Novak Djokovic vs Andrey Rublev Prediction & Betting Tips - Belgrade, Serbia

Prediction published on 23/04/2022, 13:35  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 23/04/2022 at 15:45 in Tennis Predictions

It's not often Novak Djokovic gets to the second half of April before winning a title. The top seed hopes to win a third Serbian Open title with a win over the second seeded Andrey Rublev. Djokovic is playing only his third tournament of the year. He got to the last eight in Dubai and then lost his first match in the Monte Carlo Masters. Djokovic has had to win three matches to get to this final and they all have something in common. In each of his matches against Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov, Djokovic lost the first set. It's clear that Djokovic isn't at his best yet and has dropped seven sets in his last five matches. He's only had one previous match against Rublev, beating him in the ATP Tour Finals in Italy last year without dropping a set.

Andrey Rublev is the second seed for this tournament and ranked eighth in the world. He's already won two titles this year with successes coming in Marseille and Dubai. Rublev also reached the semi-finals in Rotterdam and at Indian Wells. His clay court season began with defeat in the last 16 in Monte Carlo last week, losing in three sets to Jannik Sinner. He had problems in his first match in this tournament, having to come from behind to beat qualifier Jiri Lehecka. Since getting out of that situation, he's had straight sets wins over Taro Daniel and sixth seeded Fabio Fognini. A bet on over 21.5 games being played in this final is the suggested wager.