Key Contenders for the 2021 Australian Open | The Australian Open is the first Grand Slam tournament of the year in the tennis calendar and reigning singles champions Novak Djokovic and Sofia Kenin must recapture their title-winning form if they are to retain their crowns. The 2021 Australian Open is certain to provide ample sports betting markets at participating casino sites online.
A Delayed Start in 2021
After bush wires destroyed millions of hectares of land in 2020, the tournament was
at risk of being delayed. Fortunately, the situation recovered and the air quality maintained an acceptable standard to allow the tournament to proceed.
A year later, however, and the situation is less positive following a year of turmoil from the global pandemic. On this occasion, the Australian Open has been delayed for three weeks and will instead begin on 8 February 2021. A four-day men’s qualifying tournament has already been hosted in Doha, Qatar, with 17-year-old Carlos Alcaraz from Spain securing his place in the Grand Slam.
Ahead of the Australian Open, it has emerged that the players are subject to strict
strict COVID-19 measures. These include an initial 14-day quarantine period that requires players to remain in their hotel rooms for 19 hours each day. Outside of those hours, the players can practice, undertake workouts in the gym, or dine at the hotel’s facilities. Each player must also provide five negative COVID-19 tests to complete the quarantine checks and participate in the Grand Slam.
Online Casinos and Sports Betting
Nowadays, some of the popular online casinos can also provide sports betting markets for events such as the Australian Open and other major tournaments. For starters, here are some of the
most popular brands on the marketplace. You can check them out to see if any of the casino sites can also provide access to an online sportsbook.
Typically, an online gambling operator that maintains multiple betting channels will only require users to create a single account that can provide access on different devices. With downloadable software now becoming ever less popular, users can simply sign-in on a web browser from their PC, laptop, smartphone, or tablet. However, there might also be mobile apps that are worth considering for their specific functionality and user-friendly tools.
Men’s Singles Prospects
After losing to
Rafael Nadal at the 2020 French Open Novak Djokovic will aim to bounce back in Melbourne. And it would appear that the bookies believe in the record-winning eight-time champion of the Australian Open. Before the Open Era, Roy Emerson was credited with winning the tournament on six occasions. Djokovic, however, could edge close to a 10th title if he wins this season.
All major bookies have priced Djokovic as the favorite with 5/4 viewed as best odds for the clear favorite. Behind Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Daniil Medvedev, and Dominic Thiem are viewed as the next most likely winners. At some sports betting sites, the three have been priced equally at 5/1. Of the three, Nadal is the only past winner, having clinched the Grand Slam in 2009.
Despite winning all four of the Grand Slams available, Nadal is viewed as a clay-court specialist after clinching an astonishing 13 French Open titles. As such, he is often priced behind Djokovic when the two compete on grass courts or hard courts, with the Australian Open hosted on a synthetic surface.
In the case of Russian player Daniil Medvedev, the 24-year-old is yet to win a Grand Slam title. In Australia, his best performances have come in the form of two fourth-round finishes in 2019 and 2020. Meanwhile, Medvedev appeared in the final of the 2019 US Open, which he lost to Nadal in five sets. Medvedev performed admirably to come from two sets down to level score. Ultimately, he lost the final set 6-4 and surrendered the match to Nadal.
Dominic Thiem, meanwhile, could be a much more worthy competitor to dethrone Djokovic. Last season, the 27-year-old Austrian won his first Grand Slam at the fourth attempt. Thiem had lost finals in 2018 and 2019 at the French Open and then in 2020 at the Australian Open. Finally, Thiem prevailed at the 2020 US Open by defeating Alexander Zverev in a tense five-set contest. As a prior finalist in Melbourne, Thiem could be a tempting prospect as a possible 5/1 winner.
Women’s Singles Prospects
While Djokovic is the odds-on favorite to win the men’s singles title, things are more open among the women’s contenders. With some online sportsbooks, Naomi Osaka is priced as the 7/1 favorite to lift the women’s singles title. For Osaka, it would be her second Australian Open crown after previously winning the title in 2019 against Petra Kvitová. The Japanese Osaka is a player with growing pedigree, as evidenced by her
2018 and 2020 victories at the US Open.
The multi-talented Ashleigh Barty is an Australian native and a former cricketer who had already won a Grand Slam title by the age of 23. In 2019, she triumphed at Roland Garros to win the French Open at the expense of Markéta Vondroušová. Now on home soil, Barty has a viable shot of winning at Melbourne Park at 8/1. In 2020, however, she lost in the semi-finals to eventual champion Sofia Kenin and must banish those memories.
Despite holding the women’s singles title from 2020, Kenin is viewed as an outsider of 12/1 to regain the crown. Although the 22-year-old US player did not win another Grand Slam in 2020, she did reach the final of the French Open, which she lost to Iga Świątek in straight sets. Nevertheless, Kenin has overcome the challenge of winning a first Grand Slam and that could help her to triumph again this season.
From the other top conders, Aryna Sabalenka at 9/1 could emerge as a first-time singles champion after previously winning in 2019 at Flushing Meadows as a part of a double. Meanwhile, the 10/1 Simona Halep is priced generously and has won two previous Grand Slam titles while also registering a 2018 appearance in the 2018 final of the Australian Open. The 29-year-old Romanian could be a viable candidate.
Of course, we can’t overlook the potential of the 10/1 Serena Williams as a seven-time former champion of the tournament. Although into the twilight of her career, Williams remains a determined competitor and seems to have the drive to win one last Grand Slam, which would be the 24th of her legendary career. Fittingly, Williams’ last Grand Slam victory came in the 2017 Melbourne tournament.
