Novak Djokovic vs. Yoshihito Nishioka: Odds, Picks, & Prediction: French Open | Monday, May 23rd
Novak Djokovic vs. Yoshihito Nishioka Preview: World's #1 takes care of business in the opening round
Novak Djokovic will take to the court in today's opening round of the French Open. The world's #1 tennis player will find himself against a somewhat familiar opponent in Yoshihito Nishioka.
These two players have different momentum coming into this tournament. Djokovic has won five matches in a row, while Nishioka has lost four in a row. This will be the third time these two men will face off against each other, with Novak Djokovic winning the previous two matches in straight sets. Another factor in this match will be the playing surface. The French Open is the only major tennis tournament in the world that is played on a clay court. In 2022, Djokovic has a 10-3 overall record on clay courts, and Nishioka carries a 2-4 mark on clay.
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"#TeamDjokovic" - @ Novak Djokovic
This match provides somewhat of a David and Goliath narrative. When looking at the career numbers, Djokovic has 87 singles titles to his name, while Nishioka has only 1. Nishioka has yet to crack the 100 win mark in his career, with Djokovic winning his 1,000th career singles match in his last tournament. Clearly, there is a huge advantage toward Djokovic.
After breaking this match down, the sportsbooks are heavily favoring Djokovic to win. However, there is some value in other areas. When looking at the number of total games, it sits at 26.5 as you are reading this. Novak Djokovic should win this match in straight sets, but the real question is: Can Nishioka force Djokovic to go deep into the match? Considering the results of their previous two matches have gone below this line, that's what we are going to attack in this one.
Below, you will find a prediction for the match.
The title defence for world No.1 Novak Djokovic begins with Yoshihito Nishioka
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"The title defence for world No. 1 Novak Djokovic begins with Yoshihito Nishioka" - @ Roland-Garros
Pick/Prediction: Under 26.5 Games (-105)
It's no secret that this is a mismatch heavily in Djokovic's favor. Given the fact that Nishioka has never won a set against him, that isn't something the tennis world expects to change today. If Djokovic can produce similar results to the previous two meetings, then we should have a great value bet here.
While nothing in sports is a guarantee, the world's #1 should take care of business rather easily today and keep the total number of games under 26.5. Novak Djokovic justed turned 35 years old yesterday, so he is going to want to show that he's aging like fine wine. Let's go Djoker!