French Open quarters: Djokovic a false favourite for Nadal game

In each of the last three years Novak Djokovic has tried to end Rafael Nadal’s dominance of the French Open, and he’s failed. Despite this, Coral make the world number one odds-on favourite both to beat the Spaniard (2/5) and win the only Grand Slam that has eluded him at Rolland Garros (4/5).

Away from Paris, Serbian star Djokovic has a great record on this surface against ‘the King of Clay’ Nadal, but to count him out is to underestimate his amazing achievements over the last decade.

Over the last 10 years, Nadal is a nine-time French Open winner and, to borrow from football for a moment, is going for ‘La Decima’ here. He’s 7/2 second-favourite to reign again.

Nadal is as long as 2/1 to topple Djokovic here and progress to the semis. That is an outstanding price on a man who has a perfect five wins out of five against this opponent, and only one career defeat at Roland Garros full stop.

While suggesting he can knock Djokovic out in straight sets (9/1) seems unlikely, Nadal is superb value at 6/1 to win in four sets.

If anything, Djokovic is short for a straight sets margin of victory (2/1), which would see history made. Nifty Nadal has raised his game time and again at the French Open, and punters can expect nothing less of him here.

Rounding off the last eight in the ladies’s singles draw is a first-ever battle between Swiss shocker Timea Bacsinszky, who came from a set down to slay fourth seed Petra Kvitova, and Belgian youngster Alison van Uytvanck.