Olympic tennis tournament in Paris, final, Sunday, 04.08.2024, 14:00
The match for gold is on Sunday in the men’s singles of the Olympic Games. The crème de la crème meet. Novak Djokovic against Carlos Alcaraz, the Serb gets his chance for revenge three weeks after the Wimbledon defeat!
Alcaraz has already played the most successful player in the history of the sport to the wall on grass. Like the bookmakers, I think the difference is even greater on clay.
For the fourth final match between the two superstars, I’m backing Alcaraz to win in two sets at Betano
Before I started writing, I went through my Betting Buddies Tennis archive. I wanted to know how many times I’ve been allowed to write you a prediction for this summit meeting between Djokovic and Alcaraz. In fact, it’s now the fifth time.
I wasn’t part of the writing team for the first clash in Madrid in May 2022, an epic three-set battle at the home of the then 19-year-old Alcaraz.
I gave you the Alcaraz victory in each of the two Wimbledon finals. In 2023 it was still a tough battle, but this year it’s already a class difference.
The young Spaniard, who has been one of the top elite for years anyway, has stepped up a few notches, especially in terms of consistency and mentality
He stumbled a little at the turn of the year, was injured from time to time after the Australian Open, triumphed in Indian Wells and has only lost one match since the French Open, on grass at the Queens Club against Jack Draper.
He has won 20 of his last 21 matches, collecting his third and fourth Grand Slam titles in the process. He is still at his strongest on clay. With his explosiveness and speed, he runs down all the balls. In longer rallies, it is difficult to take the point from him.
He scores many quick points with his brute forehand. Thanks to his good defensive play, he is also always dangerous on the return.
After his clear victory over Djokovic at Wimbledon, the odds for victory are now drifting apart. Betano is offering 1.40 for the Spaniard to win and 2.90 for Djokovic
For the “Set 1 & win Alcaraz” tip there is a 1.62, not really a big jump in odds, which is why I prefer to go for the direct 2:0 win (2.18). Alcaraz has not yet lost a set at the Olympic Games anyway.
6-3, 6-1 against Hady Habib, 6-1, 7-6 against Tallon Griekspoor, 6-4, 6-2 against Roman Safiullin, 6-3, 7-6 against Tommy Paul and on Friday the gala performance against Felix Auger-Aliassime (6-1, 6-1), whom he maneuvered into the bronze medal match in no time at all.
In the final, however, Alcaraz will face a Djokovic who will bring a different kind of motivation to the match. After all, the 23-time Grand Slam winner is still missing a gold medal. So far, only the bronze medal from the Games in Beijing sparkles in his trophy collection
He won’t win the Golden Slam he’s aiming for in his career with rivals such as Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and co, but a gold medal still has enormous significance for the man from Belgrade.
It could be his last chance to win one. At 41, even Djokovic, who feels he is not ageing, is likely to be slowly slowed down by biology at the next event in four years’ time.
Even now, Djokovic and Alcaraz are physically on two completely different levels. As a new Betano customer, you can also take my 2:0 bet without making a deposit.
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My Djokovic Alcaraz tip
Djokovic and Alcaraz have yet to drop a set in Paris. Neither of the two stars has had a run in recent matches. I expect a top match between the two men, in which Alcaraz is likely to emerge as the clearly stronger player.
Alcaraz clearly has the better forehand and is physically superior. The difference was already clear on the hallowed turf of Wimbledon and it is likely to be even greater on clay, as longer rallies are likely to be more frequent.
Only his youthful recklessness is his undoing on one or two points, but sometimes it also allows him to hit winning shots that provide YouTube material for the tennis channels.
When it comes to sports betting, I’ve enjoyed Djokovic and Alcaraz’s finals so far. You can also use the high 2.18 odds for the Spaniard’s smooth 2:0 win to take advantage of a sports betting bonus.
My Djokovic Alcaraz tip: Alcaraz wins in two sets
