World number one Novak Djokovic will face the 198th-ranked Ivan Gakhov in the second round of the 2023 ATP Monte-Carlo Masters on Tuesday, April 11. Get the predictions and odds of this Novak Djokovic v Ivan Gakhov match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
Looking to Bet on the 2023 ATP Monte-Carlo Masters live online?
- For tennis fans in the Europe & elsewhere go to bet365 > Tennis > here to bet on the ATP & WTA tennis live.
- Other Monte-Carlo Masters match previews & predictions options here
[the_ad id=”43630″]
Novak Djokovic v Ivan Gakhov Head to Head
Djokovic and Gakhov have never faced off against each other in a competitive match before this.
Also Read:
Djokovic Returns to Competitive Tennis
After having last appeared in a match in Dubai early in March, Djokovic returns to competitive with probably one of the longest clay preparation under his belt heading into the clay court swing.
The world number one didn’t get to appear in Indian Wells and Miami because of his no-vaccination status but that would have also meant he comes here well-rested and well-prepared to improve upon his chances of winning the French Open.
A six-time winner at the Italian Open and having won the Madrid Masters thrice, Djokovic’s record at Monte-Carlo is the – umm, worst? – of the clay court Masters 1000 competitions, having won this two times.
More vitally, in recent times, Djokovic has been knocked out early at this competition. Since that brilliant year he had in 2015 when he won almost everything, Djokovic has made six appearances here and entered the quarterfinal stage just twice. He has never gone beyond that.
Can Djokovic now take that step further this time around?
[the_ad id=”30513″]
Qualifier Gakhov Surprises McDonald
Having made it to the main draw of this tournament on the back of two shock wins in the qualifiers over Adrian Mannarino (who was 4/5 to win it) and Lucas Van Assche (who was 1/5), Gakhov has gone one better now by reaching the second round.
And he did so by overcome Mackenzie McDonald who was a 3/5 favourite coming into the encounter.
Gakhov won 7-6 (6), 2-6, 6-3 in a match lasting a touch over two overs to notch up his first ever career win in the main draw of an ATP event.
Down 3-1 in the first set, Gakhov broke back to take it into a tie-breaker and clinched it off his second set-point. McDonald looked to have come into his own by breaking Gakhov twice but some strong serving from the Russian 26-year-old ensured he lost just five points on his serve in the decider.
In turn he broke McDonald once to notch up his shock victory and win the right to play the world number one in round two.
Djokovic v Gakhov Prediction and Tip
Djokovic’s returns to tennis are usually slow and one can expect him to get tested in the early stages of the tournament. Going by that, it could be in this one or the next round which makes the games market one to go with.
Tips:
- Low Risk Tip: Over 17.5 games in the match: 4/5 (Click Here to Bet with bet365)
- Moderate Risk Tip: Games Handicap Gakhov +6.5: 10/11 (Click Here to Bet with bet365)
[the_ad id=”30513″]
The 2023 ATP Monte-Carlo will be played from April 9 to 16. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also get rest of the tennis match previews here.
Be the first to comment