The last 12 major events in men’s professional tennis have all been won by one of three players: Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. These are the top three ranked men’s players in the world, and they all enter this tournament in solid health. They will be the top three favorites to win the Australian Open. As you consider your tennis betting for this tournament, you should begin with them. We will take you through the four quarters of the men’s draw and talk about them — as well as others who have a chance to knock them off.
2020 Australian Open Men’s Betting Preview
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Rafael Nadal
In Rafael Nadal’s quarter of the bracket, he sits as the top seed. Last year, he finished as the runner-up and indicated that he had not played quite enough competitive matches heading in. He played in the ATP Cup this year, so he should have enough of a base to get him through this bracket. He opens against Hugo Dellien from Bolivia, ranked 72nd in the world, in the first round.
The first seeded player that he could face is Pablo Carreno Busta. However, the fourth round could get interesting, as he could see the talented Karen Khachanov or the mercurial Nick Kyrgios. The quarterfinals could bring fifth seed Dominic Thiem. Other potential threats in this part of the draw include Felix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz and Gael Monfils. The top threat, in my opinion, is Khachanov, who had a terrific season in 2018 before falling off the table a bit in 2019.
Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev is the fourth seed and reached the final of the U.S. Open last year. At the ATP Cup, he took on Novak Djokovic and gave him all he wanted before losing in an epic match. Medvedev starts with Frances Tiafoe, who is unseeded but made it all the way to the quarterfinals here in 2019. Such names as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, John Isner and Stan Wawrinka all lurk in Medvedev’s side of this part of the draw.
He could end up taking on Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals, but Zverev making it there would be a surprise, as he is winless in 2020. David Goffin, who beat Nadal in the ATP Cup, is in this section. Andrey Rublev won a title in Doha to start 2020, and he could take advantage of inconsistency in both Zverev and Medvedev’s game.
Roger Federer
Roger Federer comes in with the least 2020 play of any of the top four seeds after opting not to play in the ATP Cup. He has won the Australian Open six times and will open this year against Steve Johnson. An interesting matchup could wait in the third round, as Hubert Hurkacz is ranked 34th in the world at the age of 22.
Matteo Berrettini is the top opponent that Federer would face in his quarterfinal if he gets that far; Berrettini also stayed out of the ATP Cup due to an abdominal muscle injury. The dark horse in this quarter of the draw is Denis Shapovalov, a Canadian who opens with a tough match against Marton Fucsovics but, should he get through, has a relatively manageable path to face Federer in the fourth round. Even so, Federer should emerge unscathed.
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic has a 68-8 record all time at the Australian Open, where he has seven titles already, almost half of his 16 majors. Djokovic did have some struggles in the second half of 2019, but he looks to rebound here. His first-round opponent is Jan-Lennard Struff, who brings a ton of power (although Djokovic has beaten him twice).
Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat Djokovic in Shanghai a year ago, could meet him in the quarterfinals. Ninth seed Roberto Bautista Agut is an interesting dark horse, as he put together a solid 2019. He opens with Feliciano Lopez and could meet Tsitsipas in the fourth round. It’s hard to see anyone stopping Djokovic, given his mastery here.
