US Open Tennis 2018: Odds, Predictions for Key Players in Draw

The first round of the 2018 U.S. Open begins on Monday at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as a number of top players go in search of New York silverware.

Andy Murray will return from injury to make his first Grand Slam appearance in 14 months and is at longer odds as he seeks to take the title from Rafael Nadal. Two-time champion Novak Djokovic is the odds leader.

It's been 10 years since Roger Federer last won the U.S. Open, and he's made the final just twice in the nine tournaments since, but the Swiss star is nevertheless among the front-runners at the age of 37, per OddsShark:

Serena Williams has improved in each of her major appearances since giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia last year, and she's hoping to follow a runners-up finish at Wimbledon with victory in her return to New York after two years away.

Not only that, but the American is the favourite to wrest the U.S. Open crown from compatriot and defending champion Sloane Stephens, who is behind Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber in the stakes:

Read on for a preview of the 2018 U.S. Open, which gets under way on Monday.

Preview and Predictions

In similar fashion to Williams, Djokovic has made steady tweaks to better his game in 2018, and at Wimbledon this year, he ended a wait of more than two years between Grand Slam triumphs.

It was a moment of clarity amid a hectic period in the Serb's otherwise pristine career. As questions regarding his sustained quality were looming, his first trip to a major final since April 2016 also produced the Grand Slam at SW19, though he's since added the career Golden Masters to his collection, via Tennis TV:

Federer has been careful in reserving his strength for the U.S. Open following a shock quarter-final exit at Wimbledon, but it could have an adverse effect in sapping him of match readiness.

With Murray's fitness still in question, Djokovic looks the greatest threat to the Spaniard's crown. The Serb has beaten Nadal 27 times to 25, per the official ATP World Tour website; 18 of those wins came on hard courts, on which Nadal won just seven times.

Magnificent though Djokovic's recent career Golden Masters achievement is, Nadal still has an edge over his rival in quantity in regards to the Masters, per tennis writer Jose Morgado:

It's been a long season, which will likely be a bigger factor for Nadal than it will be for Djokovic, who had made consecutive U.S. Open finals prior to missing last year's contest through injury.

We're backing Djokovic to go all the way this time around and win a third crown in New York in what would be his eighth appearance in the tournament's final.

Stephens faces a much stiffer route to return to the U.S. Open decider and will be back in the field with Williams, whose absence from the 2017 contest provided the opening for her run to beat Madison Keys to the top prize.

That's not to discount Stephens, however, who was in New York on Thursday and ready to defend her title:

There's no doubting Williams' pregnancy absence from the circuit created a vacuum of sorts in the women's game, but Flushing Meadows will be the first venue at which she feels she has a proper stake on the trophy.

The 36-year-old has made it to at least the semi-finals of the last eight U.S Opens in which she's participated, and though it's been four years since she last won the tournament, she looks ready for the challenge:

Halep finally ended her wait for a major title by beating Stephens to the French Open crown earlier this year, while Kerber has recent bragging rights over Williams:

The German is enjoying a recent resurgence after her quality appeared to dip for a period, adding to a packed pool of women's talent that is still reacting to the comeback of 17th-place seeded Williams.

Regardless of her lower standing in the rankings, one can still expect Williams to take another positive step in familiar territory in New York, but she won't take the top prize.

Predictions: Novak Djokovic and Angelique Kerber to win.