French Open 2022 Odds, Preview, and Free Pick (Archive)
Rafael Nadal and Casper Ruud will meet in the French Open final. Rafael Nadal will be looking
for his 14th French Open title, while this will be Casper Ruud’s first Grand Slam final.
In a battle of experience versus youth, who is the winning tennis pick?
Rafael Nadal vs. Casper Ruud
Sunday, June 05, 2022 – 09:00 AM EDT at Court Philippe Chatrier
ATP Player Analysis: Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal has his 14th French Open title and 22nd Grand Slam title in his sight.
Nadal entered the tournament as the third-highest favorite by ATP odds but now, he is heavily favored (at -588) in the final.
Nadal Previous Matchups Analysis
Nadal played a match worthy of a final in the quarterfinal against world number one Novak Djokovic.
Nadal then played a grueling two sets of tennis against Alexander Zverev before Zverev rolled
his ankle in the second-set tiebreak and was unable to continue.
Rafael Nadal barely won the first set. He was down 6-2 in the tiebreak before storming back to win the first set.
The comeback was emblematic of Nadal's "Never Say Die" attitude. His ability to stay calm
under pressure put stress on Zverev and allowed Nadal to escape with the win in the first set.
Experience vs. Inexperienced
Nadal will be facing another inexperienced opponent today in Casper Ruud. Will Nadal's
experience shine through again today?
Rafael Nadal is attempting to win his second Grand Slam title this season. Nadal was the champion at the Australian Open, defeating Daniil Medvedev in a five-set final.
Nadal plays left-handed with heavy topspin and is one of the best defensive players of all time.
Nadal is quite comfortable from behind the baseline where most players would be in purely
defensive positions.
Rafa has the ability to be aggressive even from a deep court position, which is one of his biggest strengths when playing here at Roland Garros.
Nadal's Injury
Nadal has struggled with a foot injury. The extra days off between matches help, and the fact
that his match against Zverev did not go multiple hours is also a benefit.
Still, it is quite possible that the foot injury could flare up again. We can never be certain of the wear and tear that Rafa has put on his body at this stage of his career.
ATP Players: Casper Rudd
- Casper Ruud comes into today's final on a 10-match winning streak. Ruud won a clay-court
title in Geneva prior to this event. - Casper Ruud has navigated an interesting path to get here, beating a variety of big servers and aggressive players en route to arrive here today.
Rudd Previous Matchup Analysis
Casper Ruud beat Marin Cilic in the semifinal. In the first set of the semifinal, Ruud struggled to
find his form.
Yet as he settled in, his clay-court prowess allowed him to cruise to an easy victory against the Croatian who is at his best on the hard courts.
Rudd Against a Clay Courter
Today he faces a true clay courter, and it will not be such an easy task. Ruud becomes the first Norwegian player to make a Grand Slam final. Ruud learned at the Rafael Nadal tennis academy.
They have never played at the ATP level. They have played many practice sets together, which Ruud says are always close, yet Nadal comes out on
top.
Rudd's Backhand
Casper Ruud has an excellent forehand, but I'm a little worried about his backhand going into
this match.
Ruud does not have the best backhand and he will be playing against a left-hander. Nadal's forehand will definitely put Ruud's backhand to the test.
Nadal's Matchup Against Similarity
In some ways, this reminds me of Nadal's match up against Marco Berrettini in the semifinals of
the Australian Open, where Nadal was able to pick apart Berrettini's backhand to get the victory.
Casper Ruud will not be able to "serve bot" his way to easy holds on the clay. Ruud will need
one of the best performances he has had from the backhand side to be able to keep pace with
the great champion.
Rafael Nadal will win this match, but at -588, the books have effectively priced us out of making
this wager.
Nadal vs. Rudd Tennis Pick for Today
So we must decide if we believe that Casper Ruud can keep this match close. It could be argued that Nadal's last two opponents, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev, were more formidable.
While I would agree with that assessment, Ruud is a natural clay courter. He also comes into this match with excellent form and nothing to lose.
Casper Ruud will put forth a respectable showing in his first time on the big stage of the Grand
Slam final.
Who to Bet On?
Nadal is favored so heavily that the correlated total is quite low. Therefore, we will take advantage of that and wager on Casper Ruud to make this match competitive.
Our wager for today's French Open final is Rafael Nadal/Casper Ruud Over 34.5 games
Tennis Pick: Over 34.5 games (-105) with BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.