Roger Federer 6/4 at Bet365 to win the US Open 2017

Can Feds rise to occasion in New York again?

Tennis Betting

Roger Federer has been the stand out star of the men’s tennis season. He has rolled back the years in emphatic fashion in having collected both the Australian Open and the Wimbledon titles this year. It has been a stunning season from him, but at the Cincinnati Open, he had to withdraw because of concerns over his back. His camp has been playing down the back injury ahead of the US Open but he was complaining about his back at the Rogers Cup prior to Cincinnati. Federer ended up losing the Rogers Cup final to Alexander Zverev.

So that has thrown a bit of doubt on to his chances at the US Open and even the great legend has admitted that it would be a bit of a ‘joke’ at his age if he won his third Grand Slam of the year. So will his back stand up to the test in New York? He is clearly still hungry and willing to put in the work and is out to win stuff. He will be going into the US Open ranked third behind Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal who is the new world number one. Federer is 11/8 favourite at Bet365 to win the US Open 2017.

Federer won the US Open for five consecutive years between 2004 and 2008 inclusive and he has been to two other finals since then as well. The remarkable thing about Federer is that even at this stage of his career, he has developed new weapons. He has a new racquet, his masterful backhand has become more aggressive and he has even developed his new forehand attack which was clearly on display at Wimbledon.

Last year’s US Open was the first time since 1998 that Federer hadn’t been in attendance there and because of his injuries, was reportedly considering retirement. Be instead he came back, and that early Slam title in Melbourne this year probably was the big thing that made him stay around. His season probably would have looked a whole lot different if he had not have captured that title. Interest may have waned.

Federer managed his season by skipping the entire clay court swing to romp his way to a record 8th Wimbledon title without dropping a set. But he has obviously been busier in his build up to the US Open having played at the Rogers Cup and having been scheduled to turn out at Cincinnati at least. The back injury happened in the final in Montreal at the Rogers Cup but he didn’t call for a trainer but you could see him tighten up. He’s just turned 36 and tweaks and knocks don’t heal as quickly as when you are 26.

But what could help Federer if his precautionary withdrawal from Cincinnati actually pays off for him is that at the US Open he can look to other potential injuries for a boost. Stan Wawrinka, the reigning US Open champion has withdrawn from the tournament as well as Novak Djokovic. Andy Murray hasn’t played since limping out of Wimbledon with his hip problem and no-one is sure if he is 100% fit. Juan Martin del Potro, Milos Raonic and Marin Cilic all withdrew from Cincinnati like Federer did because of health issues.

So there may be some walking wounded out at the US Open which could level the playing field a bit for Federer if he has to nurse his back through the early stages of the tournament. Regardless, he is simply class, he is an old dog clearly set to learn new tricks in his quest for more Grand Slams (and he’s vowed to defend Wimbledon next season). He is the one with the form this year in the Grand Slams. A kind draw, of course, would help him, but there’s no reason why he can’t get close as long as his back is strong enough.

US Open Winner Odds

Roger Federer 11/8, Rafael Nadal 5/2, Alexander Zverev 7/1, Andy Murray 13/2, Nick Kyrgios 14/1, Marin Cilic 14/1, Grigor Dimitrov 16/1, Dominic Thiem 20/1, Milos Raonic 20/1, Juan Martin del Potro 20/1

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