Opening Serve at Wimbledon on Monday
After the entire 2020 Wimbledon tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, the England Lawn Tennis Club is ready for a glorious return.
Tennis' longest-running annual series and most prestigious championship will be at stake starting Monday, June 28th. Although a few big names have dropped out of the tourney due mostly to injury concerns, the opening matches are set and odds are posted.
Let's take a brief look at the 2021 Wimbledon fields (womens and mens events) and go through a few of the top players and see of there's value to betting them to win it all.
WOMENS
Mother time still hasn't caught up to Serena Williams. She remains a dominant force and a living icon on and off the court. Williams has reached four of the last five Wimbledon finals and she's won two of those four. No wonder she's going off at about 6-1 odds to win.
Here's a look at the top betting favourites among women competitors which might be worth betting:
As for the two best bets, here's a couple of futures wagers to consider, courtesy of VegasInsider.com:
SERENA WILLIAMS (6-1) and PETRA KVITOVA (14-1)
In recent tournaments, Williams has been a favorite to fade. But in this tournament she is a good bet, easily the most successful Wimbledon player in the field. She has reached the Wimbledon final in four of her last five attempts, including two victories. It's unwise to enter this event without having anything on one of the sport's greatest in history, especially at this number.
William's form in Paris at the French Open was impressive, adding conviction to winning a major this season rather than losing it. Her draw is quite simple if she can get past the Angelique Kerber/Sara Tormo bracket. Above Williams lies Coco Gauff, Elina Svitolina, Belinda Bencic, and Bianca Andreescu. Outside of Bencic, all those players have struggled badly on grass this season (again, short sample size).
Camila Giorgi is capable of making a deep run, as shown in her most recent grass event but she did withdraw. All in all, Williams has a pretty easy quarter to get through and has enjoyed historic success here. Don't overthink this and make sure you have something on her for Monday, as well.
Meanwhile, Petra Kvitova is also in terrific form, and plays almost unbeatable tennis on a grass surface. She has lost the first set more than usual, however, so be mindful of her singles match odds in the set market if worried (and take the underdog).
Kvitova has a few difficult Americans in her way, but clear sailing if she can get past Sloane Stephens early and possibly Jessica Pegula down the road.
MENS
It's remarkable that one player can be such a heavy favourite, but Novak Djokovic deserves all the praise and support. The Serbian has been ranked #1 for 300+ weeks in a row, has won 29 Grand Slam events, and has also won Wimbledon the last two times is was played, in 2018 and 2019.
Here's a look at the top betting favourites among men competitors which might be worth betting:
As for best bets, here's a few futures wagers to consider, courtesy of VegasInsider.com:
NOVAK DJOKOVIC (5-6) & DANIIL MEDVEDEV (6-1)
It's unwise to consider any player to win a major not named Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, or Novak Djokovic.
Outside of Andy Murray, these are the only three men to win Wimbledon over the last 17 years. Almost two decades later the men's draw is waiting for Father Time to finally win.
Considering Djokovic has already won two majors this year, it's hard not to have a stake on him to win a third. Even at 5-6 odds (or -130), his future is a solid bet, for sure.
Danill Medvedev at 6-1 is a fine favorite to take, also – but his odds may actually become more valuable if he faces Federer in the bottom half of the bracket.
It's not worth the risk to wait, as Federer is no lock to reach the fourth round or quarterfinals. So, consider grabbing the two best players in the tournament, as it's highly unlikely Djokovic doesn't win.
