Tennis handicappers preparing for this year’s French Open will be dealing with more than the usual number of crazy spin shots from the red Roland Garros clay. For starters, both winners of the year’s first Grand Slam tournament, the Australian Open, will not be in Paris. Bettors have known for months that Serena Williams would be absent after announcing her pregnancy in the aftermath of her triumph in Melbourne. In the men’s draw, however, Roger Federer – who has enthralled the tennis world with his magical 2017 return to dominance – announced only last week that he will be skipping the clay court season to concentrate on Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
Federer’s withdrawal has left Rafael Nadal as the overwhelming favorite on the men’s side. Nadal too has regained the form that puts him in the conversation as the greatest tennis player of all time. So far this year Nadal has reached his first Grand Slam final in three years (dropping the Australian Open to Federer) and won two Masters titles to bring his all-time mark to an all-time record tying 30.
On clay, there is no debate as to who is the all-time best player. Nadal won both the Monte Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open this year, the tenth time he has won each event. No other player has won a single tournament that many times and in Roland Garros he will be hunting for his 10th French Open title as well. Nadal has compiled a 17-1 match record on clay this year and few see him being derailed in this tournament; bet365 has installed Nadal as a 5/6 favorite.
【2017 French Open Men’s Singles Winner Odds】
※ Current Odds Date & Time: May 28, 3:00 p.m. (GMT)
Latest Odds: French Open Men (courtesy of bet365)
In turning back the clock in 2017, Federer and Nadal have thrown shade on the rest of men’s tennis. The number one player in the world is still Andy Murray but he is almost an afterthought in the minds of bettors. He has been off form in recent months and the struggling Englishman is only the fourth favorite at 11/1. Murray is hale and fit and if he manages to regain the play that brought him nine titles in 2016 he will reward backers handsomely.
Although it seems much longer than that, it was just one year ago at this time that Novak Djokovic was an unbeatable tennis machine. Djokovic’s recent struggles are not as dramatic as Murray’s but the hard-hitting Serb has clocked only one win in five 2017 tournaments. To prepare for the French Open, Djokovic has taken on all-time great Andre Agassi as a temporary coach. The two are said to be working mostly on off-court preparation but if this unlikely duo click in Grand Slam style winning tickets on Djokovic will pay 4/1 – his biggest return in years.
In recent Grand Slam events if any of the Big Four have slipped Stan Wawrinka has been there to cart off the tournament hardware, most recently at last year’s U.S. Open. The world number three is coming to Paris off his first win of the year in the Geneva Open and is offered at 10/1. For handicappers still waiting for the next generation of men’s tennis players to break through to the championship level, the freshest hope at the French Open will be 23-year old Austrian Dominic Thiem. Thiem has given Nadal his only loss on clay in 2017, thumping the Spanish ace in straight sets 6-4, 6-3 in the Italian Open. He was then rudely dismissed by Djokovic 6-1, 6-0. Given the difficulty of running a similar gauntlet of top players in Roland Garros, Thiem’s odds at the French Open of 11/1 seem a bit short.
Odds like those on the wide open women’s side would practically make a player the favorite. Without Serena, anyone cashing a winning ticket is assured a good price. Simona Halep has been installed as the 5/1 favorite and even she does not believe it. After a rolled ankle helped quicken her exit from the Italian Open she was asked about her status as French Open favorite and replied, “There’s about 15 favorites.” Halep boosters can point to her 13-2 record on clay this year for the world number four. But the 25-year old Romanian still has no Grand Slam titles and only three times has advanced to the semi-finals.
Injuries have plagued defending champion Garbine Muguruza as well. Since winning her only Grand Slam title here last year, she has claimed no titles and defaulted from events four times. In her last three major tournaments, Muguruza has lost in the second round twice and the quarterfinals in her best showing. Despite those inconsistencies she is still rated as the third favorite in this field at 10/1.
But any player of interest is likely to have a heavy dose of inconsistency on her record. Johanna Konta, for instance, is the seventh choice at 25/1 and yet she has lost her first round match on Roland Garros clay two years in a row. Angelique Kerber is the world number one and winner of two Grand Slams in 2016. But the tournament’s top seed flamed out in 2017 in the first round – the first time a top seed did not get past an opening match.
【2017 French Open Women’s Singles Winner Odds】
※ Current Odds Date & Time: May 28, 3:00 p.m. (GMT)
Latest Odds: French Open Women (courtesy of bet365)
Banking on current form, Ukranian Elina Svitolina has been installed as second favorite at 7/1. Svitolina is coming off a three-set win in the finals of the Italian Open against Halep and has claimed four singles titles already in 2017. With a 31-6 match record, the 22-year old has climbed to number six in the world rankings. Karolina Pliskova is the number two seed and offers value at 16/1 but the Czech Republic star’s game has never been suited for clay.
If no solid case can be made for any of the women players at the French Open there is still a Williams in the draw. Serena’s older sister Venus thrilled tennis fans by making her first Grand Slam final since 2009 in Australia. Her rejuvenated play has continued in the spring with a win over Kerber and several advances late into tournaments. If she wins her first French Open title in 2017, it will be at 33/1 odds.
