The man who posed the greatest threat to Novak Djokovic's bid for a fourth consecutive title, at least per the oddsmakers, is out of the Championships due to a positive Covid test.
Matteo Berrettini withdrew from the Wimbledon draw just hours before he was set to square off with Cristian Garin in the first round.
2022 runner up Matteo Berrettini, 9-0 on grass in 2022, withdraws from Wimbledon with Covid. Joining Cilic, who withdrew for the same reason.
Two top 8 favorites for the title in my opinion. pic.twitter.com/3ppw33Rfk0
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) June 28, 2022
Berrettini was +550 to win the title at BetMGM. Only Djokovic had shorter odds, with the three-time defending champion sitting as a -130 favorite.
The Italian accounted for 10% of the betting tickets at BetMGM and 3.5% of the betting handle.
Marin Cilic was the first to withdraw from Wimbledon due to Covid, as he did so yesterday. Cilic was a +2500 dark-horse for the title.
The players' withdrawals will create bigger concerns for the tournament and fans that this could become more of a widespread problem.
As it stands, there is no daily testing at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, which is in line with UK Covid guidelines.
This is unlike the United States, where Novak Djokovic – who is unvaccinated – hasn't been able to play tournaments and is unlikely to be able to compete at the US Open as rules stand. However, the guidelines in the UK have allowed him to come and compete in the Championships.
It's unclear if he has to do more testing due to his status. It's also unclear if any close contacts to Berrettini and Cilic will face testing.
