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Djokovic vs. Bedene Odds
| Djokovic Odds | -10000 |
| Bedene Odds | +3000 |
| Over/Under | 27.5 |
| Time | 7:15 am ET |
| Odds via FanDuel. For tips on watching tennis matches, click here. | |
Novak Djokovic enters the third round of the French Open looking to continue his dominant stretch of tennis.
Through two rounds, he has only once permitted an opponent to win four games in a set.
Aljaz Bedene hopes to continue his rise back up the rankings, sitting at No. 195 after a period of absence from the tour, and he looks like he's finding his best stuff as of late.
Djokovic and Bedene have matched up three times, with two of those coming on clay, and Djokovic leads the head-to-head 3-0.
Will this match be any different? Let's dive into it.
Djokovic In Peak Form
Following a series of matches in which he struggled with consistency and fitness, Djokovic is back to the 20-time Grand Slam champion form that we are all used to seeing. In his first two rounds at the French Open, he has backed up his dominant title run in Rome.
Just how dominant has he been? As dominant as it gets.
Going back to his first match in Rome, Djokovic has won 16 consecutive sets, being pushed to a tiebreak only three times. Against opponents ranked 10th or lower, he has only been pushed beyond six games once (Molcan in the previous round).
It is safe to say that Djokovic has found his stride and is back to bringing unsolvable problems to his opponents.
Bedene Making Solid Return To Tour
Returning from an absence on tour, Bedene has been using a protected ranking to help himself enter tournaments. Going into the French Open, Bedene had won just one match, that coming over Mikhail Kukushkin, a very poor clay courter.
Thus far in Paris, Bedene has been showing his once top 50 form. Defeating a very solid Chris O'Connell and clay court veteran Pablo Cuevas in four sets each, he has impressed and gained much needed match experience.
However, Djokovic will be an opponent bringing a level far above any opponent Bedene has faced so far this year. Bedene's top ranked opponent since his return was ranked 45.
With Djokovic playing like the world No. 1 that he is, this will be an uphill battle for Bedene. Adding on the fact that Bedene is still in the period of finding his form and their past head-to-head history, it seems unlikely that we will witness anything other than Djokovic domination, but as we've already seen at this tournament, you never know.
Betting Value
Bedene does not possess any weapons that will put Djokovic under pressure, and that spells trouble for him.
With Djokovic's remarkable defense, I expect that even on points where Bedene starts on the attack, Djokovic will be able to turn them around and find his way through, as we've seen him do throughout his career.
With oddsmakers presenting a massive spread, I believe we can find the best value in taking Djokovic to win without any trouble with his game total. If he isn't pushed to a breaker and wins in straight sets, Djokovic will cover this number.
Pick: Djokovic Under 18.5 games (-132 via FanDuel)
