The first Grand Slam of the tennis year is the Australian Open, a chance for all players on the tour to really put down a marker and show that 2023 is going to be their year.
Here at Freebets, we’ve found the very best Australian Open free bets, betting offers and enhancements for you, which you can check out below!
Australian Open Free Bets & Betting Offers
Australian Open 2023 Betting Preview
- Australian Open
- Melbourne Park, Melbourne
- Monday 16 January - Sunday 29 January, 2023
Rewind 12 months and we were at the height of the ‘No-vax’ scandal, with Novak Djokovic on the verge of being deported from Australia in disgrace.
Shortly after that decision was made, you would have got long, long odds on the Serb winning the 2023 Australian Open men’s title.
Now, he is a best price of 10/11 with a host of firms, including BetUK, to claim his 22nd Grand Slam title and his 10th Aussie Open.
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Novak Djokovic to win the Australian Open - 10/11
Djokovic is the favourite, and fancied to win
And I can see him achieving success. He looks in a really good place, both form wise and mentally.
It shows Djokovic’s love for Australia that he has landed there with nothing but positive words for the country. You could have forgiven him for firing plenty of shots at authority. But he hasn’t done that. Instead, he seems very settled.
Just as importantly, he has started the year in ideal fashion on the court, winning last week’s warm-up event in Adelaide.
In the women’s draw, I quite like the chances of American Jessica Pegula, who will be targeting her maiden Grand Slam title. Bet365, amongst others, have her at 11/1.
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Jessica Pegula to win the Australian Open - 11/1
Looking for her maiden grand slam, Pegula is our pick in the women's event
Aside from a disappointing WTA Finals competition at Fort Worth in late October and early November when she meekly lost all three matches, the world number three has been pretty consistent on hard courts over the last six months.
You may remember I suggested her as my winner for the US Open in September, and she was beaten in the quarter-finals by world number one Iga Swiatek.
Only last week, at the United Cup, she gained revenge against the Pole with a straight sets win on the way to helping the USA win that new team event.
Did you know that her parents own the Buffalo Bills NFL team? It may be a slightly left-field thing to say, but I wonder whether Demar Hamlin’s rapid improvement may give her extra strength and even perspective.
When she gets to those tough and pressure moments, she may just think, ‘Hey, there’s more important things in life’.
I am opposing favourite Swiatek, the world number one who leads the betting at 11/5, more as a gut feeling than anything else. She is clearly a wonderful player, but I just think she might get sunk Down Under.
Fritz can leave opponents in bits
The withdrawal of Spanish world number one Carlos Alcaraz through injury means there is no obvious challenger to Novak Djokovic. It says a lot that Daniil Medvedev (6/1) is the only other player with single-figure title odds.
Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios will be fascinating to watch. He is 14/1 with a number of firms, but can he handle the expectation and pressure from the home support and media? He has had a horrible build-up, withdrawing from two warm-up events.
That leads me to suggest Taylor Fritz as a long-odds chance of going close. The American world number nine is 25/1 with 888Sport to win the title and my strategy would be to save a little cash back from betting on Djokovic to win and put it on the Californian.
Alongside Jessica Pegula, he was a winner at the recent United Cup event, winning four of five singles matches, including impressive wins over Zverev, Berrettini and Hurkacz. Brit Cameron Norrie was the only man to defeat him.
He has won seven of his last 10 competitive matches - excluding three wins at a recent Saudi Arabian exhibition - and claimed three ATP titles in 2022.
Bet365 are also offering a number of Tennis specials to keep an eye on through 2023, and I like the 9/2 they have on Fritz to reach a Grand Slam Final through the year.
Taylor Fritz to reach a Grand Slam final in 2023 - 9/2
Fritz looks primed for a big year
You would suspect it’s unlikely on clay at the French, where he has a third round best finish, but the other three events should bring chances given he has hard and grass court titles to his name.
Jack Draped in success and Cam can!
I am going for a first round shock thanks to a rising British star.
Jack Draper, the world number 40, faces defending champion Rafael Nadal in the first round on Rod Laver Arena, and the 21-year-old is 2/1 with bet365 to claim the victory.
Jack Draper to beat Rafael Nadal - 2/1
Draper is fancied to shock Nadal in the first round
For a defending champion and number one seed in the first round, you would expect much shorter odds than the 2/5 which Nadal has on his head. But it says a lot about the Spaniard’s recent form.
Since losing to Frances Tiafoe in the US Open quarter-finals in early September, the world number two has battled injury and form. He has only won one of six competitive matches, that coming in a dead rubber against Casper Ruud at the ATP World Tour Finals in November.
During the last fortnight, he has lost United Cup matches to Cameron Norrie and Alex De Minaur.
Draper, meanwhile, claimed impressive tour wins over top 10 players Stefanos Tsitsipas and Felix Auger-Aliassime - the latter 3-0 at the US Open - during the second half of 2022. He also reached the Next Gen Finals play-offs in Milan in November and has had a good run at Adelaide this week.
And let’s finish off with a 6/1 shot on another Brit, Norrie, who is that price to win his Quarter of the draw. That price with betfair is on him to reach the semi-finals.
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Cam Norrie to win his quarter - 6/1
The Brit can go far here
At time of writing, Norrie had won all five matches played this year and was awaiting a semi-final tie in the Adelaide warm-up event.
In his Quarter, he has the likes of Tsitsipas, Auger-Aliassime and Jannik Sinner in his way. I can see him overcoming them all.
When Is The Australian Open 2023?
The Australian Open takes centre stage at the start of the calendar year, and this year is no different. The tournament will run from January 16 until January 29, with the best in the world descending on Australia to battle it out for supremecy.
Australian Open 2023 Betting Odds
The betting markets for the Australian Open are made well in advance of the contest. Therefore, you can take a look at the Australian Open odds at anytime, if you fancy someone to have success down under.
Being the first major event of the calendar year, if you are looking for tennis Grand Slam odds then this is the place to start. The main two events here have the strongest betting coverage, and in particular, the Australian Open men’s betting odds are available for pretty much 12 months of the year.
Who are the Australian Open 2023 Favourites?
Ahead of the 2023 Australian Open, we have a favourite in both the men’s and women’s events. In the Men’s Australian Open, Novak Djokovic is the pre-tournament favourite, while Iga Swiatek is the favourite in the Women’s Australian Open competition.
Statistics and Previous Winners
Here are the most recent winner’s of the men’s event:
- 2022 - Rafael Nadal
- 2021 - Novak Djokovic
- 2020 - Novak Djokovic
- 2019 - Novak Djokovic
- 2018 - Roger Federer
Here are the most recent winner’s of the women’s event:
- 2022 - Ashleigh Barty
- 2021 - Naomi Osaka
- 2020 - Sofia Kenin
- 2019 - Naomi Osaka
- 2018 - Caroline Wozniacki
When was the Australian Open first held?
It was first known as the Australasian Championships and first played in 1905, before being renamed the Australian Championships in 1927.
In 1969 it became the Australian Open and has been held in several Australian cities – Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and even a couple of times in New Zealand (Christchurch and Hastings). It is now homed in Melbourne, starting off life at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club from 1972, before moving to its current, and ever-expanding home in Melbourne Park, since 1988.
Which Betting Markets Can I Bet on at the Australian Open?
With 128 players in both the men’s and women’s draw, there are plenty of opportunities to win big through Australian Open betting:
- Match Winner – A straight two player battle and the most popular bet – can be lucrative if bulked up in an Australian Open accumulator.
- Number of Sets (Over/Under) – Men’s Grand Slam matches take place over 5 sets, meaning there is often more of a power struggle, giving punters more chances to win big.
- Tie Break Market – With so much at stake and the speedy courts in Melbourne, tie breaks are a regular occurrence in Grand Slam tennis and punters can exploit that when betting.
- Quarter Betting – With 128 players in each draw, bookies break the draw down into quarterly sections of 32 players which punters can bet on – to win their quarter and reach the semi-finals.
- Finalist Bets – Once the Australian Open draw is made, punters can look to predict which two players will make it to the final depending on where in the draw they have been placed.
Australian Open Best Betting Tips & Strategies
As the first Grand Slam on the calendar, picking an outright winner at the Australian Open can sometimes be a difficult task as plenty of players put in many hard yeards during the off season.
Here are our Australian Open best betting tips:
- Tennis knowledge is essential when deciding what/who to back, as lots of external factors such as player form, court surface and players returning from injury can all play a key role. The world rankings are not definitive in terms of deciphering a bet as – lots of players have favoured surfaces (e.g Nadal on clay) where they tend to get their best results and big seeds can often fall to lesser known players if the surfaces don’t suit their games.
- In-play tennis betting has revolutionised the way in which punters operate in the tennis betting market. While it will never replace betting on the overall outcome of matches or tournaments, in-play betting provides an instantaneous and arguably a more exciting avenue for generating profits. Betting on live tennis live can be highly profitable, is not time consuming whatsoever and allows the bettor, to become engrossed in the live action and develop a better understanding of the game.
Frequently Asked Questions for Australian Open Betting
Who won the Australian Open in 2022?
Rafael Nadal won the men's Australian Open in 2022 while Ashleigh Barty won the women's Australian Open.
Are there any restrictions on where I can place bets on the Australian Open?
The good news is no, there are no restrictions, just make sure you have a bookmaker account with a provider that offers tennis betting, and you can get started.
What is the smartest way to bet on the Australian Open 2023?
This is completely a personal choice for you. The options are to bet on single games, try out accas across multiple games, or look at the bigger picture and bet on the outright winner markets.
Is Djokovic playing the Australian Open 2023?
Yes, Novak Djokovic will be back and playing in the 2023 Australian Open.
What are the odds for Djokovic to win the Australian Open 2023?
At the start of the tournament, Novak Djokovic was priced up at odds of 10/11 to win the Australian Open.
What are the top Australian Open betting apps?
Many operators have great betting apps for tennis including bet365, 888Sport, BetStorm, BetVictor and Betfred.
Who won the most tournaments in Australian Open Men’s Singles?
Novak Djokovic currently holds this title, with nine wins to his name in the Australian Open.
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