At last, the field of the 2018 Wimbledon men’s singles tournament is now down to only two players. It’s not the matchup anyone expected, and one that few hoped for, but those betting on Kevin Anderson have indeed been enjoying a bit of a run. Will he conclude his amazing string of victories in London with a win over Djokovic? Or will Djokovic (favored at -500) enjoy a final where he’s not pitted against Federer or Nadal and send Anderson back to reality?
It seemed like Anderson’s match with John Isner in the semifinals would last an eternity, but after six long hours, the South African was able to pull off a win, sending Isner home by taking a hard-earned 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (9-11), 6-4, 26-24 victory. In a battle between two literal giants and big-serving players, Anderson came out on top, feeding Isner with 49 aces and 118 winners. Anderson put a remarkable 84 percent of his first serves in and scored on 59 percent of them. He was also the first man in the tournament to break Isner’s serve, so it speaks volumes about how well things are going for Anderson. The 32-year-old Anderson will next test his serve against the defensive and counter-attack minded Djokovic, whom the South African has only beaten once in six meetings, and that was on a hard surface 10 years ago during the Miami Masters.
Betting on Novak Djokovic (-500 Moneyline)
Djokovic is a win away in Wimbledon to secure his first Grand Slam title since 2016, and he has a chance of doing that against a man he has dominated multiple times before in the form of Anderson. To get to the finals, Djokovic had to get through Rafael Nadal. It was not an easy match for Djokovic, as expected, but he came away with a victory to advance to his first finals appearance in Wimbledon since 2015. The 31-year-old Serbian is 5-1 in his career against Anderson, which includes a clean 2-0 slate on grass matches opposite the 6-foot-8 South African. Apart from that, Djokovic could be the fresher player of the two in the finals, as Anderson had to win back-to-back marathon matches against Roger Federer and John Isner. Fatigue could be setting in on Anderson, and if that’s the case, Djokovic will have to find a way to capitalize on it.
Writer’s Prediction
Djokovic would not be denied by Anderson, as the Serbian takes home his fourth Wimbledon title with a four-set win in the finals.
