French Open 2017: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal Betting Odds To Win Ahead Of Grand Slam

The 2017 French Open is four weeks away, with this year's Grand Slam holding a bit more significance due to the resurgence of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, and with defending champion Novak Djokovic's recent dip in form.

According to betting site Bovada.lv, Nadal leads the pack to win at Roland Garros with +125 odds. The nine-time champion is followed by Djokovic (+300), world No. 1 Andy Murray (+500), 2015 champion Stan Wawrinka (+800) and then 2009 winner Federer (+1200).

Nadal has rediscovered his form in 2017 with a 29-5 record and coming off two tournament victories. At the Monte Carlo Master and Barcelona Open, he lost just one set in 10 matches. The Spaniard, who has moved up to No. 5 in the ATP rankings, cruised to a 6-4 6-1 win over Dominic Thiem Sunday on what was essentially his home turf.

“It was a close first set and a good quality of tennis,” said Nadal. “Anything could have happened, but then I started playing at a very high level in the second set, and Dominic probably started making a few more mistakes.”

But Nadal has been playing at a high level all year, which should be cause for concern for his French Open opponents. Arguably the greatest clay-court player in history, he reached the final of the Australian Open, a hard-court tournament he's only won once. Nadal has mostly been held back by Federer, who is responsible for three of Nadal's five defeats in 2017.

Federer, ranked No. 4 in the world, has been absent from the ATP tour since defeating Nadal at the Miami Open in early April. Over the weekend, he played with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates at Key Arena in Seattle to raise $2 million for the Roger Federer Foundation.

The 35-year-old has no plans to skip the French Open, recently stating he's "registered" and that his "intention is to play."

Federer's only loss since winning the Australian Open was to Evgeny Donskoy in a very tight second-round match at the Dubai Tennis Championships in February. Since then, the Swiss legend has won 12 consecutive matches.

Part of the intrigue over the French Open will be whether Murray, Djokovic, Wawrinka or others can overcome the challenge of Nadal and Federer. Indeed, while Nadal and Federer have thrived this year, their top rivals have languished.

Murray has had his struggles in 2017, only winning in Dubai, a hard-court tournament. The Scot has just a 4-2 record since returning from an elbow injury, with his losses coming against Thiem in Barcelona and Albert Ramos-Vinolas in Monte Carlo.

Djokovic has also not looked like himself this year. The hard-hitting Serb lost a five-set battle with little-known Denis Istomin in the second round of the Australian Open, a tournament Djokovic had won six times. The 29-year-old recently bowed out of Monte Carlo to David Goffin in the quarterfinals.

"My career is in a slightly different rhythm from the previous year," Djokovic told Serbian news outlet Novosti in April. "I decided to cut down the rhythm, to preserve my health and prolong the career and to dedicate myself more, at the cost of not having to win every tournament I play."

Wawrinka played the best tennis of his life when he defeated Djokovic in the 2015 French Open final and shocked Djokovic again at the 2016 U.S. Open. But in 2017 he has yet to win a tournament, though he gave his fellow countryman Federer some trouble at Indian Wells.

The French Open begins on May 28.