Loose start for grass court expert Otte?

Oscar Otte has unexpectedly played his way into the limelight of German tennis in the last two years. Thanks to outstanding results, including at Grand Slams, the Cologne native is now already ranked among the top 40 in the world. In Wimbledon, Otte is now even seeded number 32, which guarantees him an opening against an unseeded player.

Otte’s opponent in the first main round was, of all people, a German. In the only duel between two tennis professionals from Germany, Oscar Otte and Peter Gojowczyk will face each other on Monday. The odds of the bookmakers tested are very clearly in favour of the 28-year-old, who has been able to prove impressively in recent weeks that grass is his absolute favourite surface on the tour. The top bookmakers are offering only 1.15 on the Rhinelander.

A brutally difficult task awaits “Gojo”, especially as the 32-year-old veteran has never made it past the second round in London in his career. The most recent results on grass were not really successful either, which is why it would be a big surprise if no prediction on the US Open round of 16 player of 2021 pays off on Monday afternoon in the first round duel Otte vs Gojowczyk.

Oscar Otte – statistics & current form

The rise of Oscar Otte over the last two years can undoubtedly be described as a phenomenon. In 2020, the 28-year-old briefly fell out of the top 200 (!) of the world rankings and was actually only able to celebrate success now and then at second-class Challengers. The Cologne native first really attracted attention at the French Open in 2021, where he engaged a certain Alexander Zverev in a five-set thriller in round one, but still lost out in the end.

A few weeks later, Otte reached the second round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time at Wimbledon. After a successful qualification, the underdog gave local hero Andy Murray a great fight, but lost again in the decisive fifth set. Making it to the last 16 of the 2021 US Open rounded off an outstanding year, thanks to which the right-hander is now an integral part of the Top 100.

Does Otte even belong in the Top 20 on grass?

After his breakthrough year, Otte is currently well on his way to confirming his impressions. In April, the big serving monster reached a semi-final on the ATP Tour for the first time. But he was even more convincing on grass. In Stuttgart as well as in Halle, the world number 37 marched into the final round and beat world class players such as Karen Khachanov or Denis Shapovalov. Only against last year’s Wimbledon finalist Berrettini and the world number one Medvedev was the end of the line.

Due to his sensational 6:2 record and his tailor-made game with a strong first serve and consistently good baseline strokes, there is almost no alternative to betting on the Rhinelander between Otte and Gojowczyk. We even think that the likeable late starter will not lose a set at the start. His service is too good and his form on grass is too impressive.

Peter Gojowczyk – Statistics & current form

Peter Gojowczyk has also had periods in his long career when he was about to start as a seeded player at Grand Slams. His best world ranking was 39th in 2018, and in the run-up to that career high, the 32-year-old’s achievements included reaching the second round at Wimbledon in 2017 and winning his only indoor singles title to date in Paris in September of the same year.

In recent months and years, however, things have been quieter for the Munich-born player. Although he can still count himself among the regulars at the Grand Slams as the current number 89 in the world, the current season in particular is full of worms. On the one hand, Gojo only played 20 matches in 2022. On the other hand, he celebrated only six meagre victories. Looking back on the past nine matches, he has even celebrated only two victories.

Gojo travels to London without form

In his last four ATP tournaments, the German did not even make it past the qualifying stage. At the French Open, he lost in three straight sets to Lorenzo Sonego in round one. His record on grass is 2:2, although no opponent has even come close to the calibre of Oscar Otte on this surface. Against this background, there is much to suggest that the 1.88m tall right-hander will have to take his hat off again in the English capital.

Since the serve is much weaker and Gojo only won one match in the main round of the Grand Slam at the All England Club, we even dare to predict a 3:0 victory for the favourite between Otte and Gojowczyk. We would even rule out a tie-break in the run-up to this match, because we think it is unlikely that the unconfident player from Munich will break serve six times in each set.

Oscar Otte – Peter Gojowczyk Direct comparison / H2H balance

The only direct duel between the compatriots took place in May 2021 at a Challenger on clay in Prague. Oscar Otte won confidently in two straight sets. Gojo only managed four games. Although the second match will now take place on a completely different surface, the starting position will not change. On the contrary. The role of the Cologne player as the favourite is even more pronounced.

Oscar Otte – Peter Gojowczyk Tip

A total of seven German men will be competing at Wimbledon this year. Two of these seven men will meet in the first round in a direct duel. We are talking about Oscar Otte and Peter Gojowczyk. Betting odds of 1.15 on the two-way market underline the clear role of the Cologne player as favourite, who has presented himself in impressive form in recent weeks and is now generally shaking up the tennis world for the second year in a row.

Otte reached the semi-finals in Stuttgart as well as in Halle and thus impressively proved what an outstanding grass court player he is. With his very good first serve, safe volleys and few unnecessary errors from the baseline, the 28-year-old has to be taken into account when it comes to reaching the second week in London.

Gojo, on the other hand, has won just two grass-court matches this year, has been knocked out in qualifying at each of his last four ATP tournaments and has only reached the second round once at the All England Club. In view of these figures and his miserable condition, the 32-year-old veteran is the clear underdog on Monday afternoon.