Djokovic and Williams: Two Hopefuls Who Had Surprising Defeats

Djokovic and Williams met defeats on during the rehearsal for the U.S. Open.

Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams may not have much in common apart from their world number one rankings. That ended just recently when the two suffered surprise defeats at the Roger’s Cup tournament in Toronto and Montreal making Canadian gambling news. Djokovic and Williams, both expected to win the upcoming U.S. Open, started their runs in Toronto strong. Djokovic won the Roger’s Cup twice in 2011 and 2013, while Williams won in 2013.

• Djokovic and Williams were favorites to win the Roger’s Cup and U.S. Open
• Djokovic loss to Andy Murray breaking his streak of 30 straight Masters wins
• Serena Williams suffered her 2nd loss in 45 matches to Belinda Bencic

Djokovic had a fairly difficult quarter final matchup having to fight his way back from two match points against Ernests Gulbis. Although his semi-final match was simple, Djokovic still complained about smelling marijuana from one of the spectators. He cited his finals loss by Andy Murray to elbow problems. Williams lost her semi-final match to Belinda Bencic who went on to win the final against an injured Simona Halep,

Djokovic and Williams’ defeat possibly a product of fatigue

Djokovic was defeated in the Roger’s Cup final by Andy Murray. The Briton was able to break a mental hurdle that many hoped would help the world number two in the future. Like Murray, Djokovic won the Roger’s cup three times. More importantly, Djokovic hasn’t lost to Murray since the Wimbledon finals in 2013. Murray was able to end his 10-match consecutive losing match streak to Djokovic.

Ending Djokovic’s run of 30 consecutive ATP Masters wins wasn’t an easy task for Murray. He was able to start well and defeat Djokovic in the first set 6-4. But the world number one would not lie down and came back in classic fashion to win the second set 6-4. Although Djokovic has a reputation for not tiring easily, many mobile betting punters should’ve started to worry about their wagers on Djokovic.

The Serbian carried some serious “heat” into the next set and won a break point. Murray fought back and kept up the consistency of his play and was able to secure a 3-0 lead. Something might have “took a turn for the worst” in Djokovic. He wasn’t able to take advantage of the numerous opportunities Murray gave him. Murray was on unfamiliar territory as he was never able to beat his competitor in a three-set match on a hard court surface.

Murray was able to sustain his tennis enough to thwart Djokovic’s attempts and secure a 4-1 lead. After each won another game, Murray saw the opportunity to win the match. Djokovic was still able to gain two more break points and had a recovery in his sights. Unfortunately, the Serbian was taken to deuce where Murray ended up the victor. Although he complimented Murray’s play, Djokovic cited an elbow injury that gave him problems with his serve.

Djokovic and Williams experienced losses that could affect their future

Serena Williams is on the path to make history. Apart from her 21 grand slams titles, she is in alignment to win all four majors in a single season. The possible Grand Slam winner had an unfortunate match. Belinda Bencic, who was ranked 20th in the world, became the youngest player to defeat Williams since her 2004 loss to Maria Sharapova. In her 45 matches played this year, Williams has only lost twice.

Djokovic and Williams were definitely not similar when it came to how they credited their losses. Unlike her male number one counterpart, Serena completely credited her loss to her poor performance. “I think I played really crappy today. I’ll try to be politically correct. And I don’t think you would disagree. I just really didn’t play up to par today. What a professional tennis player should play like. I played like an amateur, to be honest.”

The two-time Roger’s cup winner’s performance had much to be desired. Although the American had 16 aces, she double faulted 12 times. Normally able to depend on her serve, Williams only made 50 percent of her first serves. Even more unbelievable, she gave Bencic 19-break point opportunities. Although she was able to storm through the first set, serving difficulty started to affect Williams in the second set.

Bencic beat three top players before defeating Halep, who retired in the last set of the final due to injury. She may not have had Nishikori’s odds on her side, but the Swiss teenager made a statement to punters in the future. Williams’ loss means more than a movement of the line set by online sportsbooks in the US. Her defeat could be a “changing of the guard” in which some brilliant young hopefuls may soon have their day. Others would like to view Serena’s fall as the result of her distraction from dealing with history. The world number one also claimed she was under “a bit of stress.”