Casper Ruud isn’t subtle about how he feels about the grass-court season.
After finishing runner-up to Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros last month, Ruud decided to take the next three weeks off to play golf and get in some well-deserved R&R rather than play any warm-up events for Wimbledon.
It was the second year in a row the Norwegian opted to forego any grass tennis tournaments before the year’s third Grand Slam.
This out-in-the-open disinterest for grass-court tennis has certainly played its part in making Ruud an unfancied favorite at Wimbledon despite the fact that he’s the fourth seed.
Casper Ruud vs. Liam Broady pick
The other reason nobody seems interested in laying big prices on Ruud is that he’s only 4-6 in his career on the lawn and he’s never made it past the second round at Wimbledon in his career.
Ruud’s opponent on Wednesday is a very different case. Liam Broady, a 29-year-old Englishman, has played 76 professional grass-court matches and though his record isn’t grand (28-48) he’s got a huge edge in experience over the Norwegian.
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That gap — plus the fact that Broady will have the crowd on his side — is enough for me to bite on the big price on Wednesday.
Our pick
Liam Broady +340 (FanDuel)
