ATP Masters in Paris, quarter-finals, Friday, 03.11.2023
The world number 1 makes another appearance! Novak Djokovic has a score to settle at the Masters in Paris after surprisingly losing the final a year ago. Against? The man who is now facing him in the quarter-finals, of all people!
It will be a clash of the generations, as the Djoker will be facing the resurgent Holger Rune, who has found his form again just in time for the end of the season. But will it hold up on Friday evening?
In my Djokovic Rune betting tip, I’ll reveal why you shouldn’t write off the youngster and why I think he can win a set (odds 2.20)
It was almost exactly two months ago that Novak Djokovic snatched the title at the US Open and was celebrated for setting new records. While his colleagues quickly moved on, the 36-year-old didn’t want to know anything about tournaments for the time being.
And so he did as he has done so often before: Take a long break, don’t let the world know how much he trains and return to the court at some point. Of course, the Djoker won’t miss the Masters in Paris, as he is the record holder here with six titles.
A year ago, everyone was expecting another triumph, but nothing came of it. In the final, he was stopped by Holger Rune with a 6-3, 3-6, 5-7, meaning he couldn’t win his first double since 2014/15!
Now Djokovic would like to take revenge for this defeat. Rune is actually one of the very few players against whom he trails in a direct comparison, albeit only by a narrow margin of 1:2.
This year, he suffered his second defeat in a row, losing 6-2, 4-6, 2-6 on the clay in Rome – Djokovic should be warned and know the strengths of his young opponent.
How is his own form after the long break? The 6-3, 6-2 win over Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the start may have been decent, but he had to show all his skills in the round of 16
Tallon Griekspoor gave him an immensely tough fight that didn’t really deserve a loser. 4-6, 7-6, 6-4, it was a tour de force that actually earned Djokovic a ticket to the next round.
His opponent got the chance to break nine times and he also made seven double faults. Both players were absolutely evenly matched, so in the end it was also down to the well-known little bit of luck.
It certainly wasn’t smart to go all out like that before facing Holger Rune, who is clearly the youngest player in the tournament. Even if our bookmakers see little difficulty in this, calling odds of 1.20 to 4.50.
The young Dane has been out of form for months. Although he didn’t disappear like Djokovic, there was nothing to be seen of him in sporting terms either. He “applied” for Paris with a semi-final from Switzerland and lo and behold, he took his form with him!
The defending champion began with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Dominic Thiem, then beat Daniel Altmaier 6-3, 6-3 a few days later. No problems, no unnecessary third sets, suddenly his old strength is back.
The 20-year-old didn’t concede a single break against himself and increased his first serve winning rate to over 80%. Admittedly, without wanting to praise him too early, there is a lot to remember from last year.
He had literally stormed to the title there, sending home all the stars who tried to get in his way, including Stan Wawrinka, Hubert Hurkacz, Andrey Rublev, Carlos Alcaraz, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Novak Djokovic!
My Djokovic Rune Tip
Is Novak Djokovic really more than a class above Holger Rune on Friday? Admittedly, two months ago I could probably have answered this question with a clear “yes”.
Now, however, the Serb really struggled in his round of 16 match, while Rune has suddenly found his second wind. What’s more, the youngster has recorded two wins against Djokovic in the last 365 days.
All in all, this means that I can well imagine Djokovic faltering at times. So my tip for this quarter-final thriller is:
Rune grabs a set against Djokovic!
