Wimbledon: Djokovic 1/2 for eighth title ahead of Sinner semi; Alcaraz second favourite
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Medvedev 9/1 for success in Wimbledon men’s odds
Just four players remain from the men’s singles draw at Wimbledon and defending champion Novak Djokovic is the 1/2 favourite to equal Roger Federer’s record of eight titles.
Three of the top four seeds will be competing in Friday’s semi-finals which sees Djokovic take on Jannik Sinner, who lost to the 23-time grand slam winner from two sets up last year.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz will face third seed Daniil Medvedev as we look at the latest Wimbledon men’s odds ahead of Friday’s semi-finals.
Novak Djokovic
Djokovic fought back from a set down to beat Andrey Rublev 4-6 6-1 6-4 6-3 victory on Wednesday to book a place in the last four at a major for the 46th time and extend his winning run at Wimbledon to 33 matches.
He is now only two wins away from yet another grand slam title and, although this performance was not quite perfect, it was another demonstration of what it will take to stop the 36-year-old Serb lifting the trophy for an eighth time.
Asked how it felt to be the man always with a target on his back, Djokovic said: “I love it. Any tennis player wants to be in the position where everyone wants to win against you.
“Pressure is a privilege, as Billie Jean (King) said. It’s never going to go away. It awakens the most beautiful emotions in me and it motivates me beyond what I’ve ever dreamed of and inspires me to play my best tennis. I know they want to get a scalp, they want to win, but it ain’t happening.”
Twelve months ago, Sinner had the semi-finals in sight after taking a 7-5 6-2 lead against Djokovic, who turned the match around by taking the next three sets 6-3 6-2 6-2.
Chances: Djokovic has won both previous encounters with Sinner and a 24th grand slam title is starting to look inevitable barring injury.
Alcaraz reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon for the first time with a a 7-6 (3) 6-4 6-4 victory over Holger Rune on Centre Court and comes up against Medvedev for the third time for a place in Sunday’s final.
The Russian won their first meeting in the second round at Wimbledon in 2021, Alacaraz’s debut at SW19, but avenged that defeat with a straight-sets victory in the final at Indian Wells four months ago.
Alcaraz has dropped just a couple of sets over the fortnight and is the 7/20 favourite to reach his second successive final having proved his liking for grass by winning the title at Queen’s a couple of weeks ago.
He said: “We played two times, once here at Wimbledon. It’s going to be a tough one. But right now I’m going to enjoy this moment. You don’t play a semi-final every year.”
Chances: Will be in for a difficult test against Medvedev, but negotiate that hurdle and Djokovic is likely to lie in waiting.
Medvedev fought back from the brink to reach the semi-finals for the first time with a five-sets victory over surprise package Christopher Eubanks, who had only won two grand slam matches heading to the All England Club.
The Russian took the opening set, but lost the next two 6-1 6-4 and needed a fourth-set tie-break to take the match to a decider which he won comfortably.
He said: “There was a moment in the match where I completely lost the game itself and he played well. I started to sink, I started to make a lot of mistakes, not serving well enough. But starting from the tie-break I managed to play amazing and I’m really happy about it.
“In the semi I have to make lots of aces. You can play the best match of your life on grass and lose three tie-breaks, and no one will care if you played well.”
Chances: Playing five sets in the quarter-final was hardly ideal preparation and defeat to Alacaraz in Indian Wells will surely be on his mind.
The Italian booked his place in a grand slam semi-final for the first time with a four-sets victory over Roman Safiullin on Tuesday.
Sinner certainly has the game for success at SW19, dropping just two sets on his way to the last four, but his clash with Djokovic will be the first time he has faced a seed at the Championships.
He said: “What should I say, it means a lot to me, we put a lot of work in and many, many hours and a lot of sacrifices for this moment. It means a lot, it is a very nice moment for me. I just try my best every match, I am very happy to be in the semi-finals. He is a very tough player to play against.”
Chances: Odds of 19/5 to beat Djokovic suggest this could be where the story ends, but stranger things have happened.
