Will it be the expected clear win for Djokovic?

Even at 38, Novak Djokovic still has a passion for tennis and would like another chance at a Grand Slam title. Just two years ago, he triumphed at Roland Garros for the third time in his career. Now, however, the Djoker has a difficult draw ahead of him. At least in the opening match between Mackenzie McDonald and Novak Djokovic, our tip is for the Serbian superstar to advance without any problems.

Mackenzie McDonald is not a particularly dangerous opponent to start with. The American is only ranked 98th in the ATP world rankings and has lost his opening match at the French Open twice in a row. Overall, the 30-year-old has only won four of his ten singles matches at Roland Garros, which is why it would be far too risky to predict that Mackenzie McDonald will win even a single set against Novak Djokovic.

It cannot be completely ruled out that Djoker is increasingly paying tribute to his age and has already lost seven of his 23 singles matches in the 2025 season. Nevertheless, Nole just reached the final of his dress rehearsal in Geneva and even won it, celebrating his 100th tournament victory on the ATP Tour – another milestone in the career of this exceptional athlete.

Mackenzie McDonald – Statistics & current form

30-year-old American Mackenzie McDonald is likely to be a relatively unknown quantity even to many seasoned tennis fans. This is hardly surprising, as the Californian has spent most of his career on the ATP Challenger Tour and in ITF tournaments and has never won an ATP Tour title. Only at the Citi Open in Washington did he make it to the final of an ATP 500 tournament in the 2021 season, where he was defeated 1-2 by Jannik Sinner.

In the 2025 season, the man from Berkeley has played just eight ranked singles matches on the ATP Tour, winning only four of them. Most recently, he lost in the first round of qualifying at both the clay court tournament in Munich and the Madrid Masters. In Munich, he even lost to Diego Dedura, ranked 549th in the ATP world rankings, 0-2 (3-6, 1-6), which in principle already gives a glimpse of his current form.

Mackenzie McDonald has only won four singles matches at the French Open

No wonder, then, that the odds are so clearly against Mackenzie McDonald against Novak Djokovic. Bet-at-home is not only offering a Bet-at-home promo code, but is also going out on a limb with its odds. Fans of underdog bets can currently find odds of 30.00 at this bookmaker for Mackenzie McDonald to knock the 24-time Grand Slam champion out of the competition.

However, the gulf between the two athletes is also clear when you consider that the 30-year-old has only played in 25 Grand Slam tournaments. The world number 98 recently failed to qualify for the Australian Open 2025. Djokovic, meanwhile, has 24 overall victories to his name. The Californian, on the other hand, has won just 18 matches in his 25 Grand Slam singles appearances and has only four wins from ten singles matches at Roland Garros – a win rate of just 40 percent.

Novak Djokovic – Statistics & current form

38-year-old Serbian Novak Djokovic has just gained fresh confidence in Geneva, where he won his first singles title of the year with four singles victories, bringing his total to 100 tournament wins on the ATP Tour. He defeated Hubert Hurkacz (ATP 31) 2-1 in the grand final. The Djoker naturally wants to build on this success at Roland Garros, where he won his third and most recent Grand Slam title in 2023. Should he secure the tournament victory again this year, it would not only be his 25th Grand Slam, but also his fourth career Grand Slam. No one has ever achieved this before him.

One thing is certain: his tournament draw is tough. Denis Shapovalov could be waiting for him in the third round. The subsequent path to the final could lead via Daniil Medvedev in the round of 16, Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals and Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals. Then there is also a certain Carlos Alcaraz as a possible opponent in the final.

Novak Djokovic with strong French Open record

At least in the opening match between Mackenzie McDonald and Novak Djokovic, the odds are in favor of an easy victory for the Djoker. The 38 years that the 24-time Grand Slam winner now has under his belt are becoming increasingly noticeable. Nole has already lost seven of his 23 singles matches in the 2025 season. However, the current world number six has not lost in the first round of a men’s singles Grand Slam tournament since 2006. At Roland Garros, he has reached at least the quarter-finals every year since 2010.

In fact, the Serb, who normally prefers hard courts, has an impressive record at the French Open. Djoker has already played 112 singles matches at the Stade Roland Garros. He has won an impressive 96 of those matches, which corresponds to a win rate of 86 percent. It is hard to imagine that this strong record will be tarnished by someone as unknown as Mackenzie McDonald.

Mackenzie McDonald – Novak Djokovic Head-to-head record / H2H record

Head to head: 0:0

These two athletes have never faced each other before and are now playing their first match against each other. Accordingly, there is no head-to-head data available that could influence our prediction for Mackenzie McDonald against Novak Djokovic.

Mackenzie McDonald – Novak Djokovic Tip

The betting odds for Mackenzie McDonald vs. Novak Djokovic are clearly and unmistakably in favor of the Serbian superstar, whose progress is not in doubt among the best bookmakers. Across the board, the odds for a Djoker victory are nowhere higher than 1.01, which of course offers no value whatsoever. However, a victory for his US challenger would probably be one of the biggest surprises in the entire history of the French Open, which is why even long shots offer no positive expected value.

This leaves us with only one approach: betting on a very clear victory for the Serbian superstar. We are giving Djoker a generous handicap of -9.5 games, which he will probably only be challenged for in the third round by Denis Shapovalov, before facing a potential clash with Daniil Medvedev or Stan Wawrinka in the fourth section of the tournament draw.