Borna Coric 10th Favorite at US Open After Cincinnati Win
No bookmaker or tennis journalist in their right mind would have included Borna Coric as a favorite to win the US Open this time last week.
The Croatian was ranked No.152 in the world, and even this was flattering, as a shoulder injury meant his ATP ranking was protected. His last title was four years ago, and he had a season record of won four, lost eight.
Now, Borna Coric is the 10th most likely man to win the US Open starting next week. What happened over the last seven days to make this a reality?
Borna’s Hot Run in Cincinnati
Over the last week, Borna Coric has won six matches, storming to his third career title and first ever Masters 1000 trophy in Cincinnati.
Making his comeback from a shoulder injury at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati last week, Borna Coric started well by upsetting World No.33 Lorenzo Musetti in straight sets, 7-6(2), 6-3. It was his first win since retiring in the Hamburg 500 in July against Alex Molcan, his comeback event after being away from the tour since Roland Garros.
Borna Coric’s strong start in Cincinnati soon became a spectacular one, when he knocked out 22-time Grand Slam champion and World No.3 Rafael Nadal in the second round, 7-6(9), 4-6, 6-3. This would be the last time the Croatian lost a set in Cincinnati, going on to breeze past Roberto Bautista Agut, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Cameron Norrie, and Stefanos Tsitsipas to claim the title, beating five Top 20 and three Top 10 players along the way.
With his victory in Cincinnati, Borna Coric rockets to World No.29, up an incredible 123 places from his protected ranking of No.152 in the world. This movement also sees the Croatian secure an all-important seeding for the upcoming US Open.
Odds Shift Ahead of the US Open
Borna Coric’s sudden vein of form sees him currently sitting at tenth favorite ahead of the US Open on 27 August.
Bookmakers are putting Borna Coric on +3300—still a long shot, but ahead of many Top 10 players, such as Hubert Hurkacz, Casper Ruud and Cameron Norrie. Tennis’s newest star will now have a week off, before fronting up at the US Open next week.
Other shifts to come in the US Open odds off the back of Cincinnati see Carlos Alcaraz slip slightly in the odds. Initially at +333 to win the title, Alcaraz’s loss at the Western & Southern Open sees him drop to a moneyline of +600, falling behind Rafael Nadal to fourth favorite. Mateo Berrettini also slips off the back of his loss, going from +2000 to +4000 in the odds now. Nick Kyrgios, however, continues to be favored, despite his loss this week—his moneyline has gone from +1600 pre-Cincinnati, to +750 now, putting the Australian fifth favorite on the odds.
No Update on Djokovic, But Zverev Out
Former World No.1 and 21-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic is still the bookmaker’s favorite to win the US Open.
However, it is just a matter of time until this changes, and all the resulting odds shift as well. The US Open has declared that overseas players must be vaccinated to participate, while the US border is currently only open to vaccinated foreign nationals. With Djokovic openly stating that he is not vaccinated and doesn’t intend to be, at this stage it would take nothing short of a miracle for the Serbian to participate in the tournament next week.
Expect an announcement over the weekend regarding Djokovic’s withdrawal.
A player that has officially withdrawn, however, is Alexander Zverev. Up until today, Zverev was paying +1400 to win the US Open, having been in excellent form in the first half of 2022. The German has announced that his ankle injury sustained against Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros has yet to fully recover, and he won’t be participating in the US Open.
With two of tennis’s regular Top 5 players out of the tournament, and Spain’s two stars faltering in form recently, the US Open is looking like anyone’s to win right now.
