Novak Djokovic is usually the man to bet on tennis, with the only possible exception being the French Open. He insists that he is not obsessed with winning Roland Garros, and it’s just as well because he has lost all three finals he has played in Paris, including the last two years. Novak Djokovic is going into his 12th attempt to win, and he would set a record for the most attempts taken to win the title if he finally pulls it off. It would surpass the likes of Roger Federer and Andre Agassi, who both won the event at the 11th try. Goran Ivanisevic holds the Open era Grand Slam record of requiring 14 attempts before winning Wimbledon in 2001.
Despite never quite managing to make it over the line, Novak Djokovic says that he is not “obsessed” with winning the tournament. Of course he anticipates himself, as everybody else does, to try to get his hands on this title this year. Even if his career was done tomorrow, he has made some achievements in his life that he must be proud of. He doesn’t try to approach things from a point of view of being obsessed with winning this tournament – or any other tournament for that matter. Then again, he is the world number 1 and of the greats, and people put their tennis betting on him would like to see him win.
Even before beating Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals of last year’s tourney, Djokovic was the favorite of fans who bet on tennis. After seeing off the Spaniard in straight sets, even his semi-final opponent Andy Murray conceded this was the Serb’s “best chance” to win the French Open. Murray provided a stern test, forcing Djokovic to go to five sets before he won his 28th consecutive match. But then came along Stan Wawrinka. In just over three hours, Wawrinka hit almost 60 winners to beat Djokovic and win his second Grand Slam championship. Novak Djokovic could barely hold back his manly tears post-match, but there would always be next year, wouldn’t there? Which would be this year.
At the start of 2016 and before the European clay season started, Djokovic was the odds-on tennis betting favorite for Roland Garros. However, things have not exactly gone according to the Serb’s plans. He was impressive in Madrid, but was upset by Jiri Vesely and lost the Rome Masters against Andy Murray in a surprisingly lopsided affair. Nonetheless, Djokovic will once again start as the strong favorite for people who bet on tennis despite his defeats in Monaco and Rome, but he will by no means be the only one. Will this be Djokovic’s year? Only time will tell.