Seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic takes on Dan Evans in the second round at the All England Club on Thursday morning.
Let’s preview the match through the lens of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Novak Djokovic vs. Dan Evans preview
Novak Djokovic is facing Dan Evans in the second round at Wimbledon. Djokovic is on a mission to win his eighth Wimbledon championship. His 24 total Grand Slam titles are the most of any man in the Open Era. However, he is one Wimbledon title away from matching Roger Federer for the most men’s singles Wimbledon titles ever. Djokovic only has a couple of years left under his belt, and this could be his last real chance to win that title. He is still one of the best players in the world, making the semifinals of both Grand Slams so far this season. He has also made two straight Wimbledon finals, losing to Carlos Alcaraz in both 2023 and 2024. Djokovic will look to take it one step further this year, and hopefully not have to face Alcaraz, so that he can be etched alongside Federer as the best man this event has ever seen.
In the second round, Djokovic will take on Evans. The 35-year-old Brit will have the crowd on his side, but not the form. Evans did well to defeat a fellow Englishman, Jay Clarke, in three sets in the first round. In 2023, Evans got as high as No. 21 in the world, but has dropped all the way to World No. 154. Evans has had some bright spots in his career, including making the Olympics quarterfinals in doubles alongside Andy Murray in 2024. He has upset high-profile players this season, including Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe. Although he has not defeated a top-10 player in the world since 2023.
Djokovic vs. Evans pick, best bet
Shockingly, for two players with such experience, they have only faced off once in their careers. That came back in 2021 at the ATP Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo, where Evans pulled off the upset over Djokovic, 6-4, 7-5. At that time, Evans was a top-35 player in the world, so it was a much different phase of his career. However, that win in their lone meeting could give him some extra confidence that he could pull off this incredible upset. Unfortunately, the reality is that Evans is completely out of his league in this matchup. Evans didn’t even make it out of qualifying in either of the first two Grand Slams of this season, while Djokovic made the semifinals of both.
Djokovic will win this match, barring a miracle, but I am betting on Evans to steal a set. This could be Evans’ final trip to Wimbledon in front of his home fans, and he will look to put up a great fight. The confidence of beating Djokovic in the past should give him some false hope that will be just enough to steal a break needed to win a set. Djokovic had one shaky set in the first round, where he dropped the set to Alexandre Muller. Djokovic is unlikely to be shaky for longer than a couple of games, but if Evans can capitalize on those games, he can steal a set and make this a 3:1 finish.
