Tennis Betting: How to Bet on Tennis, Odds and Markets Explained
October 22, 2026
Tennis betting is betting on the result of a tennis match: who wins, by how many games, in how many sets, how many games are played and whether there is a tie-break. A match has two players and no draw, so the main market has two prices. This guide explains tennis betting odds, the markets you will find on a match and what happens to a bet when a player retires, with figures from more than 24,000 ATP and WTA tour matches from 2021 to 2025.
How tennis scoring works for betting
- Games: a game is won by the first player to four points with a two-point lead (15, 30, 40, game).
- Sets: a set is won by the first player to six games with a two-game lead. At 6-6 a tie-break decides it, and the set goes in the score as 7-6.
- Matches: men’s Grand Slam matches are best of five sets; almost everything else on the ATP and WTA tours is best of three. At the Grand Slams a deciding set that reaches 6-6 is settled by a first-to-10-point tie-break.
Handicaps and totals on a tennis match are counted in games, not points, and set betting is counted in sets.
Tennis betting odds explained
A tennis match winner market shows one price for each player. In decimal odds the price is the total return per unit staked: a 10 bet at 1.40 returns 14, and at 3.00 it returns 30. Dividing 1 by the price gives the chance it implies, so 1.40 implies 71.4% and 3.00 implies 33.3%. The two implied chances add up to a little over 100%, and the extra is the sportsbook’s margin. Across the 24,424 completed tour matches from 2021 to 2025, the average closing prices across bookmakers carried a margin of 5.5%.
The odds formats guide converts decimal odds into American and Asian formats. In American odds a favourite is shown with a minus sign: −250 is the same as 1.40, and +200 is the same as 3.00.
How often the favourite wins
The favourite, the player with the shorter price, won 68.3% of those 24,424 matches. Grouped by the favourite’s closing price, the results line up closely with the chance each price implied once the margin is taken out:
| Favourite’s price | Matches | Favourite won | Chance implied by the price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1.20 | 4,138 | 88.8% | 85.7% |
| 1.20–1.39 | 6,466 | 75.1% | 73.3% |
| 1.40–1.59 | 6,713 | 63.9% | 63.5% |
| 1.60–1.79 | 5,403 | 55.4% | 56.2% |
| 1.80–2.00 | 1,702 | 51.2% | 51.5% |
The format matters more than the surface. In men’s best-of-five Grand Slam matches the favourite won 74.8%, against 66.7% in men’s best-of-three matches, because a longer match leaves less room for one bad set to decide it. By surface the favourite’s win rate moved only a few points: 67.8% on hard courts, 68.1% on clay and 70.0% on grass on the ATP tour.
Tennis betting markets
A single ATP match on 22bet carries close to 180 selections, plus separate events for the first and second sets and for aces and breaks. These are the main markets:
| Market | What the bet is on |
|---|---|
| Match winner | Which player wins the match. |
| Game handicap | A player’s games with a handicap added: a player at −3.5 has to win at least 4 more games than the opponent over the match. |
| Total games | Over or under a number of games in the match, such as 22.5; also each player’s own total. |
| Correct score (set betting) | The exact score in sets, such as 2-0 or 2-1. |
| Sets handicap and total sets | A player at −1.5 sets has to win in straight sets; total sets over 2.5 means the match goes to a third set. |
| Set / match | The winner of the first set and the winner of the match together. |
| Tie-break | Whether the match has at least one tie-break. |
| Come from behind and win | A player to lose the first set and still win the match. |
| Winner and total | A player to win combined with the number of sets or games. |
| Set markets | Winner, handicap and total games of the first or second set on its own. |
| Specials | A set to finish 6-0, a player to save a match point and win, aces and breaks of serve. |
Set betting and comebacks
Set betting and the “total sets” market both depend on how often a match goes the distance. Over the 2021–2025 tour matches:
| Matches | Straight sets | Went the distance | First-set winner won the match |
|---|---|---|---|
| ATP, best of three | 2-0: 63.5% | 2-1: 36.5% | 80.8% |
| WTA, best of three | 2-0: 65.8% | 2-1: 34.2% | 82.0% |
| ATP, best of five | 3-0: 44.6% (3-1: 34.3%) | 3-2: 21.1% | 76.5% |
So a player who lost the first set came back to win about one match in five in best-of-three tennis, and nearly one in four over five sets. Those are the matches that settle the “come from behind and win” market.
Total games and tie-breaks
| Matches | Average games | Median games | Over 22.5 games | At least one tie-break | A 6-0 set |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATP, best of three | 23.5 | 22 | 46.5% | 38.1% | 4.6% |
| WTA, best of three | 22.0 | 20 | 38.9% | 23.6% | 10.7% |
| ATP, best of five | 36.9 | 36 | 98.6% | 48.1% | 8.3% |
Men’s matches run longer and reach more tie-breaks because more service games are held, so sets go to 6-6 more often: 19.1% of men’s sets and 11.1% of women’s sets went to a tie-break. A total-games line is set for each match, from how close the two players are and how strongly each serves; a three-set match adds a whole set’s games, which is why totals sit close to the 22–23 range in best-of-three matches.
At 22bet, a deciding set settled by a match tie-break counts as one game for match handicaps and totals.
What happens if a player retires
A player stopping mid-match is part of tennis: 2.9% of ATP matches and 3.3% of WTA matches from 2021 to 2025 ended in a retirement, and a further 0.7% and 0.9% were walkovers, where one player did not start. Sportsbooks settle these differently, so the rule is worth knowing before you bet. Under 22bet’s tennis rules:
- If a player withdraws before the match starts, stakes are refunded.
- If a player retires after the first set is completed, bets on the match winner stand and the player who carries on is the winner.
- If a player retires during the first set, match winner bets are settled at odds of 1 (the stake is returned).
- Other markets are settled at odds of 1 unless their result had already been decided when play stopped, such as the winner of a completed first set.
Most retirements come later in a match: 15.7% of ATP retirements and 19.0% of WTA retirements happened during the first set.
Before you bet on tennis
- Check the format. Best of three or best of five changes how often favourites win and how many games are played.
- Read the retirement rule at your sportsbook, especially for handicap and total bets.
- Know whether a line is in games or sets. A −1.5 handicap means something very different in the two.
- For bets placed while the match is running, see the in-play betting guide; for the indoor game, see table tennis betting.
Sports betting is for adults 18 and over. Set a budget before you bet and stop when it is used up.
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Tennis Betting FAQ
How do you bet on tennis?
Pick a match and a market, such as the match winner, a game handicap or total games, and enter your stake. A decimal price shows the total return per unit staked: a 10 bet at 1.40 returns 14 if the bet wins.
How do tennis betting odds work?
Each player has a price, and 1 divided by the price is the chance it implies: 1.40 implies 71.4%. The two chances add up to slightly more than 100%; the extra is the sportsbook’s margin, which averaged 5.5% on ATP and WTA match prices from 2021 to 2025.
How often does the favourite win in tennis?
In 68.3% of 24,424 completed ATP and WTA matches from 2021 to 2025. Favourites priced under 1.20 won 88.8%; those priced 1.80 to 2.00 won 51.2%.
What does +1.5 mean in tennis betting?
It depends on the market. In a game handicap, +1.5 adds one and a half games to the player’s total, so the bet wins if they lose by no more than one game over the match or win it. In a sets handicap, +1.5 sets wins unless the player loses in straight sets.
What is set betting in tennis?
A bet on the exact score in sets, such as 2-0 or 2-1. From 2021 to 2025, 63.5% of men’s best-of-three matches finished 2-0 and 36.5% went to a third set.
How many games are in a tennis match on average?
23.5 in men’s best-of-three matches, 22.0 in women’s matches and 36.9 in men’s best-of-five Grand Slam matches, in tour matches from 2021 to 2025.
What happens to my bet if a tennis player retires?
At 22bet, match winner bets stand if the first set was completed and are refunded if the player retired during the first set. Other bets are refunded unless their result had already been decided. Rules differ between sportsbooks, so check yours.
Does a tie-break count as a game?
Yes. A set won in a tie-break goes in the score as 7-6, so it counts as 13 games. At 22bet a deciding-set match tie-break also counts as one game for match handicaps and totals.