Can Rafael Nadal secure his first Grand Slam title for 3 years at his favourite stomping ground, the French Open?

Men’s Singles
If the Spaniard is to nab another Grand Slam title then it makes sense it would be the Roland Garros, a tournament he has won 10 times in the last 12 years. With an appearance in the Australian Open final, and a of trio victories at the Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona and Madrid Opens, Nadal is arguably in his best form for years. That’s translated into Spreadex’s Outright Index where, after winning his 1st round match against Benoit Paire, he sits at 37.5-40.5, with a fixed odds price of 5/6.



That is far higher than Novak Djokovic, who is next on the Outright Index with a spread of 20.5-23.5. The former no. 1 hasn’t had the best 2017, crashing out in the 2nd round in Australia and failing to pick up a title since the Qatar Open all the way back in January. He has at least had a smooth rise in France so far, the Serbian largely untroubled by Marcel Granollers in the 1st round.

Djokovic may take some solace in the fact that Andy Murray – who sits at 10.5-13.5 ahead of his first match – has had a similarly disappointing year. A weak 4th round finish at the Australian Open was then followed by an elbow injury at the end of March. Since then he has looked off the pace, with a string of poor performances in Monte-Carlo, Madrid and Rome. Murray takes on Andrey Kuznetsov in the 1st round, and sits at a Match Supremacy spread of 13.5-16.5.

Women’s Singles
There has already been a shock exit in the women’s draw. Top seed Angelique Kerber slumped to a 6-2 6-2 loss to Ekaterina Makarova, making her the first WTA no. 1 in history to be dumped out of the French Open in the 1st round. Combine that defeat with the absence of Serena Williams, who is currently awaiting her first baby –she was actually pregnant when she won the Australian Open – and the competition now has no clear frontrunner.



Simona Halep, whose only Grand Slam final so far came in France in 2014, has climbed to the top of the Outright Index, with a spread of 13.5-16.5. She takes on Jana Cepelova this evening, and sits at a Match Supremacy spread of 11-14.

Halep is followed by by Karolina Pliskova, who lost in the US Open final last year, at 11-13, while last year’s champion, Garbine Muguruza, is then at 10-12, having already beaten Francesca Schiavone in the 1st round.