Canada Masters in Toronto, 2nd round, Wednesday, 7/30/2025, 2:30 a.m.
Crisis – both athletic and mental. Alexander Zverev’s fans have been suffering for quite some time now with their tennis hero, who is definitely not going through the best phase of his career. Can the Canada Masters bring out his strong side again?
Of course, he goes into his first match as the favorite at the start of the tournament. But be careful: his opponent is in good form! Accordingly, I’m taking a bit of a risk in my Zverev Walton tip and will tell you what made me think the underdog will win the set.
After his first-round exit from Wimbledon, the sports world was puzzled by Alexander Zverev’s dismal performance. He lost 6-7, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6, 4-6 to Arthur Rinderknech, continuing his losing streak.
A few hours after the defeat, the 2021 Olympic champion spoke of mental problems and of hardly feeling any joy anymore. The search for a new coach is also weighing on him. The Canada Masters is now coming right in the middle of this phase.
In 2017, eight years ago now, Zverev won the tournament, beating a certain Roger Federer in the final. Back then, the tournament was held in Montreal, this time it’s Toronto – the two cities alternate as hosts.
It is currently almost impossible to analyze the form of the Hamburg native. Every now and then, his undisputed class shines through, but in the decisive moments, Zverev lacks the strength to see it through.
Toronto could be the start of a strong run for the 28-year-old, but it could also be the next setback. Zverev knows that all eyes will be on him these days.
He is aiming to work with coach Toni Nadal (Rafael Nadal’s uncle), but so far there are no signs of a collaboration. The current world number 3 would therefore be grateful if he did not face too difficult an opponent in his first round.
Zverev got a bye in the first round and will now face Adam Walton. The two have never played each other before, but the German has a clear height advantage of 15 centimeters.
If we open one of the sports betting apps, we will quickly see that the deep crisis is not reflected in the odds. Zverev is the clear favorite, with average odds of 1.05 to 8.00.
Is this a realistic assessment? I actually think Adam Walton is being given too little credit. The 26-year-old is ranked 88th in the world and is playing in the main draw in Toronto for the first time ever.
In the first round, he beat Benjamin Bonzi 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, making a fabulous comeback. He only allowed one break against him. After his first-round exit at Wimbledon (defeat in five sets against Arthur Cazaux), he headed to Los Cabos.
It was an extremely successful trip, as Walton made it to the semi-finals! He defeated Rodrigo Mendez, Nishesh Basavareddy and James Duckworth before finally coming up against a player who was too strong for him in Denis Shapovalov.
His performance at Queens was also impressive. Although he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the first round, anyone who causes problems for one of the world’s best players and only loses 4-6, 6-7, you’re making people sit up and take notice.
Interesting fact: In the last three months, Walton has only finished one tournament without playing a tiebreak, regardless of how far he got. I therefore recommend this bet, as you can win big at Bet365 with odds of 3.40.
My Zverev Walton tip
No, it’s anything but relaxing to keep your fingers crossed for Alexander Zverev at the moment. The German is currently going through one of the most difficult phases of his career, and you never know exactly which underdog will drag him deeper into the mire.
In my opinion, Adam Walton is someone who could do just that. The Australian impressed in Los Cabos, and Carlos Alcaraz also had a tough time against him a few weeks ago. That’s why I quickly decided on the following bet:
Walton will win a set against Zverev!
