Nick Kyrgios can kick-start Wimbledon campaign with straight sets win over Denis Istomin

Recommended Wimbledon bet:

Set Betting – Nick Kyrgios 3-0 @ 19/20 (1.95) with Centrebet

Australia’s main hope in the Men’s event at Wimbledon 2018, Nick Kyrgios, is set to get his bid for the title underway against Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin on Tuesday.

On paper this should be a relatively straightforward assignment for Kyrgios, with the 31-year old Istomin never having been beyond the 4th round of any Grand Slam event, managing that feat just once at Wimbledon back in 2012.

Istomin’s highest world ranking also dates back to 2012, when he achieved a career high of 33.  He’s currently ranked at 95 in the world. On the plus side, he did achieve a five set victory over the then defending champion and world no. 2 Novak Djokovic in the 2nd round of the Australian Open in 2017, although that result looks a little less impressive given the Serbian’s subsequent loss of form and injury woes.

The 23 year-old Kyrgios has never been beyond the quarter-final stage of a Grand Slam event himself, something he achieved at Wimbledon in 2014 (and at the Australian Open in 2015).  However Kyrgios, who is ranked 19th in the world and seeded 16th at Wimbledon, is considered a definite title contender this year, as odds of 20/1 (21.00) with Unibet would indicate.

His build-up to this year’s Wimbledon saw him reach the semi-final stage of both the Stuttgart Open (Istomin himself defeated two-time runner-up Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6, 7-6 in the 1st round at Stuttgart) and the Queen’s Club Championships, where he lost to eventual tournament winners Roger Federer and Marin Cilic respectively.

He certainly has a game suited to the Wimbledon grass courts, with his serve seen as being particularly strong, in addition to having an excellent forehand and being pretty decent at the net too.

It would certainly be a surprise were Nick Kyrgios to lose this match, although there is little value in backing him at odds of 1/8 (1.13) with Centrebet to beat Istomin. A better option, given his recent good form and fondness for the surface, might be to back Kyrgios to set down a marker by easing through in straight sets, with Centrebet offering odds of 19/20 (1.95) on Kyrgios winning it 3-0.