Astana Open 2022: Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick

Match Details

Fixture: (4) Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin

Tournament: Astana Open 2022.

Round: First round (Round of 32).

Venue: Astana, Kazakhstan.

Category: ATP 500.

Surface: Hard.

Prize money: $1,900,000.

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | Australia - beIN Sports.

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Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin preview

Djokovic is the fourth seed at the Astana Open

Fourth seed Novak Djokovic will square off against Cristian Garin in the first round of the Astana Open on Monday.

Djokovic has had a pretty good season despite not playing a lot of tennis. He won two titles, with his first coming at the Italian Open, where he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. The 35-year-old also won his 21st Grand Slam title at Wimbledon by beating Nick Kyrgios in the final.

Djokovic is currently competing at the Tel Aviv Open and started his campaign by thrashing Pablo Andujar 6-0, 6-3. He then beat Vasek Pospisil 7-6(5), 6-3 before defeating Roman Safiullin 6-1, 7-6(3) to reach the final.

Cristian Garin reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon this season

Cristian Garin has had a pretty disappointing season so far, dropping from 17th to 79th in the rankings. His most notable achievement was reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, where he lost to eventual runner-up Nick Kyrgios.

Following the grass-court Major, Garin suffered opening-round defeats at the Swiss Open in Gstaad and the Austrian Open in Kitzbuhel. He was unseeded at the US Open and reached the second round after beating Jiri Lehecka. However, he lost to Alex de Minaur in four sets.

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Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin head-to-head

Djokovic leads 2-0 in the head-to-head against Garin. The first meeting between the pair took place at the 2020 ATP Cup, with the Serb winning 6-3, 6-3. Djokovic then beat Garin 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in the fourth round of Wimbledon 2021.

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Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin odds

Player	Moneyline	Handicap Bets	Total Games (Over and Under)
Novak Djokovic	-2000	-6.5 (+100)	Over 18.5 (-110)
Cristian Garin	+850	+6.5 (-140)	Under 18.5 (-130)

(All odds are sourced from BetMGM).

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Novak Djokovic vs Cristian Garin prediction

Djokovic has been in fine form this week in Tel Aviv and will enter the first-round match against Garin in Astana as the overwhelming favorite.

Garin possesses a strong forehand and will look to use it to keep Djokovic behind the baseline. He will look to keep the rallies going for as long as possible and hope that Djokovic blinks first. However, the Serb is more than willing to be patient, which might necessitate Garin to be more aggressive than usual.

Djokovic looks in good nick despite spending a few months on the sidelines. He should have little trouble getting past the struggling Chilean.

Pick: Djokovic to win in straight sets.