The Australian Open is the first Grand Slam tennis tournament of the season. This competition takes place in Melbourne, with the world’s best players heading Down Under to battle it out on the hard courts. It’s always the subject of big wagering interest on tennis betting sites due to it being the first significant event on the tennis calendar.

There’s often an element of unpredictability when it comes to the Aussie Open due to players having just started the season, while the warm conditions can also be a factor. The men's and ladies tournaments are both a straight knockout format and there’s the opportunity to bet on the winner as well as the individual matches.

The men’s singles matches are best-of-five sets and the women’s singles are best-of-three. Many customers enjoy the chance to place in-play bets on the action ,and there are several betting sites who will also provide live streaming when it comes to this tennis tournament. That means logging into your account and watching your chosen match.

Djokovic Stands Tall as Top Seeds Tumble

With the first week of the Australian Open almost over, the brackets on both the men’s and women’s singles sides are starting to clear. The biggest thing to notice is that those backing the top seeds at tennis betting sites will have been disappointed by now. 

Men’s top seed Rafael Nadal limped to a defeat in the second round, while the men’s second seed Casper Ruud also departed in the same round. However, eight-time Australian open champion and fourth seed Novak Djokovic has made serene progress to the fourth round at present on his return to justify his favorite status with most UK betting sites before a serve was sent down. He now sites as the overwhelming -110 favorite with some US betting apps.

It has been a similar story in the women’s draw as well. Second seed Ons Jabeur struggled in both of her matches and was eliminated in the second round. Top seed and pre-tournament favorite at most USA sports betting sites, Iga Swiatek, was shocked by 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in straight sets in the fourth round. One of the pre-tournament dark-horse favorites among bettors, seventh seed Coco Gauff, was also eliminated in the fourth round in straight sets. 

Those results leave the favorites for the tournament wide open on the women’s side. Fifth seed Arnya Sabalenka is the favorite at the time of writing at +333 with most betting apps, but she has never got beyond the semi-final of any Grand Slam. Last year’s Wimbledon champion and 22nd seed Rybakina is the second favorite after knocking out Swiatek. Given the current prices, you are sure to be able to find some value with a dark-horse candidate.

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Australian Open Tennis Betting Trends

With Serena Williams having recently retired from ladies professional tennis, it means that every Grand Slam tournament has a wide open look about it. While Polish player Iga Swiatek was being installed as market leader across the board for the 2022 majors, visitors of sports betting apps should expect the unexpected in the women’s game.

Li Na, Angelique Kerber and Caroline Wozniacki are some of the players to have emerged through the draw at big odds to win the Australian Open, and the same applies to Kenin, who was not regarded as a serious contender. Therefore, the women’s winner is statistically more likely to land at a bigger price.

As for the men’s singles, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev have between them taken seven of the eight finalist slots in the past four years, with a smaller pool of male players traditionally competing at the business end of the tournament. However, there are now signs that bigger-priced players could feature in the final.

How to Back Winners on the Australian Open Outright Market

The best tennis betting sites will allow bettors to back a player win-only or each-way in the tournament outright market. The latter is a good option if you want to back a competitor at a big price and still get some kind of reward if they manage to navigate their way through to the final before losing.

There is the option to place outright bets before the tournament starts and also once it has begun. The Australian Open takes place over a fortnight, and the outright markets are regularly updated after each round of matches has taken place. It might be that you can find some value along the way.