Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios will collide in the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Final on Sunday, and this could well be an explosive affair.
Kyrgios has always been a bit of a maverick who plays by his own rules. But after lifting his first Grand Slam doubles title at the Australian Open back in January, the fiery Australian will be looking to silence his critics at SW19.
Djokovic, meanwhile, is no stranger to Wimbledon finals, and there are a few illuminating stats that should be taken into consideration:
- Kyrgios leads Djokovic 2-0 in the head-to-head record, although both of those victories came on hard in 2017.
- Djokovic is aiming to get his hands on a fourth successive Wimbledon title. The 2020 edition was postponed due to Covid-19.
- Djokovic has now racked up his 85th career win at Wimbledon – only Roger Federer has picked up more victories (105) on the hallowed grass.
- At 35 years and 49 days, Djokovic is only the third player in the Open Era aged 35 or older to reach the Wimbledon final.
The final will be a real treat for sports betting fans and there will be plenty of fervor drummed up by online operators.So, ahead of the final, we have picked out a couple of tips for you to chew over.
Sweet 21 for Novak Djokovic
Djokovic continues to remain locked in an engrossing battle with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to be proclaimed the GOAT (Greatest of All Time). The Serbian would probably have been expecting to face Nadal, but an abdominal injury picked up by the Spaniard against Taylor Fritz meant Kyrgios was given a walkover. Although Djokovic lacked his usual panache against Cameron Norrie in the first set of their semi-final, Djokovic raised the intensity levels and he showed his class, particularly in the third set, where he made just four unforced errors.
The semi-final scoreline – 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 – only served to underline Djokovic’s superiority. For Djokovic, Wimbledon is like a home from home for him and his journey to the final has been a well-trodden path. While there are no ranking points up for grabs, that will matter little to Djokovic. He will be single-minded in his pursuit of success and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him lift a seventh Wimbledon title.
Currently, BetMGM is offering very short odds of -450 for Djokovic to be crowned champion for a seventh time which would mark his 21st Major title, and this could be worth following up on.
Don’t expect it to be over in straight sets
Few would have expected Norrie to pick up a set against Djokovic, but Djokovic has had some grueling battles over the past fortnight. The undeniable highlight was against Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals where Djokovic mounted a stunning comeback from two sets to love down before triumphing in five.
Kyrgios, meanwhile, should be feeling recharged, especially as he will have had an extra day to recover after he didn’t have to face Nadal. The 27-year-old possesses a huge first serve, and when he isn’t remonstrating with the umpire or sulking, he is a big talent. You can never underestimate Kyrgios as he is a wily competitor when he’s on his game and he has a full bag of tricks up his sleeve (maybe he will shelve the underarm serve for the final!).
Kyrgios will relish pitting his wits against Djokovic and trying to entertain the Wimbledon crowd. There could be a few fireworks, and Kyrgios will look to rattle Djokovic. He will be hoping he can pose some serious questions of Djokovic hard, and he could pinch a set off him. If you fancy the Wimbledon final to be a four-sets affair, then BetMGM is offering an intriguing price of +175.
