2018 Australian Open Betting Preview, Odds for Tournament Favorites
While there are many major sporting events that grace the stadiums and streets of the Victorian capital of Melbourne, Australia, none have a bigger impact on the city than the Australian Open.
The 2018 Open kicks off on Monday, when the best tennis players on the planet descend on Melbourne Park for what should be a brilliant fortnight of competition.
In the men's draw, there are a pair of familiar names at the top of the betting market, with last year's finalists, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, again expected to go deep into the second week.
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Federer, the champion, is listed at $2.75 AUD to lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup for the sixth time, according to AustralianGambling, while the man who pushed him to five sets in the 2017 decider, Nadal, is set at $5.50.
The best local hope is Nick Kyrgios, who came in from $19 to $13 to become the first Australian to lift the trophy on home soil since Mark Edmondson in 1976 on the back of his Brisbane International win on Sunday.
Ahead of Kyrgios is Novak Djokovic ($7), Grigor Dimitrov ($11), and fellow young gun Alexander Zverev ($12), who defeated the Australian No. 1 at Sydney's Fast4 exhibition tournament on Tuesday.
The women's side of the draw is wide open, with Serena Williams announcing last week she will not be there to defend her crown despite demonstrating her fitness in an exhibition win over Jelena Ostapenko in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in December.
Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza and world No. 6 Karolina Pliskova are joint favorites at $8 to lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup for the first time.
The best hope for an Australian victory in the women's draw comes with Ashleigh Barty ($26), who had a breakout year in 2017 in which she rose from No. 271 to No. 17 in the world.
The 21-year-old, who also played cricket professionally for the Brisbane Heat, will have the crowd on her side when she attempts to improve on her third-round exit from last year.
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