- Novak Djokovic has +110 odds to win his record 22nd grand slam and 10th Australian Open title
- Recent vaccine mandate may force Djokovic to withdraw because he has yet to declare his vaccination status
MELBOURNE - Novak Djokovic’s most difficult opponent for the 2022 Australian Open title may be the COVID vaccination mandate.
Even without revealing his vaccination status, Djokovic is still the favorite to win with +110 odds to do so. The nine-time tournament champion has won the last three Australian Open titles and if he participates he will be looking to break his tie with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer for most Grand Slam titles of all time that is currently at 20.
All players must test negative before they arrive to Australia. Once there they must take another COVID test and quarantine until the results come out.
That process has proven effective as both Denis Shapovalov and Audrey Rublev both tested positive upon arrival. In order for them to clear the protocol, they must now return two negative tests within a 72-hour window before the tournament starts.
Rafael Nadal also recently tested positive for the virus. He has stated that he can’t guarantee that he will participate in the tournament, but he is expected to play.
Online gambling sites do not seem to adjust odds too much. The top six men’s tennis singles players in the world according to the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) are still given odds to win the 2022 Australian Open despite three of them testing positive over the last week.
ATP Top 6 - 2022 Aussie Open Odds
- 1. Novak Djokovic +110
- 2. Daniil Medvedev +225
- 3. Alexander Zverev +300
- 4. Stefanos Tsitsipas +1200
- 5. Audrey Rublev +3000
- 6. Rafael Nadal +1200
The Novak Djokovic odds to win the Australian Open indicate that sportsbooks deem it nearly a toss up between him versus the field to win the tournament. Those odds seem fair, with a real possibility of those odds being too long given his acumen at the tournament and during the 2021 Grand Slam cycle in which he won three of four tournaments.