US Open Day 15 Tennis Pick- Men's Final 2026 (Sunday 13th September)

It proved to be a fitting conclusion to the Women's tournament at the US Open as Elena Rybakina overwhelmed Aryna Sabalenka in the third set meaning the new World Number 1 is holding two Grand Slams from a fruitful 2026 season.

Beating Sabalenka to end her runs of successes in both Melbourne and New York City means Elena Rybakina can move into the top spot in the World Rankings with the full belief that she is the best player in the world.

Three Grand Slams have now been secured and Elena Rybakina has the potential to win many more, although the finel margins of her tennis means she can be vulnerable to upsets as proved to be the case at Wimbledon.

Despite that, Elena Rybakina is likely to enter three of the four Grand Slams to be played in the 2027 season as the favourite and she will have gained a lot of confidence from her year.

Of course it is not quite over with the swing through Asia followed by the WTA Finals and so there are still big prizes to be won and the end of year World Number 1 spot to be decided.

Before all of that, the US Open has to be completed in the Men's Singles Final and it looks a good one on paper.

It would be really good for American Tennis if Ben Shelton can win, and he is definitely the more likeable of the two competing, but Alexander Zverev has won a Grand Slam to break his duck and looks to be the right favourite.

Alexander Zverev - 1.5 games v Ben Shelton: The top Seed in the draw is looking for a second Grand Slam title in 2026 and he will also be looking to close out home hopes of seeing a first American male player win a Major since Andy Roddick did it right here at the US Open in 2003.

The Big Three had dominated the Grand Slams in that time, but American tennis has missed having a top player competing with those players since Andy Roddick retired and so there is plenty of pressure on Ben Shelton to end that long wait.

He is playing well enough to believe he can win the title here on Sunday, but Ben Shelton is going to be tested by the occasion and also has a really poor record against Alexander Zverev.

Losing all five Tour matches against this opponent is one thing, but losing as convincingly as he has and as often as he has makes this even tougher for Ben Shelton.

So not only is he trying to snap a long barren run for American tennis in the men's tournament, but Ben Shelton has to show how much he has developed since the losses have piled up against Alexander Zverev. None of those defeats have been this year, which will at least give Shelton the belief that he has grown so far to close the gap, but four of the defeats were in matches played in 2025 and the last two were on the hard courts.

Ben Shelton has improved on his returning part of his tennis, and that is going to be tested on Sunday.

In the five previous matches against Alexander Zverev, Ben Shelton has broken serve in less than 2% of return games played and that number becomes 3% when only factoring in the three previous hard court matches.

Not only has he only broken the Zverev serve once, but Ben Shelton has only forced a single Break Point in the last four matches and the top Seed has been moving through the Rounds thanks to the pressure exerted by the serve.

This could be key again in this US Open Final, especially as Alexander Zverev has found a way to get into return games against Ben Shelton and the French Open Champion looks the most likely winner in this match.

Alexander Zverev's overall performance in the Semi Final win over Karen Khachanov was not the most convincing, but he will feel relatively comfortable in the match up and it is all about managing the nerves.

If he can do that, Alexander Zverev can win another Grand Slam title, although a win for Ben Shelton may be great news for the sport as a whole.

MY PICK: Alexander Zverev - 1.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (2 Units)

US Open Update: 33-22, + 8.60 Units (110 Units Staked, + 7.82% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Pick- Men's Final 2026 (Sunday 7th June)

The French Open is concluded on Sunday and the Men's Final selection can be read below.

Alexander Zverev - 5.5 games v Flavio Cobolli: The conspiracy theorists lined up to suggest Matteo Arnaldi had been asked to withdraw from the French Open Semi Final on Friday so that Flavio Cobolli could give Italian tennis the best chance of winning the title. It doesn't help that Arnaldi stated that he had to withdraw with a viral issue, but then conducted a joint press conference with his compatriot.

It will be a story that may run and run in some circles, but for tennis fans, the second Grand Slam of the season comes to a conclusion on Sunday with Flavio Cobolli taking on Alexander Zverev.

Most would have tipped up an Italian to be playing in the Final, but Jannik Sinner's early defeat opened the door for every player in the top half of the bracket. Flavio Cobolli should be given a lot of credit for making his way through the draw and he has largely been untroubled with two sets dropped in five wins in Paris, but Cobolli will be the first to admit that this is a significantly tougher challenge than those faced before.

Nerves are going to be an issue for Alexander Zverev having come so close to winning a Grand Slam Final before, but ultimately still missing a Major title on the career resume.

The draw has opened up for Alexander Zverev when his main rivals failed to reach the second week in Paris, but he has remained focused and a strong win over Jakub Mensik will have given the World Number 3 a real boost in confidence. He may have dropped a set, but Alexander Zverev was clearly the stronger player on the day and it is no surprise that he has been set as a favourite.

These two players have met twice on the clay courts in the build up to the French Open- Flavio Cobolli upset Alexander Zverev in the Munich Semi Final, but it was Zverev who bounced back with a comfortable victory in Madrid Masters Quarter Final.

Alexander Zverev also crushed Flavio Cobolli right here at Roland Garros twelve months ago and his levels during this past fortnight have been higher than the Italian has been able to produce.

However, it would be a mistake to ignore the fact that Flavio Cobolli has beaten a couple of top 20 Ranked opponents, albeit two who are not at their best on this surface.

It will be important to serve well, but that is an area that Alexander Zverev has had the edge, while the higher Ranked player had been pretty consistent on the return before being tested by the Jakub Mensik delivery.

Flavio Cobolli is not at the level that the Czech youngster can produce behind the serve and that likely gives Alexander Zverev enough opportunities on the return of serve to finally win a Grand Slam title.

Nothing will come easy with such a big prize on the line, but Alexander Zverev has made the bigger impact on the return in the previous clay court matches against Flavio Cobolli and that may be the key to the outcome of this French Open Final.

MY PICK: Alexander Zverev - 5.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)

French Open Update: 27-22, - 0.14 Units (94 Units Staked, - 0% Yield)

Australian Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2026- Men's Final (Sunday 1st February)

After two quite unbelievable Semi Final matches, the men's Final on the last Sunday in Melbourne could really signify the passing of the torch between generations.

Novak Djokovic will want to just underline his status as the best player of all time, but Carlos Alcaraz has plenty on the line himself and the youngest player to win the career Grand Slam would certainly place his name in the history books already.

Some may feel it could end up being an important Grand Slam title at the end of the respective careers with Alcaraz looking more than capable of getting close to the current mark set by Novak Djokovic.

It should be a fitting occasion to conclude the first Grand Slam of the 2026 season and one that every Tennis fan should be looking forward to.

The women's Final on Saturday did provide the drama that had largely been missing from that tournament as Elena Rybakina came through in three sets.

It looked like the match was going to get away from the Kazakhstan player in the final set, but a five game winning run turned things in Rybakina's favour and she has moved back into the top three of the World Rankings.

A healthy Elena Rybakina could be a threat at two of the next three Grand Slams, although still has something to prove on the clay courts.

Wimbledon has to be a big target and she can certainly close towards the top of the World Rankings if she can maintain the form of the last six months.

Some words about Aryna Sabalenka- the World Number 1 is a huge personality and remains one of the most consistent players who is always there or thereabouts at the biggest tournaments.

Reaching four of the last five Grand Slam Finals is nothing to be sneered at, even if Sabalenka has come up short in three of those.

You have to expect Aryna Sabalenka to be challenging for the biggest titles throughout 2026 and she has shown plenty of mental resilience to bounce back from plenty of other setbacks to be concerned about how she will respond to this Australian Open Final defeat.

Carlos Alcaraz - 1.5 sets v Novak Djokovic: Depending on your personal belief system, you may describe events on Friday as being 'destiny', 'fate' or perhaps even think some sort of 'divine intervention'.

That is certainly the case for the second Semi Final which was won by Novak Djokovic and the desire to win a twenty-fifth Grand Slam title is now just one match away.

It has been a miraculous few days for the 38 year old and that cannot be denied, no matter what else you believe.

A walkover in the Fourth Round is not so unique- in a long Grand Slam tournament, things like that happen, but the last couple of matches have been very unique.

Trailing 2-0 in the Quarter Final, Novak Djokovic admitted that his time in Melbourne looked to be coming to an end for another year.

Instead, Djokovic was given a reprieve as his fortune was Lorenzo Musetti's misfortune with an injury forcing the Italian to withdraw early in the third set when looking more than on course to beat the ten time Australian Open Champion.

Novak Djokovic admitted the better player had lost on the day, and there may be a similar feeling after he somehow managed to rally and beat the World Number 2 in a five set epic on Friday. The numbers back up that this may have been the most unexpected Semi Final win in a Grand Slam event going back to 1991 when some of the leading number-crunchers have been keeping vigorous records.

The former World Number 1 had 8 Break Points compared with the 18 that Jannik Sinner created, but Djokovic won the majority of the biggest points and recovered from 15/40 positions twice and 0/40 in the final set. He took his one and only Break Point created and the legendary Serb won a match in which his opponent won 12 more points over the course of the epic last four contest.

Suffice to say it is very difficult to overcome those kinds of numbers over and over again, while Novak Djokovic just spent over four hours on the court at 38 years old. Recovery is going to be the big challenge, but it certainly helps that his opponent in this Final has just played the longest Semi Final in Australian Open history.

Carlos Alcaraz is looking to become the youngest player to complete the career Grand Slam, but he had to dig seriously deep to beat Alexander Zverev having cramped up towards the end of the third set. At that stage the World Number 1 looked to be cruising through, but the body began to let him down and that allowed Alexander Zverev to win the next two sets in Tie-Breakers and then take a break lead in the decider.

All credit has to be given to the Spaniard for turning that set around and fighting his way through to the Final, although he has since indicated that he was not receiving a Medical Time Out for cramping issues, but because he felt something else in his muscle. That MTO infuriated Alexander Zverev, because you are not allowed to have a trainer come and work on cramps unless between changeovers and even then it can only be used three times.

Ultimately Zverev has tried to move past any controversy and it is Carlos Alcaraz who will be playing in the Australian Open Final for the first time.

Like his older opponent, Carlos Alcaraz will have to show tremendous recovery after spending almost five and a half hours on the court on Friday. Credit has to be given to the top Seed for the way he managed his serve in that win over Alexander Zverev and it is going to need to be a key shot for him to earn the victory over Novak Djokovic.

Carlos Alcaraz is plenty experienced, even at this young age, but this is easily his best run at the Australian Open and that means he is breaking new ground.

Of course that is far from the case for Novak Djokovic who has won this title ten times in his career and he has NEVER been beaten in the Australian Open Final. This has to give the Serb so much confidence, while he will note that he upset Carlos Alcaraz on this court twelve months ago in a four set win.

Prior to the US Open Semi Final in September, Novak Djokovic had not been beaten on a hard court by Carlos Alcaraz and that is another factor that has to give the veteran belief that this is his moment to win a twenty-fifth Grand Slam title and move clear of all.

The four hard court matches played between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic have narrowly favoured the latter, but the win in New York City has to give the Spaniard so much confidence.

He only faced a single Break Point that day and Alcaraz had his chances in the Quarter Final defeat to Novak Djokovic twelve months ago.

Carlos Alcaraz will believe that his serve has improved markedly since that loss to Novak Djokovic in Melbourne when he was only winning 58% of points played behind the serve. That number improved to 70% in New York City and the returning numbers were similar in both matches, which suggests Carlos Alcaraz deserves the edge that has been given to him.

Over the last twelve months, Carlos Alcaraz has been the superior hard court player, while he has definitely been the more impressive within this tournament.

Novak Djokovic has shown he can play clutch tennis at the biggest moments, while the aggressive style surprised Jannik Sinner and may also give Alcaraz something to think about.

Factoring in the ability to recover from epic five setters on Friday is much more difficult- you would think Carlos Alcaraz being younger and playing earlier on the day will give him the edge, but dismissing the motivation that is fuelling Novak Djokovic and having that see him leave everything on the court would be dangerous.

The hard court performances against Carlos Alcaraz and the confidence of playing in these conditions and on this court makes Novak Djokovic a threat too.

Perhaps he is playing with some destiny and that Sunday is all about Novak Djokovic moving past Margaret Court's twenty-four Grand Slams just across from a tennis court names after the Australian.

Winning the title and leaving the sport would just be a fitting end to what has been a wonderful career, but the numbers suggest Carlos Alcaraz will have a little too much for Novak Djokovic. His variety is going to be important, as it was in the US Open Semi Final win, and a cold heart can only pick the World Number 1 to complete his career Grand Slam by breaking the heart of one of the absolute greatest to ever pick up a racquet.

It would really not offend if this Pick is wrong and Novak Djokovic can turn back the clock one more time, but he is going to have to come through some really sticky moments again and this time he may just come up short.

That win in New York City should make Carlos Alcaraz know what he needs to do in this Australian Open Final and he may just have too much over three or four sets.

MY PICK: Carlos Alcaraz - 1.5 Sets @ 1.61 Bet Fred (2 Units)

Australian Open Update: 37-23, + 15.08 Units (124 Units Staked, + 12.16% Yield)

US Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2025- Men's Final (Sunday 7th September)

Over the last couple of years, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have moved clear of the pack in men's tennis and they are set to meet for a third Grand Slam Final in a row.

One or the other has dominated the Grand Slam titles since the beginning of the 2024 season and this is the Final that the majority of supporters would have wanted to see when the US Open draw was made.

Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz over 40.5 games: The Wimbledon Final ended in four sets in favour of Jannik Sinner and he could have easily beaten Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets at the French Open Final instead of eventually being downed in five.

This perhaps explains the reason the World Number 1 is favourite to win the US Open title again, even if Carlos Alcaraz has tended to find a way to get the better of the head to head more often than not.

The win at Wimbledon snapped a run of five straight losses that Jannik Sinner had suffered against Carlos Alcaraz, although matches have tended to be close. Beating the World Number 2 at a Grand Slam where Alcaraz had been a double defending Champion can only further the belief that the Sinner team has ahead of this Final.

Some doubts may have been raised by potential injury that Jannik Sinner could be dealing with in the Final- he was off for a medical timeout in the win over Felix Auger-Aliassime in the Semi Final, while Sinner has dropped a couple of sets in his run to the Final compared with Carlos Alcaraz who has won all six matches in straight sets.

Carlos Alcaraz has been serving really well at the tournament and that is going to be key for him.

In the Wimbledon defeat, Carlos Alcaraz did struggle a little bit with his consistency on the serve and he cannot afford to do that here.

All signs suggest he will be much stronger in New York City, although he is also going to be facing a Jannik Sinner serve that can be very tough to deal with when at his best. There were times in the Semi Final win that Sinner's serve lost some speed and he gave up more Break Points than could be imagined, but there is a day of rest between matches and the World Number 1 has made it clear that there is 'nothing to worry about' as far as what the injury is.

It does raise some doubts, as it should, but this has the makings of another competitive match between the two best players in the world.

Early breaks in the sets played at Wimbledon made it tough to cover the total games line set, but the speed in New York City should help the players to get through a few more service games.

We will need to see at least four sets, but that feels very likely with what we have seen from Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in their head to head and the quality that both can produce on the hard courts.

The lean is with Jannik Sinner to find a way to win this Grand Slam title if he is at full speed, but that is a bit more doubtful and backing the two players to put a solid scrap on the board looks the best play.

MY PICKS: Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz Over 40.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2025- Men's Final (Sunday 8th June)

The way the last week of the French Open has played out, it is making my decision earlier in the tournament to shut things down look a very good one.

Matches that have swung wildly are great for the fans, but not so much for the selections and it felt like a weird tournament just a few days into the event.

The last of the French Open matches will be played on Sunday before all attention turns to the relatively short grass court season and the build towards Wimbledon. It should be a really good Men's Final between two players who may be competing in many more Grand Slam Finals against one another over the coming years and I don't think anyone would be surprised if we see Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner going at it again either at Wimbledon or the US Open later this season.

Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz over 39.5 games: This is the Men's Final at Roland Garros that most would have wanted to see as the World Number 1 takes on the defending Champion.

In something of a surprise, we have not really had the Jannik Sinner vs Carlos Alcaraz all that often at Grand Slam events, despite most of the fans believing this is the rivalry that will move forward at the end of the Big Four era.

This will be the fourth time the pair will meet at a Grand Slam and only the second time since the 2022 US Open, which again is a big, big surprise. The last time Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz met at a Grand Slam was right here in Paris twelve months ago as the latter got the better of the Italian in a five set Semi Final on his way to winning the title here.

Jannik Sinner may be the World Number 1, but he has lost eight of the twelve previous matches against Carlos Alcaraz- they had split the first four matches, but Alcaraz has begun to take control of the rivalry with four wins in a row, which includes beating Sinner at the Rome Masters last month.

That may give Carlos Alcaraz the mental advantage, although he is going to have to play with a little more consistency than he did in the Semi Final win over Lorenzo Musetti. He will need to serve well to try and move into control in the rallies, and Carlos Alcaraz can take some encouragement from the way Novak Djokovic was able to use his serve against Jannik Sinner in the Semi Final two days ago.

The Spaniard has been able to produce some decent serving numbers against Sinner in their previous matches, no matter the surface on which they have played, but it has not been a dominant shot. There are likely to be moments when the top Seed is able to get his teeth into the return games, which will not surprise anyone, but Sinner only created 2 Break Points in the match in Rome.

In that match, Jannik Sinner only faced 3 Break Points of his own, but was broken twice and he is going to need to get a bit more out of his serve. His numbers in this tournament have been decent, but Sinner has not been able to use his serve as he would have liked in matches against Carlos Alcaraz.

After saying all that, the overriding feeling is that this is going to be a competitive Men's Final and one that could go pretty long.

The last two Grand Slam matches between the players have both needed the fifth set to determine the winner and Carlos Alcaraz had to go five sets to win the French Open in 2024.

Backing a winner is tough, although the edge may be with the defending Champion.

The layers are finding it difficult to separate them, which is unsurprising, and the only disappointment for the fans is if the players are not able to both push this into a very competitive, long Final.

MY PICK: Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz Over 39.5 Games

Australian Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2025- Men's Final (Sunday 26th January)

Madison Keys is a Grand Slam Champion.

If you had told me that a decade ago, it would not have caused much surprise, but it really had felt like the American had missed her best chances to win a Major.

Beating the top two players on the Tour in back to back matches makes the victory all the sweeter, and Madison Keys can go into the rest of the 2025 season filled with confidence.

On Sunday another player who has gotten close to winning a Major is trying to win a maiden title at this level when Alexander Zverev looks to get the better of Jannik Sinner.

It is a good looking Final and a tough one to call- the head to head suggests it will be very close, while there is one or two doubts about a hip injury that Sinner is carrying after his Semi Final win over Ben Shelton.

Any lingering issue would make Alexander Zverev a big price to win this match outright, but it would be a surprise if this one is not a battle and so my last selection from the 2025 Australian Open moves towards an angle which can be read below.

Jannik Sinner-Alexander Zverev over 39.5 games: Two injuries were the tale of the day when the Semi Final matches were played on Friday, but Jannik Sinner was able to overcome his hip issue to see off Ben Shelton in the Night Session.

All eyes will be on the World Number 1 and defending Champion as he looks to recover and prepare for the Australian Open Final when the 2025 tournament comes to a close on Sunday.

Alexander Zverev is the opponent after he was the beneficiary of a Novak Djokovic injury that forced the ten time former Champion to withdraw from the Semi Final at the end of the first set. The fans in attendance voiced their extreme disappointment with boos as Djokovic left the court, which was poor from those in the stands to say the least, and Alexander Zverev was quick to point that out.

It has felt that Zverev has perhaps missed his opportunity to win a Grand Slam in previous attempts, but this may be one more big chance for him to really spark his career. Take nothing away from the consistency that has taken the German into World Number 2, but Alexander Zverev could put a few Grand Slams in the trophy cabinet if he is able to win the first one.

No matter what, Alexander Zverev is going to enter this match in healthier shape than Jannik Sinner who is clearly carrying a couple of knocks. The hip issue could become a very tough one to overcome if Jannik Sinner is not able to recover over the forty-eight hours between Semi Final and Final and the head to head with Alexander Zverev suggests it would be a close match even if both were healthy as they could be ahead of this Final.

Both players have been producing at a very high level in this tournament and the serve has been a key shot for Sinner and Zverev.

With that in mind, it would be tough to serve with any kind of hip issue that is painful on landing and that may just give Alexander Zverev, the significant underdog, the edge.

The World Number 2 has the edge in terms of former matches with Alexander Zverev holding a 4-2 lead over Jannik Sinner on all surfaces and that becomes 3-1 when only focusing on hard court matches. Alexander Zverev has beaten Sinner twice at the US Open, including a five set win at the 2023 tournament, but it was the Italian who won their most recent meeting in Cincinnati in a match that was had three competitive sets played out.

It was a close match and it would not have taken much to swing things back in favour of Alexander Zverev, but it is an important mental step for Jannik Sinner to have taken to win that Semi Final in a big tournament.

He has been the superior server of the two in Melbourne over the last two weeks and Jannik Sinner has had the slight edge when it comes to the return.

This means he is rightly set as favourite, although the issue at the end of the Semi Final is one that will cause some doubt and Alexander Zverev may feel the longer he has the top Seed out on the court, the more the match pendulum will swing in his favour.

Assuming both are ready to go on Sunday evening in Melbourne, serving could be key and this could be another Australian Open Final that goes long.

Five of the last eight Men's Finals have needed all five sets to determine a winner and the last Grand Slam match between Alexander Zverev and Jannik Sinner did the same at the US Open in 2023. It would not be a surprise if sets go deep and four might be all that is needed to ensure the total games line is passed.

MY PICK: Jannik Sinner-Alexander Zverev Over 39.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Australian Open Update: 27-13, + 17.40 Units (77 Units Staked, + 22.60% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2024- Men's Final (Sunday 9th June)

Iga Swiatek won a fourth Roland Garros title and there is every reason to believe she will end her career with the most on the WTA Tour side of the sport, although Rafael Nadal's overall record is expected to be safe.

She dominated after allowing Jasmine Paolini to find an early break, but the Men's Final is expected to be a lot more competitive on Sunday.

Alexander Zverev-Carlos Alcaraz Over 37.5 Games: After making an out of court settlement regarding a trial for domestic abuse allegations, Alexander Zverev came from behind to cruise into his first French Open Final on Friday.

In seven previous Grand Slam Semi Finals, Alexander Zverev had been beaten six times so this is a big achievement for someone who might have felt the window had been closing when it comes to winning a maiden title at this level. He will need to erase memories of his only ever Grand Slam Final appearance when leading Dominic Thiem 2-0 in sets, but losing in the US Open Final in 2020.

Injury, off court issues and the German having some inconsistent performances at the business end of tournaments means it has been some wait for Alexander Zverev to return to a Slam Final. The performances here in Paris have been strong though and Zverev has also won the Rome Masters in the build up so he will not be lacking for confidence in this big match.

The opponent has won Grand Slam titles in New York City and London and Carlos Alcaraz can move into World Number 2 with a title win in Paris, meaning winning a Slam on all three surfaces used on the Tour. He will be opening Wimbledon as the defending Champion next month and this is an opportunity for the Spaniard to remind the Tour that he is still the man to beat of the next generation having had some of the shine taken away by Jannik Sinner.

The Italian was beaten in five sets in the Semi Final and Carlos Alcaraz will know that he will need to raise his level if he is going to see off Zverev in the Final.

Over the last twelve months, Carlos Alcaraz has gotten a little nearer to Alexander Zverev on the head to head with crushing wins in Madrid, at the US Open and in Indian Wells. However, during that run, Alexander Zverev holds wins over the Spaniard at the World Tour Finals and the Australian Open.

Two years ago Zverev beat Carlos Alcaraz in the Quarter Final at Roland Garros in what was an upset and there is a feeling that the underdog is a big price to win this title on Sunday.

Alexander Zverev has been serving well and that will put some pressure on Alcaraz, while the confidence will have been restored after two strong wins over Alex De Minaur and Casper Ruud. The wins at Grand Slam level means he will not be intimidated by the obvious talented player standing on the other side of the net, and this could be a really good Final.

There is a temptation in backing Zverev, but this is a Final that should need at least four sets to decide it when all is said and done.

With that in mind, the total games line looks a tad shorter than it should be- the US Open win that Carlos Alcaraz produced over Alexander Zverev last year ended in straight sets, but the other two Grand Slam meetings have gone at least four sets and needed 43 and 39 games played respectively before a winner could be determined and so backing the total to be surpassed might be the play with less stress compared with looking for a live underdog to come through.

The experience edge is surprisingly with the younger player in this one and Carlos Alcaraz will feel he can make that pay, but the form is with Alexander Zverev and the fans should be the ones who benefit the most on the day.

MY PICK: Alexander Zverev-Carlos Alcaraz Over 37.5 Games @ 1.83 Paddy Power (1 Unit)

French Open Update: 22-9, + 16.98 Units (61 Units Staked, + 27.84% Yield)

Australian Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2024- Men's Final (Sunday 28th January)

It has been a good tournament for the fans to enjoy with plenty of drama throughout the fortnight.

Of course it has been much tougher to make predictions when there have been as many erratic results as we have seen in Melbourne in 2024.

While the Grand Slam tournaments will shut down until the end of May, there are plenty of big tournaments to be played between now and the French Open. I have set myself a target to achieve between now and then, but it will require some patience and better decision making, although also hoping that some of the margins lean back towards the selections having had so many Picks come close, but ultimately fail to cross the line over the last two weeks.

First off we have to round out this tournament and my thoughts about the Men's Final can be read below.

Jannik Sinner - 1.5 sets v Daniil Medvedev: It was a stunning Friday of tennis at the Australian Open and it will be a big surprise to many that Novak Djokovic is not playing for yet another title in Melbourne.

He had never lost a Semi Final at the Australian Open, but Novak Djokovic was crushed by Jannik Sinner, a player who so many have tipped up to win a major. Some will have believed that could happen in 2024, but Jannik Sinner deserves a lot of credit for making his way into his maiden Grand Slam Final.

The World Number 1 felt he had played his 'worst' Grand Slam match, but take nothing away from Sinner who served big and rallied from the disappointment of dropping the third set. The Italian became the first player to prevent Novak Djokovic from earning a single Break Point in a completed Grand Slam match and it is no surprise that Jannik Sinner is going into the Final as the favourite.

Inexperience is perhaps an issue, but Daniil Medvedev has invested so much of himself to make his third Australian Open Final as he looks to finally win a title here. A former US Open Champion, Daniil Medvedev will be hoping a day of rest is enough to have him ready to compete in the Final after needing over 4 hours, especially having invested so much physical and emotional energy to come from 2-0 down in sets to beat rival Alexander Zverev.

It is the second time in the Australian Open that Daniil Medvedev has come back from two sets down and the third time he has needed all five sets to be played before progressing. That has to have an impact, although Medvedev has shown a warrior spirit to battle through matches even when things are seemingly beyond him.

All of that will be needed if he is going to win his second Grand Slam title, but it is going to take a special effort.

Simply put, Daniil Medvedev has not found his best form at the Australian Open and it has been his mental strength that has really proven to be the difference. He served really well in the last three sets in the Semi Final, but making as slow a start will be punished by Jannik Sinner, who really has impressed in his run to the Final.

Only one set has been dropped and the serve has proven to be an immense weapon for the World Number 4, which is likely going to be the case again in the Final.

If this match was played at the US Open, you would have had to worry about the head to head- at that time, Daniil Medvedev had won all six previous matches against Jannik Sinner, including two wins in 2023. However, it is Jannik Sinner who has won three in a row against Medvedev since the end of the last Grand Slam of 2023 in Beijing, Vienna and Turin.

All of those have been in indoor hard court events, but it will give Sinner plenty of belief and this is a player who has massively improved in leaps and bounds.

In those three wins, Jannik Sinner has held 90% of service games played, which is significantly better than his 74% overall mark against Daniil Medvedev. And with a potentially very tired opponent in front of him, Jannik Sinner will feel he can get enough balls back in play and really exert a lot of pressure on the World Number 3.

Handling the nerves will be key, but Sinner looks more than capable of doing that and the accumulated fatigue on Daniil Medvedev may just catch up with him in this match.

MY PICK: Jannik Sinner - 1.5 Sets @ 1.72 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Australian Open Update: 23-49, - 57.34 Units (144 Units Staked, - 39.82% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2023- Men's Final (June 11th)

I have to say, this has been one of the toughest ends to a Grand Slam for my Picks in a long time and it has been as frustrating as it could have been.

Once again a player seemed in control, had all of the chances and I am not sure how Iga Swiatek blew her big lead and almost lost the French Open Final. Credit should rightly be given to Karolina Muchova, but at 2-6, 0-3, 30/30, I don't think the Czech player would have had a lot of belief herself and was very much helped by a nervous performance from Iga Swiatek.

Ultimately the Pole won the French Open title for the third time in four years and that will give her confidence as Swiatek prepares to go into the tough grass court season.

Before that we have the Men's Final to come and you can read my selection below.

I will be taking a short break from the Tennis Picks before Wimbledon just to analyse this tournament and see how I can improve for the third Grand Slam of the season. While some of the last few days is down to bad luck, there are always areas to improve with the selections and the short gap between now and Wimbledon is a good time to just have a look into how those improvements can be made.

Novak Djokovic - 5.5 games v Casper Ruud: The Men's French Open Final on Sunday will conclude the second Grand Slam of the 2023 season and we are going to be a little over three weeks away from the start of Wimbledon.

The defending Champion in SW19 is Novak Djokovic and he has the chance of winning a second Grand Slam in a row and overtaking Rafael Nadal to be in sole control of the most Singles Grand Slam titles won by a male player. Win at Wimbledon and he matches Margaret Court's overall record, but Djokovic will not be looking too far ahead and has to be focused as he tries to win a third French Open title.

This has been the 'least successful' Grand Slam for Novak Djokovic, even if he did set a new record of having reached seventeen Quarter Finals at Roland Garros. However, the Serb has won this title the fewest times, although Novak Djokovic has lost more US Open Finals than here in Paris.

It has been a remarkable career and one that looks far from over, even if Novak Djokovic is not playing at the same kind of level he has been in previous years. This level is still good enough to beat most players on the Tour, especially in the best of five setting, while the Semi Final proved that there is a huge mental challenge for anyone standing across the net from him.

Novak Djokovic was the first to admit that the Semi Final with Carlos Alcaraz was extremely competitive for two sets and that the Spaniard was the better player at the end of the second set, but tension, emotion and the opportunity to beat one of the all time greats clearly impacted the younger player. Seeing someone cramp up in the manner Alcaraz did was hugely surprising, but just backs up the feeling that all of the other players on the Tour are going into Grand Slam matches with Novak Djokovic with a lot of mental obstacles to overcome.

Now it is a test for Casper Ruud who was not expected to have this kind of run at the French Open having underperformed in the lead up events. The Runner Up from 2022 is clearly enjoying playing in the tournament and he has reached a third Grand Slam Final in twelve months, although Ruud has come up short against Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz previously.

The Norwegian would have certainly been hoping for an 'easier' challenge in the French Open Final in 2023, but Casper Ruud will be trying to focus on his own tennis, which has been peaking in the last four Rounds heading into the Final. His win over Alexander Zverev in the Semi Final was very impressive, but beating the likes of Zverev, Holger Rune and Nicolas Jarry may not a level that is enough to beat Novak Djokovic.

Casper Ruud has to serve well- ultimately this let him down in the Final twelve months ago when he allowed Rafael Nadal to pile up sixteen Break Points and lost serve eight times.

There is also a weakness in the backhand, which is likely going to be exploited by Novak Djokovic better than most, and I can see why this has been a poor match up for Casper Ruud so far in his career.

Novak Djokovic has won all four previous matches since September 2020 and two of those have been on the clay courts in Rome. The former World Number 1 has won 41% of return points played against Casper Ruud, but that number jumps a little to 42% in their clay court matches and it has seen Novak Djokovic break serve in 35% of return games played.

Compared to that, Casper Ruud has won 33% of return points and only broken in 10% of return games played on this surface against this opponent and their meeting in Rome in May 2022 was a more routine win for Novak Djokovic than the 6/4, 6/3 scoreline might have indicated.

The elbow issue is a concern for Novak Djokovic fans, but I think he is helped by the way the Semi Final ended and he does have an edge on the serve. He will know exactly how to prepare for this French Open Final, while Casper Ruud had not been returning as well in this tournament as his Break Point conversion rate would suggest prior to the win over Alexander Zverev in the Semi Final and I think it could be another tough afternoon in the spotlight on the final day at the French Open for the 24 year old.

MY PICKS: Novak Djokovic - 5.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)

French Open Update: 39-33, - 0.02 Units (144 Units Staked, - 0% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2022- Men's Final (June 5th)

Iga Swiatek has confirmed her place as the clear World Number 1 on the WTA Tour by winning a second Grand Slam and her second French Open title.

She has long looked capable of winning that title, but Swiatek proved herself by matching expectations and I do think the World Number 1 will be a clear favourite to win at Wimbledon and at the US Open.

There are still a wide range of players that will feel they can get hot enough to win a Grand Slam considering the lack of real depth at the top of the WTA Tour, but avoiding Iga Swiatek for as long as possible does offer the best opportunity.

On Sunday we have the Men's Final as the second Grand Slam of the season comes to a close.

Rafael Nadal has made his way into a fourteenth Final in Paris and will be facing a first time Grand Slam Finalist, which is the main reason the former is a big favourite to win a twenty-second Slam.

Rafael Nadal-Casper Ruud over 33.5 games: It was a truly sickening ending to the first of the Men's Semi Final matches on Friday when Alexander Zverev looked to have done himself a serious injury just before the second set tie-breaker was to begin. He had been hugely competitive against Rafael Nadal to that point and should have been a set ahead, but the match was still firmly in the balance when injury struck.

There is no doubt that Rafael Nadal did not look to be at his best on the day with the indoor clay court conditions not ideal to the game he wants to play. The Final looks like it will at least begin outdoors with poor weather expected in the late afternoon in Paris, but playing in the outdoor heat will be beneficial to the thirteen time French Open Champion.

He did look good against Novak Djokovic, but Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alexander Zverev have really pushed Rafael Nadal who was on court for over three hours despite the second set not being completed in the Semi Final. The foot injury is being managed, but Nadal's movement does not look to be at perfect step and I do think his serve has been a touch vulnerable, more than usual on the clay courts.

The big question for his opponent is how he can handle the occasion of a first Grand Slam Final and facing his idol on his best court- Casper Ruud trained with Rafael Nadal's Academy in Mallorca and so there is going to be some nerves in facing his hero for the first time.

Being a hero means Casper Ruud will know all about Rafael Nadal's history on this court and in this tournament and that alone makes the challenge look very daunting. I have been impressed with Casper Ruud and the development of the last couple of years that have taken him into the top ten of the World Rankings and the Norwegian really handled himself very well after dropping the first set of his Semi Final against the veteran Marin Cilic before rolling through the next three sets.

The Casper Ruud serve has been a major weapon for him throughout the French Open, while it has freed him up to get on top of the return of serve. All credit has to be given to Ruud for taking advantage of his half of the draw, but this is going to be the toughest player he has played in the tournament as he looks to win a first Grand Slam title.

I think that may be too much, even if Rafael Nadal is not at his best.

Casper Ruud has never beaten a top ten Ranked opponent in a Grand Slam (0-4) and he is just 3-7 against those Ranked opponents in clay court matches overall. This year Novak Djokovic beat him pretty comfortably on the surface and I do think Casper Ruud has struggled to be competitive on the return of serve when he has faced the better players on the Tour.

Of course you cannot ignore the fact that Rafael Nadal does look worn down and it may just give Casper Ruud a big opportunity to win the biggest title of his career. He will have to serve very well though and find a way to get into the Rafael Nadal service games to try and build pressure, but it will be hard to sustain over three, four or five hours.

He may have enough to take a set, but Rafael Nadal's experience can take him through to another title at Roland Garros.

It may be best to back this Final going over the total games and seven of the thirteen Grand Slam titles won by Rafael Nadal at the French Open have gone at least four sets. The doubt about the Rafael Nadal foot is perhaps putting me off in backing him to win in four sets, but this is a total number of games that may even be covered in a straight sets win for either player with the expectation we could have at least three competitive sets.

MY PICKS: Rafael Nadal-Casper Ruud Over 33.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)

French Open Update: 54-54, - 9.57 Units (214 Units Staked, - 4.47% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Picks 2021- Men's Final (June 13th)

We have a new Women's Grand Slam Champion after Barbora Krejcikova found a way to eventually break down the Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova game after splitting the first two sets.

The second Grand Slam of the season will end and in just over two weeks time the third Slam of the season will begin at Wimbledon, although there is some questions as to how many fans are going to be in attendance.

But before all that, we need to crown a current French Open Men's Champion as one of the Big Three looks to hold off a Next Gen talent searching for a first Slam.

Novak Djokovic - 5.5 games v Stefanos Tsitsipas: Overcoming the Semi Final hurdle which has thwarted him in his early career is clearly a huge moment for Stefanos Tsitsipas, but he might have one or two regrets that he was pushed as hard as he was on Friday. After moving 2-0 ahead in sets, Stefanos Tsitsipas could not quite finish off Alexander Zverev and was forced to play for over three and a half hours to eventually prevail in a fifth set.

As I have said, it is a huge moment for his career and the feeling is that Stefanos Tsitsipas could open the door for multiple Slam successes the moment he is able to pick up his first one. It is not quite the same level of expectation as it was for Roger Federer almost twenty years ago, but a very strong career could develop for Tsitsipas who is much younger than the Big Three and who looks the stand out player of his generation.

Winning his first Grand Slam title will be a big challenge for Stefanos Tsitsipas as he goes in against the World Number 1 who spent over four hours on the court to beat Rafael Nadal on Friday in the second Semi Final.

Novak Djokovic will have put in a huge amount of effort to get past the dominant player at the French Open and he has become the only player that has beaten Rafael Nadal twice in Paris. Only two men have ever done that before, but it should be pointed out that neither of those (Robin Soderling and Novak Djokovic) went on to win the French Open, but instead they came up short in the Final each time.

I don't think someone who has won 18 Grand Slam titles in his career will be thinking too much about that, but Novak Djokovic might be underlining his status as the best tennis player of all time. His numbers are comparable to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal across the board, but Novak Djokovic will become the only one of the three who has won multiple titles at each of the Grand Slam tournaments if he is able to secure the title on Sunday.

Emotionally it is a climb down for Novak Djokovic, but I think that is counterbalanced by the amount of emotional investment Stefanos Tsitsipas will have made to reach the Final himself. The World Number 1 has spent considerably more time on the court than Stefanos Tsitsipas at the French Open and was also winning a title in the days before this Grand Slam began so there will be some questions of Novak Djokovic, although I think the match up is one that he won't mind.

The serve has really worked well in the conditions in Paris over the last fortnight and I think that is key for Novak Djokovic if he is going to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas. He lost some of his focus in a five set win over the Greek superstar in the French Open Semi Final last season having won the first two sets easily, before Tsitsipas was able to rally and eventually come up short in the decider.

These two also met in Rome last month and it was another tight win for Novak Djokovic that went the distance, but the improved serve in Paris is going to give the top Seed another advantage. Novak Djokovic will be helped by the fact that Stefanos Tsitsipas has perhaps not been returning as well as he would have liked despite reaching the Final and that may have something to do with the slightly quicker conditions on these clay courts compared to the other tournaments that were played in preparation for this Grand Slam.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has to be concerned if his return game is not at a level he would want and that is because he has to expect to be put under pressure by Novak Djokovic's return. This is arguably the best part of the Djokovic game and he can be considered the best returner of serve that there has ever been.

In their head to heads, Novak Djokovic has broken in 25% of return games played against Stefanos Tsitsipas and the Greek player has only responded in 15% of return games. All three previous clay court matches between these players have been won by Novak Djokovic and in those he has broken the Stefanos Tsitsipas serve in 32% of return games played compared with 18% for the younger player and I do think these numbers will ultimately be something we see on Sunday.

The last two clay court matches have needed all eight sets played before Novak Djokovic has got the better of Stefanos Tsitsipas here at Roland Garros in October 2020 and in Rome in May 2021. However, Novak Djokovic has created an eye-watering 45 break points compared with Stefanos Tsitsipas' 29 and I do think the World Number 1 is going to be very hard to beat on Sunday with all of his focus going in on winning these Grand Slam titles.

If Novak Djokovic wins on Sunday I really think he is going to have a major shot at winning all four Grand Slams in a single season and at that point it would be almost impossible to suggest there is any other player in history who would surpass him. Even without the calendar Grand Slam, Novak Djokovic can move to within a single Grand Slam of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and I don't think he lets the opportunity slip past him.

Stefanos Tsitsipas is a very good player, but ultimately I think the stronger return game of Novak Djokovic makes the difference between them and he might be able to break down the younger man and pull away for a cover of what looks a big mark on paper.

He would have covered this line in the five set win over Tsitsipas at the French Open last year despite the match going the distance, but this time I expect Novak Djokovic to get the job done in four sets.

MY PICKS: Novak Djokovic - 4.5 Games @ 1.75 Coral (2 Units)

French Open Update: 50-43, + 1.70 Units (186 Units Staked, + 1% Yield)

French Open Day 15 Tennis Picks 2019- Men's Final (June 9th)

Ever since Ashleigh Barty returned to tennis following a spell out of the game to take up professional cricket the Australian has been an improving player week by week on the Tour.

I still did not foresee a French Open Champion in the making going into this tournament, but Barty is a deserved winner and I think she has the potential to kick on and become a threat at the other Slams remaining in 2019.

A lot of the first time Slam winners have struggled to deal with the expectation and new found fame that has come with becoming a Grand Slam Champion, but I think Barty will have learnt a lot about herself when removing herself from professional tennis when things got on top of her when she was younger. It should stand her in good stead to back up her position as a Slam Champion and World Number 2 and I actually think Barty is a much better grass court player than a clay court player as we head into the grass court season.


We will next see Ash Barty out there in a couple of weeks as she gets a bit of time to rest and digest what she achieved in Paris and deservedly so. However a short lead up into Wimbledon means she will want to get some grass court tennis under her feet and I imagine she will be involved in the big event that is played in Birmingham.

Before the official move onto the grass courts is made on Monday with the start of the main Tour events on the surface we do have to conclude the French Open with the Men's Final.

Rafael Nadal takes on Dominic Thiem for a second year in a row for the title and you can read my pick from the Final below.

It has been a good, but not great tournament for the Picks with a relatively poor end to the event preventing some really strong numbers being produced. However I can't ever be overly worried when a profit is produced to add to the 2019 successes as the clay court season moves into the grass court portion of the year.

Those grass events begin as soon as Monday if you are not counting the Challenger event that was played in Surbiton last week, but for now I will concentrate on trying to finish the French Open with hopefully one more win.


Rafael Nadal - 6.5 games v Dominic Thiem: The Men's Final at the French Open is a repeat of the 2018 Final and it does feel it is going to be a real challenge for Dominic Thiem to really turn things around against Rafael Nadal.

The Austrian made history on Saturday by winning the interrupted Semi Final against Novak Djokovic and becoming the first player from that country to reach multiple Grand Slam Finals. Twenty-four years ago Thomas Muster won the French Open, but Thiem will be looking to match his compatriot although he has a tougher challenge than Muster did.

You have to credit Muster for beating a former French Open Champion in Michael Chang to take the title home in 1995, but Rafael Nadal is no mere former Champion. The Spaniard has dominated the French Open ever since he first played here and has written his name into history as being the finest player to play on the red dirt.

To be fair to Thiem he has beaten Nadal in four of their eleven previous matches on the clay courts including in Barcelona a couple of months ago. The win over Djokovic may have underlined his status as the second best player on clay, but Thiem has to overcome the tiredness of playing three long sets on Saturday and beating Nadal in a best of five set situation is not something he has done previously.

While the serve has been a potent weapon for Thiem on the clay courts, he is holding just 68% of his service games played on the surface against Nadal. This is the fourth meeting at Roland Garros and Thiem's holding numbers drop to 51% of service games played and it does feel like the kind of match where he will be under immense pressure if fatigue is an issue for him.

Dominic Thiem is yet to win a set against Nadal in Paris and in the last two years he has been beaten by the Spaniard which has to play on the mind. He has struggled to get into the Nadal service games and that has led to Thiem breaking in just 10% of return game played at the French Open and his return numbers against Nadal on the clay are not much better in general with breaks of serve in 16% of return games played.

Rafael Nadal continues to play at a high level on the clay courts, even if he has not matched 2017 and 2018, and he is performing better than his Austrian opponent. His level at the French Open has seen him outperform Thiem in every Round and I do think it is a big ask for the underdog considering the time spent on court and the lack of rest compared with the player who was strongly favoured to win the tournament before it all began.

Even the win in Barcelona might not have a huge impact on proceedings as Thiem beat Nadal in lead up events in 2017 and 2018 and still failed to put a dent on the Spaniard when it came to the French Open. In the last two years, the six sets played between these players have seen Nadal come through with a 6-4 scoreline (twice), 6-3 scoreline (twice), 6-2 and 6-0.

While I can see the adrenaline keeping Thiem competitive early on, at some stage the fatigue and the Nadal superiority on the surface will tell as it did when the Spaniard beat Roger Federer in the Semi Final. The conditions might not be 100% ideal for Nadal, but he should still be far too good on the day with the way the tournament has broken down and I think he can cover a big number.

The Rafael Nadal serve has been consistently strong throughout the tournament, but it will be the pressure exerted from the return of serve that can break down Dominic Thiem. With the lefty being able to produce his biggest shot into the Thiem backhand to open things up, I think Rafael Nadal will be the French Open Champion again behind another strong win over the Austrian.

MY PICKS: Rafael Nadal - 6.5 Games @ 2.00 Ladbrokes (2 Units)

French Open Update: 59-50, + 8.31 Units (217 Units Staked, + 3.83% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Picks 2018- Men's Final (June 10th)

This is perhaps not the perfect Final that the majority of Tennis fans would have been hoping for in the men's draw, but it still features two of the top three clay court players in the world.

Rafael Nadal is the dominant Champion trying to defend his territory against the young buck Dominic Thiem who has gotten closer and closer to Nadal on this surface. Over the last couple of years Thiem is the only player who has beaten the Spaniard on this surface, but this is a big challenge for him at Roland Garros.


Rafael Nadal win 3-1 v Dominic Thiem: Rafael Nadal has been back to his dominant best on the clay courts in 2017 and 2018 having lost just two matches on the surface in that time. Compare that to the previous two years when Nadal suffered ten losses on the clay courts and you can see that the aura is very much back and he is going to be incredibly difficult to stop winning an eleventh French Open title.

No one will ever really doubt that Nadal is the very best clay courter of all time and he goes into the men's Final as a considerable favourite.

That isn't a surprise but Dominic Thiem may be the one player who can have a semblance of confidence to take into any match against Nadal. While the Spaniard has only lost two matches on the surface since the beginning of the 2017 season, both losses have come at the hands of Thiem and that has to make the Austrian believe he can earn the upset.

Beating Nadal in Madrid is a good result, but those conditions perhaps favour Thiem a little more than the World Number 1, but it is the win in Rome last year he has to really focus on. Of course that didn't mean anything when these players met in Roland Garros in the French Open Semi Final in 2017 which saw Nadal crush Thiem for the loss of just seven games.

That was the second time these players have met at the French Open and both times it is Thiem who has been on the wrong end of a heavy loss. The Austrian also has to cope with the pressure which comes with a first Grand Slam Final and so I can understand why the edge is clearly with Nadal who has been there and done it many times in the past.

Nadal's numbers on the clay courts have been incredibly strong with the return game producing some eye-catching numbers which puts opponents under considerable pressure. He is facing a Thiem serve which has been working very well, but it is hard to see Thiem sustain his levels over the best of five set format and the first two sets are going to be very important for the younger player who needs to give himself a boost of confidence in that time by winning at least one.

I do think Thiem can have some success on the return of serve, but he doesn't break serve anything like at the rate Nadal does and so it would be a big upset if Nadal is not picking up another title.

Thiem will come out aggressively though and has to try and take the game to Nadal and I think he will have a little more success than some may. As long as he handles the pressure of the occasion I think Thiem will make this a much tougher match for Nadal than their Semi Final was last season and I would not be surprised if Thiem is able to take a set with an aggressive style similar to what Diego Sebastian Schwartzman produced in the Quarter Final against Nadal.

Even Juan Martin Del Potro had some early chances in the first set to take command of it and I think those are situations in which Thiem will have a little more success. Six of the French Open Finals played by Nadal have gone four sets and none have reached five sets so my belief in Thiem being able to push the Spaniard more than last season makes the most obvious selection being Nadal winning this in four sets on Sunday.

MY PICKS: Rafael Nadal Win 3-1 @ 3.75 William Hill (1 Unit)

French Open Update: 47-53, - 15.94 Units (192 Units Staked, - 8.30% Yield)

French Open Tennis Day 15 Picks 2017- Men's Final (June 11th)

Men's Final- Stan Wawrinka vs Rafael Nadal

This is arguably the Final most would have hoped for at the beginning of the French Open as Stan Wawrinka looks for a fourth Grand Slam title which amazingly would see him surpass Andy Murray's number.

Wawrinka has never lost a Grand Slam Final in his previous three occasions being in the Final, but he has to take on Rafael Nadal who is looking for a simply ridiculous TENTH title at the French Open. The Spaniard has won all nine previous Roland Garros Finals and this looks an interesting match between the stand out players of the last fortnight.

Rafael Nadal - 6.5 games v Stan Wawrinka: Once Stan Wawrinka blew the third set of his Semi Final against Andy Murray, I was not convinced he would have the fortitude to bounce back and win that match. To my surprise Wawrinka took a tight tie-breaker in the fourth set before running away with the fifth, although I have questions as to how much he invested both physically and mentally into the Semi Final.

You would have to be foolish to completely ignore it, although I can't have Wawrinka using fatigue as a complete excuse considering the straight sets wins he has had all week. Against most players the Semi Final success wouldn't really be a big factor for me considering how strong Wawrinka is, but the fact he is playing Rafael Nadal in what looks to be peak form does make that a bigger factor than normal.

Wawrinka has chances in this one with the way he has been returning, and he has beaten Nadal on the clay courts before. However there are a lot of 'ifs' around the Wawrinka game which makes it tough to really believe he can cause what would be a big upset in my mind.

If Wawrinka serves at his best and if he is able to recover from Friday's Semi Final and if Wawrinka is able to penetrate the Nadal defences with winner after winner, the Swiss star can win this match. However that feels like a lot of things needing to go right and also Nadal to slip off a level of complete and utter dominance that he has produced for basically the entire clay court season.

Forget about sets, Nadal is barely losing games at the moment and it may be a demoralising experience for Wawrinka if he is not able to get in front early on. The first set feels more important than usual for Wawrinka who might just lose some heart if Nadal is able to take his best shots, while the physical pain may also be revealed at that point.

Nadal has been returning so well and putting constant pressure on his opponents which has seen them crack. He looks focused and I think Wawrinka's run of successes at the Grand Slam Final level will come to an end here.

After a tight first set, I can see Nadal beginning to wear down Wawrinka who tries to hit the ball harder and harder to keep up with what the Spaniard is producing. It has been over twelve months since Nadal and Wawrinka last met, but both will be familiar with what the other is going to do against them.

I will be expecting Nadal to try and blunt Wawrinka early before pulling away with a 7-5, 6-3, 6-3 kind of win.

MY PICKS: Rafael Nadal - 6.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (2 Units)

French Open Day 15 Picks 2015- Men's Final: Novak Djokovic v Stan Wawrinka (June 7th)

The women's Final is in the books and Serena Williams has reached Number 20 in terms of Grand Slams won which is a remarkable achievement. For a long time it had looked like the Final would be a fairly straight-forward one for Williams, but the American got nervous and Lucie Safarova maintained control of her emotions to come back from a double break down in the second set and broke serve once again when Serena Williams served for the match at 6-5.

Safarova impressively broke, won the tie-breaker and was then 2-0 up in the decider, but Williams once again discovered her form and won the final six games to take home the title for a third time in Paris.

The season Grand Slam is on, which would help Serena Williams match Steffi Graf's 22 Grand Slam titles, although other players will feel they can 'get her' early in the next two Grand Slam tournaments.

Personally it is hard to see how Serena Williams is going to be stopped in her two favourite Slams, especially if she can go into Wimbledon and the US Open healthy, but she will be a very short price to win those, too short for me in all likelihood.


So the final day at the French Open is when Novak Djokovic, who eventually saw off Andy Murray in their delayed Semi Final on Saturday, and Stan Wawrinka go for their first French Open title.

Serena Williams might have every chance to win the season Grand Slam, but Novak Djokovic might be a strong favourite to do the same if he takes the title home on Sunday. This is the one he has coveted more than any other as Djokovic could join an elite list of players who have won the career Grand Slam.

Not many would oppose Novak Djokovic in the next two Slams either, although Andy Murray showed he is getting closer and prefers Wimbledon and the US Open where he has won his two Slams and could be the big threat to Djokovic going forward.

First things first, Djokovic has to hold off Stan Wawrinka who is a surprise Finalist here and had a full day of rest going into the Final while the World Number 1 was toiling against Murray on Saturday. The Final could be a good one if Wawrinka can bring in the form that has troubled Novak Djokovic in the past, but he will have to serve better than he did in the Semi Final to make this a classic for the fans.


Novak Djokovic-Stan Wawrinka Over 3.5 Sets: If you had watched the two men's Semi Finals from start to finish, you would have noticed that Stan Wawrinka had given up a host of chances for Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to break serve in the last three sets which may have changed the entire direction of the match if the Frenchman could have taken his chances.

On the other hand, Novak Djokovic created a lot of chances on the Andy Murray serve, but wasn't effective enough during sets three and four to make that an easier day in the office. However, the World Number 1 has to be happy with his serving having only given up break points in three games during the entire five set match, although Murray raised his game at those times to break every time an opportunity presented itself.

I said on Friday that Wawrinka would have a really hard time winning the French Open if he doesn't improve his serving because Tsonga is a fairly limited returner, yet was creating chances at will. Now he takes on Djokovic, likely a top five returner of all time, who will keep the Swiss Number 2 on the backfoot on his own service games if Wawrinka is not hitting his marks.

Blisters on his hands are a concern too, but the fact that Djokovic had to come out on Saturday may help Wawrinka feel he can physically compete. The other element that has made Wawrinka a dangerous opponent is his shot-making off both wings off the ground and he will need all of that to hit through Djokovic who defends as good as anybody in the World.

That power can cause Djokovic some problems even when he is serving though as Wawrinka will look to attack the serve and I do think the latter can have some success. There will be nerves on Djokovic's side of the court knowing how close he is to achieving his dream and matches between these two have been gruelling affairs at the highest level in recent years.

What do I mean? Well about the fact their last four Grand Slam matches have all gone to five sets and they have also met in a Davis Cup tie which also needed five sets to separate them. Novak Djokovic has gotten the best of the majority of these five setters as his fitness has seen him outlast Wawrinka, but don't discount the latter who was beaten 12-10 at the Australian Open in the fifth set in 2013 only to return the favour in a 9-7 final set in 2014 at the same venue.

I do think Novak Djokovic is going to be too strong for Stan Wawrinka, but even a World Number 1 can get nervous when closing on history as Serena Williams showed on Saturday. That will give Wawrinka a chance to make this a competitive match if he can start well and I think the layers are taking a chance on this match seeing both players win at least one set.

If Novak Djokovic returns well it could be tough for Wawrinka and it won't be super hot on Sunday which suits the Serb just fine. However, the latter will believe in his game being competitive and that can see him take a set and it would be beyond stunning if the Swiss man was to win this in straight sets.

At odds against, I will look for this match to last at least four sets between two players who have played some epic Grand Slam matches over the last two and a half years.

MY PICKS: Novak Djokovic-Stan Wawrinka Over 3.5 Sets @ 2.10 Paddy Power (2 Units)

French Open Update: 46-33, + 19.70 Units (155 Units Staked, + 12.71% Yield)