Wimbledon day five predictions & tennis betting tips: Muller may not be embarrassed by top seed

Where to watch

Live on BBC One, BBC Two & BBC iPlayer, from 11am Friday

Best bets

At least one tiebreak in Carlos Alcaraz v Alexandre Muller
1pt 13-8 bet365

Paula Badosa to beat Marta Kostyuk
1pt 8-13 general

Natalija Stevanovic to beat Tamara Korpatsch
1pt 4-5 Hills

Under 19.5 games in Madison Brengle v Ekaterina Alexandrova
1pt 10-11 bet365

Wimbledon day five preview 

Wimbledon is catching up fast after two days of rain-affected play and day five at the All England Club is scheduled to see both top seed Carlos Alcaraz and defending champion Novak Djokovic back on court.

Djokovic takes on his old rival Stan Wawrinka in an entertaining third-round encounter, while Alcaraz takes on Frenchman Alexandre Muller in round two.

In the women's draw, there's a thriller in store between resurgent duo Elina Svitolina and qualifier Sofia Kenin while top seed Iga Swiatek takes on Petra Martic.

Carlos Alcaraz v Alexandre Muller 

Carlos Alcaraz looks like the only threat to Novak Djokovic retaining the Wimbledon crown, but the world number one is currently going through a steep learning curve on grass and his clash against Alexandre Muller may not be quite as one-sided as the betting implies.

Muller, runner-up on clay in Marrakesh in April, is making the most of the opportunities that come his way and the 26-year-old Frenchman, who should be close to his physical peak, may be capable of posing the odd problem for Alcaraz in at least one set.

The outsider is no stranger to contesting tiebreaks and although Alcaraz is obviously likely to finish the match with a flourish, it may be worth chancing that at least one of their sets contains 13 games.

Marta Kostyuk v Paula Badosa 

Paula Badosa has made a slow start to the season but there have been signs of late that the Spaniard's game may be coming together.

She was ranked number two in the world only last year and her star has fallen quite a bit since, but Badosa looks happier since hooking up with boyfriend Stefanos Tsitsipas. The pair are set to play mixed doubles at the All England Club.

Kostyuk did well to upset eighth seed Maria Sakkari in her opener. The Ukrainian possesses plenty of promise but may lack the experience to get over the line against Badosa, who beat Alison Riske-Amritraj in straight sets in her Wimbledon curtain-raiser.

There is better to come from Kostyuk but this match is Badosa's to lose.

Natalija Stevanovic v Tamara Korpatsch

Qualifier Natalija Stevanovic looks the bet when she takes on lucky-loser Tamara Korpatsch with a third-round place the prize.

Stevanovic is something of a late-developer, but she's playing some decent tennis at present and her limited German opponent is not expected to trouble the selection unduly.

Korpatsch has had bags of opportunities to shine - many in her own homeland - but often fails to hit the required mark and Stevanovic is preferred.

Madison Brengle v Ekaterina Alexandrova

Madison Brengle bossed veteran Sara Errani in round one but faces a potentially tougher outing against Ekaterina Alexandrova in the last 64.

Alexandrova retained the Den Bosch title on grass last month so is clearly playing well on the fast terrain again.

She's capable of going deep in the singles draw at the All England Club and should prevail with ease against the American journeywoman.

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