The Tokyo Summer Olympic Games begin on July 23 with tennis beginning on July 24. A field of 64 women will compete for the gold medal.
The big news is the names that will not be present in Tokyo. That includes the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena. Venus has won more Olympic medals than any player in women’s tennis history. The sisters paired to win three – 2000, 2008, and 2012 – doubles gold medals and each won an individual singles title. Venus won in 2000 and Serena in 2012.
Most of the world’s top players will participate, including Naomi Osaka who dropped out of the French Open and didn’t even play at Wimbledon.
The Favorite
The world’s top player currently is Australian Ashleigh Barty who is the overall women’s Olympic favorite at +500. Barty will face Angelique Kerber, who won a silver medal for Germany at Rio in 2016, in the Wimbledon semifinals.
Barty’s performance in majors prior to Wimbledon this year has been disappointing. She lost in the quarterfinals to Karolina Muchova at the Australian Open and had to withdraw from the French Open in the second round.
Barty has three singles titles this season and an overall record of 28-6.
Men’s Tennis Olympics Predictions
Top Contenders
Osaka picked the Olympics to make her return to tennis after missing essentially the last two major tournaments. She is the world’s No. 2 player and is listed along with Barty at +500 to win Olympic gold. Osaka would have the advantage of playing at “home” as she was born in Japan though raised in the U.S. She has won one singles title this season and is 14-3 overall.
Simona Halep is the world’s No. 3 player and is listed at +700. She has battled injuries almost all season long and her best finish of the season was a loss at the Porsche Grand Prix when she made the semifinals.
Halep lost that semifinal match to Aryna Sabalenka, who is the fourth-ranked player in the world. Sabalenka, who has two singles wins this season, is listed at +900 as is Garbine Muguruza who is 25-9 overall this season in singles play. Muguruza bowed out early in the three majors played thus far this season.
No other women’s singles player is given odds shorter than +1000 to win a gold medal.
The Longshot
Victoria Azarenka won a bronze medal in 2012 in London. She is listed at +1400 primarily because she is past her prime at 31. She lost in the first round at the Australian Open and the second round at Wimbledon. Petra Kvitova, who won bronze in Rio in 2016, is also listed at +1400.
The better bet on a longshot is on Elina Svitolina, the world’s fifth-ranked player. She hasn’t made it past the second round in each of her last three tournaments, but sitting at +2000 to win a gold medal might be too much to pass up.
Men’s Basketball Olympics Predictions
The Pick
There is so much volatility in women’s tennis. Osaka won the Australian Open and has struggled ever since. Barbora Krejcikova scored the upset at the French Open, but Barty just took down Wimbledon.
With all the rest that she got since retiring at the French Open, Osaka should be ready to play. She will also have the advantage of playing in her home country. That will give her plenty to play for and bettors can still get a solid win at +500.
Odds to Win Women’s Olympic Tennis Singles Gold
Ashleigh Barty +500
Naomi Osaka +500
Simona Halep +700
Garbine Muguruza +900
Aryna Sabalenka +900
Iga Swiatek +1100
Victoria Azarenka +1400
Petra Kvitova +1400
Jennifer Brady +1700
Maria Sakkari +1700
Elena Rybakina +2000
Elina Svitolina +2000
Belinda Bencic +2300
Barbora Krejcikova +2500
Paula Badosa Gibert +3000
Sofia Kenin +3000
Elise Mertens +3000
Karolina Pliskova +3000
Angelique Kerber +3300
Karolina Muchova +3300
Ons Jabeur +5000
Veronika Kudermetova +5000
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova +5000
Kiki Bertens +6600
Petra Martic +7500
Read our Team USA Medal Count Picks and Team GB Medal Count Picks.
