Alexander Zverev has not yet actually made a significant impact in any Grand Slam draw. His fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon 2017 is his best appearance in a major thus far in his young career. At the age of 20, there's still tons of time to improve on that and he almost certainly will. In fact, he is looking under-rated when one looks at the upcoming 2017 Us Open.
Betting odds for Flushing Meadows
Betting odds certainly aren't objective, but they do provide some insight into what fans and pundits are thinking regarding a sporting event. In regard to the men's singles tournament at the 2017 US Open, Zverev is considered to be a co-6th favorite.
With popular sportsbook Bet365 these are the odds to win the men's singles title at the 2017 US Open for the top-seven favorites:
- Roger Federer +110
- Rafael Nadal +225
- Andy Murray +450
- Marin Cilic +1400
- Milos Raonic +1600
- Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev each at +2000
Odds frequently change
The odds promise to shift after Sunday. Zverev is in the ATP Washington final (2017 Citi Open) with a good chance to beat Kevin Anderson. Should Zverev win the title, he would likely emerge as a stronger favorite than Thiem and Raonic for sure. The Austrian has not yet established himself on the hard-court surface while Raonic has struggled to find a major result this season. Certainly, Zverev looks stronger than both players at this point in the 2017 season.
With Andy Murray and Marin Cilic both injured right now, you could argue that Zverev looks better than either of them at this point as well. While the US Open is still three weeks away from starting, minimally Murray and Cilic are having their preparations disrupted. Who knows if they will even play at Flushing Meadows this season.
With Murray, there is a mild buzz that he might shut down his whole season. With Cilic, he's a player that has needed plenty of injury time in the past.
Will they even play at the US Open?
Murray, at +450, definitely looks well over-rated. Those odds would imply an 18% chance of winning the title in the 128-player field. It has now been a year's worth of Grand Slam tournaments since Murray actually made the semifinals of one.
He only has one title from Flushing Meadows in his career and that now includes many years where he was in much better health than he has been this year. We could be seeing the beginning of the end of Murray and a player like Zverev could play a big role in that.
Perhaps, The German could be compared to a 20-year old Juan Martin del Potro. They are both 6'6" and both have lethal forehands that pound the ball down from a lofty height. Del Potro made and won the Washington final in 2009 ahead of winning the US Open. Roger Federer couldn't handle that forehand in the 2009 final, a time in the Swiss Maestro's career where there was little that he couldn't handle.
Zverev, at time of writing, hasn't won the Washington final yet and we'll have to see what kind of shape he's in after the tournament.
Tennis fans shouldn't expect much of the German next week in Montreal given his efforts in Washington that will extend into Sunday. However, if he goes out early at the Rogers Cup he might be very fresh for Cincinnati. In all events, expect Zverev to be fully prepared for the 2017 US Open.
With past champions Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka already out of the way, Zverev is a player that can keep Murray and Cilic out of the late rounds. Nadal and Federer may be different, but never underestimate a 20-year old, 6'6", and top-notch talent at this time of year. There are shades of a young del Potro in Zverev's movements and groundstrokes. If he wins the Washington final then he should be considered a third favorite for the US Open, easily more convincing than Raonic or Thiem.
