The grass-court swing continues in earnest with the Cinch Championships at London Queen’s club, marking the next stop in the United Kingdom and in the lead up to the Wimbledon Championships.
The Cinch Championships are one of two ATP 500 events on the tennis betting board this week – the other is the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle.
With the tour’s best players spread across both ATP 500 events, tennis fans are going to be spoiled for choice..
In this column, we look at the Cinch Championships odds, preview the draw and offer up some choice betting tips to spot for your tennis predictions.
Let’s check the latest tennis news, stats, injury reports, and ATP London Odds. We’ve plenty of tennis picks for you to consider.
ATP London Outrights
- Marin Cilic +550
- Matteo Berrettini +600
- Casper Ruud +700
- Andy Murray +850
- Denis Shapovalov+1400
- Cameron Norrie +1400
- Taylor Fritz +1400
- Jenson Brooksby +1400
- Alex De Minaur +1600
- Grigor Dimitrov +1800
Top Seed Casper Ruud isn’t Favorite
World No .6 Casper Ruud is the highest-ranked player in the Cinch Championships draw. This means he automatically receives the No. 1 seed for the event.
Ruud’s top standing and seeding, however, doesn’t translate directly to top betting honors. In fact, the Norwegian isn’t the oddsmakers’ favorite. He’s close enough as the third overall favorite as per opening betting online odds. However he’s not the top bet. That domain belongs to Croatia’s Marin Cilic, closely followed by Italy’s Matteo Berrettini.
From the @rolandgarros final ▶️ @TheQueensClub
Great to have @CasperRuud98 at the 2022 #cinchChampionships pic.twitter.com/Pz10G5myxm
— cinch Championships (@QueensTennis) June 12, 2022
As things currently stand, the 23-year-old Norwegian is the third-best bet at +700. He’s making his first appearance since losing to Rafael Nadal in the French Open final earlier this month.
It’s no secret that Ruud’s best surface is clay. Grass isn’t. He once even suggested that grass was for golfers and not tennis players. So, it remains to be seen how he accounts in his first grass event this year.
Ruud’s section of the draw is favorable. American Jenson Brooksby, Diego Schwartzman and Filip Krajinovic are some of the potential quarterfinal challengers that could emerge. That is, assuming rust isn’t a factor and he survives the earlier rounds.
The semis is where things could get tricky. American Taylor Fritz and Cilic flank the second quarter of the draw. Both players are big servers that play a good game on grass.
Cilic Favored
Former Wimbledon Championships finalist Cilic is a serious grass-court threat. His game is well suited to the fast, slick surface where he has picked up three ATP Tour level titles over his career.
The veteran won the Cinch Championship title in 2012 and 2018 and the title in Stuttgart in 2021.
Cilic’s prowess on grass makes him a legitimate title threat at the ATP 500 London event. Recent form is also encouraging as Cilic reached the semifinals of the French Open where he (ironically) lost to Ruud.
Should they cross paths in London, it would be the hot ticket matchup of the tournament. Certainly, Cilic would be the favorite this time around.
Defending Champions Berrettini
Italy’s Matteo Berrettini missed the entire clay-court swing after undergoing minor hand surgery, but he quashed any doubts about his form in his first tournament back in Stuttgart last week.
Berrettini was in top form throughout the week, and he navigated a successful run to the title, defeating former world No. 1 Andy Murray 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 in the BOSS Open final. It marked his second career title in Stuttgart after first claiming it in 2019.
In winning Stuttgart, Berrettini sends a clear signal that he’s back. The 26-year-old won the Queen’s Club title last year over home favorite Cameron Norrie. He then went on to reach the final of Wimbledon where he lost to Novak Djokovic.
Berrettini will be keen to defend his title. As the second seed, he is priced as the second-best bet on the tennis odds board. He could see Murray in the R16 if the Brit does play this week. Murray received treatment for a hip injury during Sunday’s final in Stuttgart
Stan Wawrinka is a potential quarterfinal threat, though the Swiss is still finding his form. Another potential threat in his corner is Canada’s Denis Shapovalov, who is the fifth-best bet at +1400 to win the title.
In the semis, Berrettini could face American Reilly Opelka, Grigor Dimitrov or Brit Norrie. Should the Brit get the chance, he will be extra motivated after losing last year’s final.
Americans in the Mix
Fourth seed Taylor Fritz and Jensen Brooksby lead the American charger this week. The pair are the top American threats in London with odds of +1400.
Seventh seed Opelka is the second-best bet at +2200, followed by Sam Querrey at +2500. Francis Tiafoe (+3300) and Tommy Paul (+4000) are the long shots of the group.
Tennis Betting Verdict
The best bets to spot this week must be Cilic or Berrettini and the fact that both fall in opposite halves of the draw underscores their favorable tennis odds.
If you are looking for a value flutter, consider Fritz and/or Norrie. They are legitimate contenders even though they don’t rank at the top of the betting board.
Falling into tough sections will make it harder for each player to reach the final, but sometimes the draw does open up in a tournament. In such a case, Fritz or Norrie are the sort that could capitalize.
