| Updated:2024-04-29 13:52 Views:111 |
The French Open is just a few days away, and the main draw has been conducted. That means players like Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and last week's Rome Champion, Daniil Medvedev, have a general sense of the players they'll need to defeat in order to win the second Grand Slam event of the year.
Last year's champion, Rafael Nadal, will not be playing in this year's competition. Nadal has been struggling with an injury that has kept him off the tour since the Australian Open, and he even announced that 2024 will likely be his final year on tour. The legend of the game has won 14 Roland Garros titles.
Nadal's absence confirms that Alcaraz and Djokovic come into the tournament as favorites, but by just how much? According to oddsmakers, there is a significant gap between Alcaraz, Djokovic and the rest of the contenders.
PlayerOddsCarlos Alcaraz+155Novak Djokovic+230Daniil Medvedev+900Holger Rune+1000Jannik Sinner+1200Stefanos Tsitsipas+1600Casper Ruud+1800Odds via FanDuel. For full odds, click here.
Alcaraz is listed as the favorite at +155. He won the last Grand Slam tournament that he played in, defeating Casper Ruud at the 2022 US Open. In the European clay swing, Alcaraz won the title in Barcelona and in Madrid, but suffered a shocking upset defeat in Rome to Fabian Maroszan.
On the bright side, the defeat meant Alcaraz could rest and recover after a heavy period of tennis.
The question marks surrounding Djokovic are numerous, but the Australian Open champion is the second-favorite at +230. After all, it's hard to ever count the man with 22 slam titles out of a big event.
Nonetheless, he's been dealing with injury issues that have been visibly present in Monte Carlo, Banja Luka and in Rome.
Beyond Djokovic are the reasonable dark horse candidates. The list starts with Medvedev (+900), who took home the crown in Rome last week but doesn't have a history of thriving on clay. After Medvedev is the man he defeated in the final, Holger Rune (+1000). The Dane has already established himself as one of the best clay-courters in the world, and he reached the quarters in Paris last year.
Jannik Sinner, a perennial contender in big events, is listed at +1200. Sinner suffered an upset defeat in his home tournament in Rome to Francisco Cerundolo.
One of the more surprising numbers to see is Stefanos Tsitsipas at +1600. The Greek was up two sets to love on Novak Djokovic two years ago in the French Open final, but he wasn't able to get over the line and is not regarded now as one of the biggest threats to the main contenders.
The first round of the French Open will get underway on May 28.
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