Does the Becker protégé upset the ‘Djoker’ again?

The top favorite for the title at the 2023 ATP Finals Novak Djokovic takes on Holger Rune. Read our betting tip and odds! The eight best tennis players of the year gather in Turin and, unsurprisingly, the “Djoker” is once again represented in the field of participants

Djokovic has already won the competition six times and now wants to become the sole record holder with another triumph. He still has to share this title with Roger Federer.

The chances of this are good: “Nole” has only lost five of his 56 matches this year. His opponent from Denmark, on the other hand, only just made the cut: he only qualified for the tournament in Turin in eighth place in the annual rankings

The betting tip for Djokovic’s match against Rune in the “Green Group” is three sets. So far, the underdog has always managed to win at least one set in his matches against the world number 1!

Novak Djokovic – statistics & current form

The Serb has had another very successful season. He won three of the four Grand Slam titles in 2023 and his recent win in Paris marked his 40th Masters title. The Belgrade native is therefore still chasing records and therefore still sufficiently motivated!

At the aforementioned tournament in Paris last week, even an upset stomach couldn’t stop him. Instead, he prevailed against top players such as Rublev and his upcoming opponent. His comeback on the court after the long break following the US Open was a great success.

However, the path to his seventh title on the Seine was no walk in the park. He had to go through several deciders and tiebreaks. This was also the case against Rune on each occasion

Another tiebreak in the course of the match?

In view of this, it is advisable to make a prediction and betting odds on at least one more tiebreak in Novak Djokovic’s opening match against Holger Rune. However, the Serb’s vast experience at the ATP Finals naturally speaks in his favor. Not only his six titles show this, but also the fact that the Serb has reached the final eight times and celebrated his premiere at this competition back in 2007!

Holger Rune – statistics & current form

While Djokovic had already booked his ticket for the ATP Finals in August of this year – only the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz was quicker – Rune’s participation was only confirmed just over a week ago. It is also a first for the Dane!

He will therefore be highly motivated for his debut in Turin. The professional from Copenhagen is also in good form. After the disappointing elimination at this year’s US Open, further setbacks followed, such as the first round defeats in Stockholm and at the Masters in Shanghai

Has Rune now got the Becker gene?

Since mid-October, however, he has had a new coach in Boris Becker and with the German tennis legend he has found his way back to success. Furthermore, Djokovic surprisingly suits him quite well.

Although he was beaten by the Serb at the recent Masters in Paris, he had previously won two out of three duels against the “Djoker”. He also recorded his only Masters success to date against him last year!

Nevertheless, it is clear that his opponent is the favorite for the upcoming match given his exceptional individual quality and his ever-present fighting spirit. In light of this, a 2:1 win for Djokovic against Rune also looks promising for the Serb

Novak Djokovic – Holger Rune head-to-head comparison / H2H result

As mentioned, the last direct duel took place at the Masters in Paris at the beginning of the month. Djokovic prevailed 2:1 in that match. Thanks to this success, the Serb now at least has an even record against Rune (2:2).

Novak Djokovic – Holger Rune betting tip

The last clash between the two pros at the Masters in Paris was already a tough battle. The Serb only defeated his opponent after almost three hours. Now there are signs of another close match.

For the duel between Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune, it is therefore advisable to predict three sets. The Dane has improved considerably since the change of coach before the recent tournament in Basel and seems to be benefiting quickly from the vast experience of his new coach Boris Becker

He reached the semi-finals at the Swiss Indoors and the quarter-finals at the Paris Masters. As described, he lost out to his upcoming opponent, but only just.

Moreover, this is not a new pattern with this pairing. Rune always won at least one set in the four duels he played and only two matches with the Serb ended in defeat for him. A record against the exceptional player Djokovic that you would otherwise have to look very hard to find in world tennis