Friday December 3, 2010, begins the much-anticipated Davis Cup Final between France and Serbia and it concludes on December 5, 2010. Between the two very different teams, the match-up is the first Davis Cup meeting.
Currently Serbia are the favorite at -200 while France pays +150 in the betED Davis Cup Odds.
Serbia ousted the USA (3-2), Croatia (4-1) and the Czech Republic (3-2), to reach the finals. Thus far, to team Serbia, Novak Djokovic has been invaluable. In 2010 Davis Cup Singles Play, the lanky world number 2 is undefeated. Veteran Viktor Troicki, powerful Janko Tipsarevic and versatile Nenad Zimonjic are the players joining Djokovic. Djokovic is clearly the high-profile leader, although all five players have had a productive year.
Serbia chose the Belgrade Indoor Arena as the host site and it has the home court advantage. At the Arena’s hard court surface, team Serbia has not lost. Generally, on clay, the French team is more comfortable.
With purpose to the finals, the French have marched in the tournament. Germany (4-1), Spain (5-0) and Argentina (5-0) are the teams who were defeated by the balanced French team. The services of Jo Wilfried Tsonga has not been used by Captain Guy Forget. To the number one spot, flamboyant Gael Monfils has stepped up. To the team’s success, veteran Michael Llorda has also contributed impressively with his singles play. The team roster is filled out with veterans Gilles Simon and Arnaud Clement.
Between the two tennis powers, this marks the first meeting. Nine titles are won by France until date but since its 2001 championship over Australia, they have won none. To defeat Djokovic, the French will be hard pressed.
Before a sold out arena crowd craving for a win, look for Serbia to unleash its full potential. If Djokovic and Troicki team up well in the doubles, this faceoff could well end quickly. A convincing Serbian win is expected.
