Andy Murray won the US Open men’s singles in 2012 and one thinks that the Briton is the best bet in the 2015 edition at longer odds than Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori contested last year’s US Open men’s singles final, with Cilic coming through in straight sets, but bookmakers are offering dutched odds of approximately 1.20that Djokovic, Federer or Murray lifts aloft the trophy on Arthur Ashe Court this year, which is justifiable since those three players have won all bar one of the 10 big tournaments – three majors and seven ATP World Tour Masters 1000s – that have been completed in 2015.
Djokovic will have his supporters, not least because the US Open men’s singles draw could not have been much kinder to the nine-time grand slam champion – Andreas Seppi, David Goffin, Roberto Bautista-Agut, Milos Raonic, Feliciano Lopez, Fabio Fognini and Rafael Nadal are the seeds in his quarter so he is likely to make the semi-finals. Raonic is not 100 per cent fit and Nadal is trading at massive odds because the reality is that his best days are behind him.
But a few things bug one about Djokovic. First, the US Open is Djokovic’s third best major event with one men’s singles title and a match winning percentage of 84.75. Second, the US Open men’s singles draw means that bookmakers have cut Djokovic’s odds to best offers of 2.20 with PaddyPower. And third, Djokovic has lost each of his two finals on North American hard courts since completing a successful defence of the Wimbledon men’s singles crown.
Federer is the US Open men’s singles second favourite but he has won just one of the last 22 grand slam tournaments and he has not taken part in a Flushing Meadow final since 2009 – indeed, he has made the championship match in only three of the last 17 majors and all of them were on grass courts, where the short points are kinder on his thirtysomething body. Federer’s US Open men’s singles draw is every bit as tough as that of Djokovic is soft – he could encounter Leonardo Mayer, Marcos Baghdatis, Philipp Kohlschreiber, John Isner and Tomas Berdych before the semi-finals – and his odds have dropped following his Western & Southern Open men’s singles victory. That event took place on hard courts in Cincinnati that are faster than the those in New York.
One thinks that Murray should be the US Open men’s singles second favourite and that the gap between him and Djokovic in the betting is too great in view of the result of their recent match on a Montreal hard court that the Briton won 6-4 4-6 6-3. Murray has lost just three matches since the French Open men’s singles – two on fast courts to Federer and one on a hard court to Teymuraz Gabashvili, although one should note that the latter was the Briton’s first outing after he helped his country make the Davis Cup semi-finals.
Murray will line up versus Nick Kyrgios in the US Open men’s singles first round, a draw that has resulted in the Briton easing in championship betting. But Murray leads Kyrgios 3-0, the Briton has not dropped a set to the Australian and the controversial youngster’s fitness is suspect over the best of five sets. Murray has nothing to fear first up.
The US Open women’s singles is, as ever, all about Serena Williams because, if she plays to her potential, none of her 127 rivals will stop her winning all four major events in the same calendar year for the first time in her career.
Williams has won the US Open women’s singles three years in a row and she has lost only one match since the French Open got under way and that was 4-6 in the deciding set to Belinda Bencic. It is impossible to oppose Williams but, given her propensity to throw in an absolute shocker from out of nowhere, one does not want to back her at odds on.
Tips Summary
Andy Murray to win US Open
31st August 16:00 GMT
Odds: 5.95 with Matchbook
