Roland Garros Betting Preview

Next month it is time for the second Grand Slam tournament of the year, the French Open, which is better-known as Roland Garros. Starting at the 16th of May and customarily ending with the Gentlemen’s Final on the 5th of June, the only premier clay court tournament will prove to be an exciting event for tennis fans worldwide. Once again, this year its main sponsor is BNP Paribas – the financial institution has been in partnership with Roland Garros for forty years now. There seems to be no better time than to start evaluating the odds the bookmakers are giving for the outrights of the tournament (valid on 12/4).

Stan Wawrinka
Last year’s surprise winner, Swiss-born Stan Wawrinka, is the third favourite to win Roland Garros 2016 getting odds of 7/1. Despite his success in last year’s clay season, Wawrinka is still relatively far from a favourite compared to Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. His American campaign could be considered rather disappointing, after a round-16 loss against David Goffin in Indian Wells and a second-round knockout at the Miami Open against Andrey Kuznetsov. Being the only player after Roger Federer to ever defeat both Nadal and Djokovic in a Grand Slam Final (2014’s Australian Open and the French Open of 2015, respectively), the odds surely look enticing for Stan to win his third major event and it comes to no surprise that he says he is excited for the clay season to commence.

Novak Djokovic
Quite unsurprisingly, the Serbian Novak Djokovic is the big favorite to win this year’s French Open despite never having won a clay-ground Grand Slam before. After his win in the Miami Open, Djokovic passed Federer to become the All-Time Prize Money Leader in men’s tennis and his confidence should be at an all-time high. The Serb is rated to pay 4/6 for the outright of 2016’s Roland Garros, miles ahead of the 7/1 that is given to Wawrinka. The odds are looking really good for Djokovic to secure his 12th Grand Slam victory, and they have never been better for any of the major events except for the Australian Open earlier this year. The fact that Roger Federer has not played due to injuries and a stomach flu since losing to Djokovic in the semi-finals of this event, will only support the Serb’s chances of taking this Grand Slam down.

Rafael Nadal
The fact that Djokovic is in the form of his life, combined with Federer missing match rhythm, means that “Rafa” Nadal is the second favorite for the outright of the tournament. The Spaniard is the all-time record holder for the French Open, having won 9 titles between 2005 and 2014. However, the last Grand Slam won by Rafa dates back to exactly two years ago, which was the French Open of 2014 in which Djokovic lost to the Spaniard over 4 sets. Additionally, Nadal was eliminated in the first round of this year’s Austalian Open by Fernando Verdasco, thereby allowing the countryman to become the second player ever to eliminate Nadal in the first round of a Grand Slam. All-in-all, Nadal clocks in at odds of 7/2 for the outright, which seems rather low considering his current form. However, as mentioned, Nadal is arguably the best clay player and the French courts bring back many good memories – that’s why we expect him to be at the top of his game.

Milos Raonic
As for the outsiders, Milos Roanic looks like a great pick with 40/1 odds for the win. The 25-year-old Canadian made a great run at the past Australian Open, making it to the semi-final while eliminating players such as Monfils and giving a rough time against the eventual runner-up Andy Murray. Since he withdrew from last year’s French Open due to a foot injury, it is hard to judge how well the youngster will fare on the clay but all-in-all Roanic looks to be a great longshot pick.

Altogether this year’s Roland Garros proves to become another exciting event. All the elements to make this a memorable tournament are present: the big favorite that is in the form of his life, the surprising title-holder looking to defend the trophy, the recovering veteran with the most Grand Slam titles to his name, and the decade-long favorite for the clay court, will all fight it out next month in the French capital. Although Djokovic is in pole-position to achieve a career Grand Slam, his opponents will be no means be walk-overs and Nadal and Federer in particular will do everything within their capabilities to deny the Serb an entry on the list of victorious players. Click here for the latest free bets.