ATP Qatar Open 2024 Odds: Humbert to continue improvement

The ATP World Tour heads to the Middle East this week for the first of two events in the region, the ATP Qatar Open at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex. 

Several superstars have won this title including Roger Federer (three times), Andy Murray (twice), Novak Djokovic (twice) and Rafael Nadal (once), but the current ATP elite - including 2023 champion Daniil Medvedev - have opted not to participate in the 2024 event. 

Andrey Rublev, a quarter-finalist in Rotterdam last week, won this title in 2020 and he's the top seed in a draw which also features fellow Russian Karen Khachanov, Frenchman Ugo Humbert and Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik, who make up the top four seeds. 

Ugo Humbert to win ATP Qatar Open 2024 @ 6/1

Rublev has built a career on being a relentless accumulator of 250 and 500 Series titles and the consistent 26-year-old is the obvious starting point for Qatar Open punters as he looks to justify his top-seed status. 

The 15-time ATP Tour champion has a straightforward path to a potential quarter-final clash with Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who he has beaten in all three previous meetings. 

However, Rublev's chance is reflected in his short outright odds and a better bet comes in the form of third seed Humbert, who could meet the 2020 winner in the semi-finals. 

Humbert has never played in this event before, but the Frenchman arrives in Qatar ranked at career-high 18th in the world having claimed titles in his homeland in Metz in November and Marseille earlier this month. 

The 25-year-old saw off a particularly impressive list of victims in Marseille, beating Hugo Gaston, Davidovich Fokina, Hubert Hurkacz and in-form Grigor Dimitrov, so he'll be full of confidence despite last week's early exit in Rotterdam. 

While Rublev could stand in the way of Humbert and a spot in the final, the Frenchman has won two of his last four meetings with the Russian so he knows he has a chance should they meet again. 

Emil Ruusuvuori to win ATP Qatar Open 2024 @ 12/1

Khachanov is the top seed in the bottom half of the Doha draw, but he's not the most prolific performer, even if he did break a victory drought of almost five years when winning the Zhuhai Championships in September. 

The big-hitting Muscovite has a habit of coming up short at the business end and looks worth taking on. 

Montpellier champion Bublik will fancy his chances having finally got his act together, but the each-way value could lie with Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori, who has the potential to be ranked significantly higher than his current position of 55th in the world. 

Ruusuvuori is still waiting for a first ATP Tour title, but the 24-year-old impressed in Hong Kong at the beginning of the season, reaching the final where he found Rublev too strong. 

He beat a jaded Humbert and Jan-Lennard Struff in Rotterdam,before being edged out in a tight 7-5 7-6 contest by home favourite Tallon Griekspoor in the quarter-finals. Expect the Finn to build on that effort. 

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