There is hardly a leaderboard in tennis that is not led by Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic. The three superstars have been shaping tennis for the last two decades. Also in the top list of the longest time in the top 100, the Maestro from Switzerland is at the top with 1019 weeks. Nadal is in third place, Djokovic “only” in seventh place. In second place is a name that almost goes down a bit and therefore deserves special recognition – Feliciano Lopez. The Spanish long-time runner was in the top 100 of the world ranking list for 877 weeks until two weeks ago. Only with the end in round 1 of Barcelona is this series torn. At position 108, he enters the French Open – his last French Open. At the end of the season he will end his playing career and take a similar path as Tommy Haas, who is tournament director at the Indian Wells Masters. This job will be handled by Feliciano Lopez at the Madrid event. Before this new phase of life begins, however, he wants to complete his sporting career with style and dignity and prove his skills in Paris.
Ivo Karlovic vs Feliciano Lopez Tennis Betting Tips
The first round match of the Spaniard has it all. It comes to the duel between Ivo Karlovic and Feliciano Lopez, in which the odds for over-games is logically quite small. Two of the most prolific players face each other, each allowing a few breaks and happy to play one or two tiebreaks. Little things can therefore decide this game, in which the three years younger Iberer in terms of odds in the advantage is. For a win against Ivo Karlovic Feliciano Lopez receives a quota of 1.45 in the top, while the 40-year-old Croat is traded with a 2.80 as an outsider. The meeting was scheduled for Tuesday.
Ivo Karlovic – Statistics & Current Form
Current ranking in the world rankings: 95.
Position in the seedling list: unset
The Claudio Pizarro of the tennis circus, Ivo Karlovic, is not a bit tired even with his now 40 years. He continues to play world-class tennis and is feared by every opponent. He is the player with the most aces ever beaten and is still expanding that record. Of course, his 2.11 meters height help him. But it would be wrong to reduce it only to the strong service, although of course this is its greatest weapon. In addition, he is an excellent network player, who acts almost exclusively with serve and volley and always looking for the way forward. By contrast, he has big deficits from the rally and therefore always tries to keep the rallies short. On sand, this is the hardest, which is why the red ash is its weakest surface.
This season he only completed one match there. In Houston, Karlovic had no chance against Ryan Harrison and clearly lost 3-6, 4-6. At the American serve, Karlovic scored only seven points over the match. The quality in the return game he must raise significantly if he wants to keep up against Lopez on Tuesday. Just relying on the serve and a possible tiebreak is a bit thin. It is hardly surprising that the bookmakers see the oldie clearly in the role of the outsider. Between Ivo Karlovic and Feliciano Lopez the odds on the part of the Croatian is rightly so high and a success in Roland Garros would be a big surprise.
Last matches by Ivo Karlovic:
🎾 08.04.2019 – Harrison Vs. Karlovic 6-3, 6-4 (Houston)
🎾 22.03.2019 – Andujar Vs. Karlovic 7-6, 6-4 (Miami)
🎾 14.03.2019 – Thiem Vs. Karlovic 6-4, 6-3 (Indian Wells)
🎾 11.03.2019 – Karlovic Vs. Gunneswaran 6-3, 7-6 (Indian Wells)
🎾 09.03.2019 – Karlovic Vs. Coric 6-4, 7-6 (Indian Wells)
Feliciano Lopez – Statistics & Current Form
Current ranking in the world rankings: 108.
Position in the seedling list:
In the late autumn of his career Feliciano Lopez wants to know it again. World Ranking 108, who turns 38 in September, has always been driven by a strong will to win in his career, so he’ll give it his all until the last match. Despite the hitherto missing results on sand this season, the performances made a little hope. He narrowly lost in three sets against Thomas Fabbiano in Monaco and Damir Dzumhur in Geneva. Also at home in Barcelona Lopez held against his compatriot Fernando Verdasco long time with good. Lopez feels a little untypical for a Spaniard on the red ashes but not so well. He prefers to ride on fast surfaces, especially on grass.
There his weapons with the good serve and the poisonous backhand slice are even more dangerous. Karlovic is one of only a few players that Lopez should also have clear advantages in baseline rallies. If he manages to defuse the Croatian’s serve to some extent, then he has best cards to move into round 2. In his own service games, the Spaniard is unlikely to get serious problems when he opens concentrated. The good footwork and counterattack come against the very good double player who has previously won double competition at the French Open with Marc Lopez, and he has the resources to read his opponent’s game. For this reason, a tip on the Spaniard is promising between Ivo Karlovic and Feliciano Lopez.
Last matches by Feliciano Lopez:
🎾 21.05.2019 – Dzumhur Vs. Lopez 6-7, 6-4, 7-5 (Geneva)
🎾 22.04.2019 – Verdasco Vs. Lopez 6-4, 6-3 (Barcelona)
🎾 13.04.2019 – Fabbiano Vs. Lopez 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 (Monte Carlo)
🎾 06.04.2019 – Bublik Vs. Lopez 7-6, 6-3 (Monterrey Challenger)
🎾 05.04.2019 – Lopez Vs. Koepfer 7-6, 6-2 (Monterrey Challenger)
Karlovi vs Lopez – Head to Head Statistics
The direct comparison delivers a total of ten duels. The two oldies have already fought one or the other fight in their long career. Overall, Karlovic leads against Lopez with 6: 4 victories, which does not support a prediction on the Spaniard, but won the 37-year-old “Youngster” the only duel on sand. However, this is already well over a decade back. The final duel to date took place in Shanghai in 2017 and ended with a typical result for both players of 7: 6, 7: 6 in favor of Feliciano Lopez. There were no breaks in this match. Karlovic fended off all five options and did not even have a breakball himself.
Ivo Karlovic vs Feliciano Lopez Our Best Tennis Betting Tip
At first glance, some tiebreaks are to be expected in this match and thus also a very tight gameplay. This does not exactly indicate that a tip on a handicap -3.5 is promising in this encounter. But if you take a closer look at Karlovic’s latest results on sand, it’s clear that the Croat is having big problems on the slowest of all surfaces. The 3: 6, 4: 6 against Ryan Harrison, who is also not a sand expert, in Houston, was the first clear hint. Of course, the 40-year-old can not be deprived of the Grand Slam event in Paris, but he does not expect any real chances on the red ashes. Against Lopez, it should only be a matter of time before he loses his serve one or two times. From this point on, the Spaniard is well on the way to beat the handicap -3.5 games.
Key facts – Ivo Karlovic vs Feliciano Lopez tips
🏓 Both players have the biggest weapon with their serve
🏓 On sand, this weapon is not that crucial, which is why Lopez has clear advantages from the game out
🏓 In the overall balance Karlovic leads with 6: 4 – but he has never won on the red ashes against the Spaniard
A 7: 6, 6: 4, 7: 6 or a 6: 7, 7: 6, 6: 3, 7: 6 would be results that would be enough. This seems to be very realistic, as on the other hand Karlovic can hardly break his opponent. The chances of the handicap being beaten are well over 50%, so the odds for this tip are extremely high. Overall, this bet is one of the best recommendations in the tournament so far, which is why the very high stakes with nine units is justified.
Bet Tip: win Feliciano Lopez (-3.5)
Odds: 2.02
