From 130 participating countries, the premier international men’s team tournament in tennis is now down to the final two.
Reigning champion the Czech Republic is aiming to successfully defend its title against the 2010 winner Serbia in the 2013 Davis Cup Final on November 15-17.
The venue for this year’s best-of-five final will be the hard court of Serbia’s Belgrade Arena. Serbia will have the home court advantage as the Czechs hosted the two countries’ previous meeting.
2013 Davis Cup Final Betting Preview
[sc:Other240banner ]Ranked #1-2 in the world by the International Tennis Federation, the Czech Republic and Serbia have met twice in the past three years. Serbia was victorious in their 2010 semifinal clash while the Czech Republic prevailed in last year’s quarterfinal tie. The host nation won on both previous occasions.
The host nation has also triumphed in 8 of the last 10 Davis Cup Finals, including the past four years running. This trend may have contributed to the lower ranked Serbians being made -300 favorites over the Czechs, who are only +225 underdogs to defend their title.
It could also be because Serbia has one of the top players in the world on its team. World No. 2 and six-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic will lead a Serbian side composed of world no. 36 Janko Tipsarevic and doubles specialists Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac.
Djokovic, Tipsarevic and Zimonjic were all part of the 2010 Davis Cup-winning team, the first in the young nation’s history. The Serbs are captained by Bogdan Obradovic.
On the other side, former Wimbledon finalist and world no. 6 Tomas Berdych will spearhead a Czech contingent of Lukas Rosol, 34-year-old veteran Radek Stepanek, and Jan Hajek.
Only Berdych and Stepanek remain from the teams that went to the finals in 2009 and 2012. The duo played all five matches (two singles each and one doubles) in last year’s 3-2 victory over Spain. The defending champions are skippered by Jaroslav Navratil.
[sc:Other490banner ]Despite playing in enemy territory, a potential advantage for the Czechs could be the Belgrade Arena’s hard surface. The Djokovic-Tipsarevic combo is a combined 28-14 (singles and doubles) on hard surfaces in their Davis Cup careers, while the Berdych-Stepanek twosome is 22-6.
Can the Czechs defend their crown or will the Serbs make their home support count? Place your bets on the 2013 Davis Cup Final now on Top Bet Sportsbook.
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