Tennis: Olympic Games 2008

by Bodog Sports | Aug 7 2008

The field for this year’s Olympic tennis event is arguably the strongest of all time with nine of the top ten men and eight of the leading ten women taking part in Beijing. The big news leading into the tournament is the changing of the guard at the top of both the men’s and women’s rankings. 

Rafael Nadal’s barnstorming season - that has seen the Mallorcan claim Wimbledon and Roland Garros among many other titles - sees him displace Roger Federer as world number one. Meanwhile in the women’s event Ana Ivanovic will lose her number one ranking to compatriot Jelena Jankovic.

on Jelena Jankovic to win an Olympic Gold Medal

The men’s singles draw will feature the top eight in the world and of course Bodog have all the betting available. Nadal - who has won a total of seven titles this season (and makes his debut here) - is unsurprisingly outright favourite. With only two defeats in his past nine tournaments it is a brave punter who goes up against him.

on Rafael Nadal to win an Olympic Gold Medal

Many will look to Roger Federer to make a bold run for Olympic gold but cracks are starting to appear in the Swiss strokemaker’s armoury like never before. His recent earth shattering Masters Series defeat to Ivo Karlovic saw him lose his number one ranking.

Will Federer backers suffer a Chinese burn of the highest order? Or will the tennis legend that has claimed an awesome 12 Grand Slam titles prove there is plenty left in the tank? It is worth noting that he suffered a surprise second-round defeat at the 2004 Games and failed to win a medal in Sydney in 2000.

on Roger Federer to win an Olympic Gold Medal

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, like Nadal, makes his Olympic singles debut and will also attract his fair share of market support. The Australian Open champion will be hurting following last week’s final defeat to Andy Murray in Cincinnati.

on Novak Djokovic to win an Olympic Gold Medal



The feisty Scot is also in town and Murray can really make some noise. His Masters Series title victory is confirmation that the big times could be just around the corner. Olympic gold is not out of the question.

on Andy Murray to win an Olympic Gold Medal

Other credible challengers in Beijing are David Nalbandian, David Ferrer, James Blake and Nikolay Davydenko. At really juicy odds Fernando Gonzalez could be a cracking bet. The big Chilean won the China Open in 2007 so has happy memories of this part of the world, and his country has men’s singles gold medal pedigree with compatriot Nicolas Massu winning in Athens.

on Fernando Gonzalez to win an Olympic Gold Medal

A stat worth bearing in mind is that the men’s singles tournament has never been won by a player ranked in the top five since 1988.

In the women’s tournament French Open winner Ivanovic and Jankovic obviously have great chances but they can expect a gargantuan battle from the likes of Wimbledon champ Venus Williams and sister Serena. At the 2000 Games Venus incredibly won singles and doubles gold and is more than capable of repeating that feat.

on Venus Williams to win an Olympic Gold Medal

Other challengers with decent medal prospects are Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elena Dementieva and Agnieszka Radwanska. A key stat to bear in mind is the women’s competition has only ever been won by a player ranked in the top ten.
 
Let the tennis punting begin!

on Olympics Tennis