who will have to go through the current No. 1 player in the World, Novak Djokovic, in order to win his record eighth Wimbledon title. Federer and Djokovic are set to meet Sunday afternoon on Center Court at the All England Club.

Federer and Djokovic entered Wimbledon as the two top seeds, and they didn’t disappoint. Roger has lost just one set in the entire tournament (to big-serving Aussie Sam Groth); Nole needed five sets to get by South African Kevin Anderson in the quarters, but otherwise has an unblemished record in this year’s tourney.

Both men looked solid in the semis. Djokovic took care of Frenchman Richard Gasquet in three sets (7-6, 6-4, 6-4) while Federer did the same with Murray (7-5, 7-5, 6-4).

“It was a very good performance considering the occasion. Semi-finals are always tough. Richard had a great tournament; he deserved to be in the semis. I’m definitely living the dream being here at Wimbledon. I’m just glad to reach another final. … The final for Wimbledon I think is the most-watched tennis match in the world. There’s a lot at stake, I’ll be ready for it”, Djokovic said in his post-match press conference.

Djokovic is now 51-8 in his career at Wimbledon and will be playing in his fourth career final and second in a row. He lost to Andy Murray in 2013 but rebounded with a win over Federer last year.

Trumping the Swiss great won’t be an easy task, though. A renewed Federer is playing like his old self, hitting unbelievable groundstrokes and consistently putting his first serve in play. He recorded 20 aces in three sets against Murray and allowed just one break point the entire match, which the Scot failed to convert.

Federer’s dominance in the semis shocked the home crowd, and even had Roger taken aback.

“The crowd went silent a bit. People maybe expected to go to 4 or 5 sets. I did as well,” Federer said after the match.

Federer improved his career record at Wimbledon to an impressive 79-9 and will be playing his tenth career final, having posted a 7-2 record in his previous nine appearances.

In the head-to-head, Djokovic and Federer have played 39 times, with the Federer leading by the narrowest of margins (20-19). Djokovic has won the last two meetings, but neither were on grass.

Betting-wise, Federer is relaxed tennis and putting all the pressure on his opponent. If he can carry the same level of play into the finals, he should earn his eighth career title. And, since Federer is currently a slight underdog, taking him to win looks like the best value.

Pick: Federer (+100).

(Photo credit: Doha Stadium Plus Qatar from Doha, Qatar (Roger Federer  Uploaded by flickrworker) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo may appear cropped.)