One of the Olympic sports that is open to the professional athletes is the Mens tennis and as such a number of the stars of the game are heading to Rio all with one thing on their agenda – to win Olympic gold.
Some players have pulled out over injury and health concerns but the main two in the game right now – Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic – are both here as is Rafael Nadal so the tournament will still get plenty of interest even though Roger Federer is out injured.
Recent Winners
2012 – Andy Murray
2008 – Rafael Nadal
2004 – Nicolas Massu
2000 – Yevgeny Kafelnikov
1996 – Andre Agassi
1992 – Marc Rosset
1988 – Miloslav Mecir
The Format
This is a straight knockout tournament right from the start. There was a limit to the number of players a country could send so the field is different to the ones we might see in a Grand Slam or a Masters Series tournament.
All matches are the best of three sets apart from the final which is a best of five set match. Tie-breaks are in operation in all sets apart from the deciding one which must be won by two clear games.
First Quarter
Novak Djokovic is the number one seed and as such he is at the top of the draw. All eyes will be on him to see whether he has got over his Wimbledon failure. His win in Toronto recently suggests that he has and as such he is a clear and worthy favourite.
If Djokovic is to slip up then there are three other seeds in this quarter looking to take advantage. The main one of those is Jo-Wilfried Tsonga while Roberto Bautista-Agut and Jack Sock are also in this section.
Britain’s Kyle Edmund is in this quarter in his first Olympic Games while perhaps the most dangerous ‘floater’ could be Juan Martin del Potro although he faces Djokovic in the first round which isn’t an ideal draw for either – they played for the Bronze medal in London four years ago.
Second Quarter
Rafael Nadal is the main seed in the second quarter which means he could be an opponent for Djokovic in the semi-final. He missed Wimbledon through injury and will be looking to make up for that both here and in the US Open later in the month.
The other seeds alongside Nadal in this quarter are Gilles Simon, Pablo Cuevas and David Goffin so you would say in theory the draw isn’t too bad for Nadal although his fitness has to be a major concern it must be said.
Federico Delbonis, Borna Coric and Thomaz Bellucci are all non-seeded players who were this a Grand Slam would be close to being seeded or actually among the seeds. Bellucci will be extra motivated at a home Games too.
Third Quarter
This quarter looks like the hardest in the tournament. Kei Nishikori is the biggest seed and having yet to win a Grand Slam this would be the biggest win of his career were he to come through and win the Gold.
Opposing him from a seeds point of view is a very strong field. He goes up against the form man Gael Monfils, winner in Washington and runner up in Toronto while former US Open champion Marin Cilic and Philipp Kohlscreiber are also looking to come through this part of the draw.
Grigor Dimitrov is the biggest non seed in the field in this third quarter while other players with the potential to be dangerous if they are allowed are Vasek Pospisil, who has just split with his coach, and Albert Ramos-Vinolas.
Bottom Quarter
British eyes will be transfixed on this section of the draw as it is the part which houses Andy Murray. You would have to say the defending champion has a lovely draw to begin with and the Wimbledon champion will be confident of delivering another bold showing.
David Ferrer is seeded to be his closest rival with the other seeds potentially opposing Murray in this quarter being Steve Johnson and the mentally fragile Benoit Paire so it must be said the Brit couldn’t have wished for a better draw.
Viktor Troicki, Murray’s first round opponent, Juan Monaco and Fabio Fognini could all be seeded in this tournament but aren’t but that doesn’t mean they can be written off without any hope whatsoever.
Betting
As you would expect this is a market that centres around Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray but as we saw in Wimbledon it isn’t a guarantee that both make it to the final. In most events there is an element of the unknown about it with the infrastructure not necessarily the best in Rio so a theme of this Olympics for me is to not take short prices so I’m look to look beyond the main two.
History suggests that there could be some mileage in doing that anyway because we have had some surprise winners of this tournament and with the likes of Federer, Wawrinka and Berdych not here for various reasons the draw will open up in places.
I’m a big Marin Cilic fan at the best of times and having been cruelly denied a pay out on him at Wimbledon when Roger Federer came from two sets down to beat him in the quarter final I’m going to take him again this week.
While his quarter is probably the toughest in the draw it might not be as tough as it looks. Gael Monfils is playing some fantastic tennis at the minute but he has looked jaded recently and that could catch up with him while Cilic’s record in big matches against Kei Nishikori is very strong.
That gives me belief he could come out of his quarter and with medals in sight after that he will be no forlorn hope of going all the way as we saw in New York in 2014. At 50/1 he’s worth a bet this week.
David Goffin might not have the game to win the big events over five sets but I do think he has the game over three and with doubts over Rafael Nadal in his quarter, the Belgian could have an extended run this week. If someone can take care of Novak Djokovic then the top half would be wide open so at 80/1 it is worth a dabble on the Davis Cup runner up.
Tips
Back M.Cilic to win Men’s Tennis (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 51.00 with Ladbrokes (1/2 1-2)
Back him here:
Back D.Goffin to win Men’s Tennis (e/w) for a 0.5/10 stake at 81.00 with William Hill (1/2 1-2)
Back him here:
