Botic van de Zandschulp vs Novak Djokovic Prediction: another devastating defeat by Novak

In the Astana Open round of 16, former world number one Novak Djokovic will face world number 34 DutchmanBotic van de Zandschulp. The men have never crossed paths, but it makes sense that the Serb would be the odds-on favorite to win the title.

After two victories in the Davis Cup, Botic van de Zandschulp played two matches at the tournament in Tel Aviv, beating Sousa of Portugal, but was weaker than Broady of Great Britain. In Astana, the Dutchman easily defeated the 327th-ranked Zhukayev, the score at 6-1, 6-1. Botic scored one ace with two double faults, winning 90% of points on the first serve and 44% on the second one. The Dutchman was 55%/65% on the receiving end.

Djokovic is moving steadily towards his goal of qualifying for the Finals in London. Last week the Serb beat Cilic of Croatia in Tel Aviv in the finals. And the Balkan began his tournament in Astana with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Garin. There is a feeling that Novak won't feel sorry for Botic either. On the other hand, the Dutchman is tougher than the Chilean.

Botic is quite stable on tiebreaks. However, the Dutchman doesn't have the armor-piercing serve that Pospisil, one of Djokovic's rivals at the Tel Aviv tournament, has, for example. Djokovic has almost the best serve on the planet, he is in great shape, and in terms of stability very few people can compete with the Serb. If the Balkan is in good shape. In addition we should not forget about Novak's high motivation for the tournament as a whole, and thus for the upcoming match. Here are the betting options for this game:

Total Under (19.5) for 1.83 at 1xbet & Bet365;

H2 (-5.5) for 1.85 at Betway.