Aussie Open heats up
By Bodog
Australian Open Full Betting Analysis
Tennis is one of the feature attractions on the summer sports betting calendar. Well, it?s summertime somewhere in the world ? like Australia, where the best players on the planet are warming up for the first major tournament of the year, the Australian Open.
Ladies First
The 98th edition gets underway at Melbourne Park on Jan. 18 with a special gift for handicappers: the return of former women?s top-ranked player Justine Henin after a 20-month break. Henin was the alpha female on the women?s draw in 2003 and again in 2007-08 after overcoming injuries and personal matters. The Belgian native won 10 of the 14 tournaments she played in 2007 (including the French and U.S. Opens) and posted an overall record of 63-4. Chalkeaters were delighted to ride Henin to the pay window. ?(It?s) sort of like we've got the female (Roger) Federer, or maybe the guys have the male Justine Henin,? former champion Martina Navratilova told reporters at Roland Garros.
Will those good times return as well? Henin isn?t alone on the comeback trail in Melbourne. Another Belgian player and former No. 1 Kim Clijsters is competing in just her second major tournament since ending her two-year retirement last August. In her first major back on tour, Clijsters won the 2009 U.S. Open at tennis odds of 40-1 (Bet $100 to win $4,000). And Clijsters struck first blood in their renewed rivalry by beating Henin last week?s entertaining final at the warm-up event in Brisbane.
That match was a textbook example of what we?ve come to expect from these two. Clijsters showed better athletic form, but was nervous and coughed up an early lead to the steely Henin. And yet Clijsters was able to get back on her horse and regain the advantage, showing a composure at age 26 (and as a wife and mother) that she wasn?t always able to muster before her retirement.
Clijsters? triumph in Brisbane makes her the co-favorite to take her first-ever Australian Open at 7-2, ahead of Henin at 5-1 and tied with current World?s No. 1 and defending Open champion Serena Williams. Serena?s Aussie warm-up is underway right now in Sydney, where she?s the first seed in a draw that has already claimed four of the top 10 seeds in the opening two rounds. Clijsters beat both Serena and Venus Williams (16-1) at the U.S. Open last year. The draw for the Australian Open won?t be released until later this week but Henin has the most value of the top three contenders at this point.
Is Roger done?
As for the aforementioned Federer, he?s already hitting the ball around at Melbourne after losing 4-6, 4-6 to Nikolay Davydenko at the opening event of the year in Qatar. Davydenko went on to defeat Rafael Nadal in final (three sets), completing the 1-2 sweep of the top seeds on the men?s draw. He?s never even been to the finals at a major tournament, but the sixth-ranked Davydenko is suddenly an interesting outside bet at 12-1 to win this month?s Open.
Roger remains the 5-2 favorite to take his fourth career Aussie Open, but he?s got some company near the top of the odds list. Nadal, the defending champion, is next at 9-2, followed by Andy Murray at 11-2.
Murray is on the cusp of a breakout season; the young Scotsman has beaten Federer in six of their last nine matches (all on the hardcourt) and split his last four encounters with Nadal, going 2-1 on hard surfaces. Murray comes into this event rested and has some adjustments to make after losing to Tommy Robredo, the No. 16 player in the world.
Federer and Nadal are very likely to be put on opposite sides of the draw, so anyone else with dreams of winning the Australian Open will very likely have to beat both men, as Davydenko did in Qatar. The only other players being given a fighting chance by the betting public are No. 3 Novak Djokovic and No. 4 Juan Martin Del Potro, each priced at 7-1. Djokovic upset Federer but was able to avoid Nadal en route to the 2008 Australian Open title. Del Potro, on the other hand, completed the Nadal-Federer double to win the 2009 U.S. Open, his first-ever major victory. Looks like we have a very competitive tennis season on our hands and the value is buzzing for gamblers.
Check out the Odds
By Bodog
Australian Open Full Betting Analysis
Tennis is one of the feature attractions on the summer sports betting calendar. Well, it?s summertime somewhere in the world ? like Australia, where the best players on the planet are warming up for the first major tournament of the year, the Australian Open.
Ladies First
The 98th edition gets underway at Melbourne Park on Jan. 18 with a special gift for handicappers: the return of former women?s top-ranked player Justine Henin after a 20-month break. Henin was the alpha female on the women?s draw in 2003 and again in 2007-08 after overcoming injuries and personal matters. The Belgian native won 10 of the 14 tournaments she played in 2007 (including the French and U.S. Opens) and posted an overall record of 63-4. Chalkeaters were delighted to ride Henin to the pay window. ?(It?s) sort of like we've got the female (Roger) Federer, or maybe the guys have the male Justine Henin,? former champion Martina Navratilova told reporters at Roland Garros.
Will those good times return as well? Henin isn?t alone on the comeback trail in Melbourne. Another Belgian player and former No. 1 Kim Clijsters is competing in just her second major tournament since ending her two-year retirement last August. In her first major back on tour, Clijsters won the 2009 U.S. Open at tennis odds of 40-1 (Bet $100 to win $4,000). And Clijsters struck first blood in their renewed rivalry by beating Henin last week?s entertaining final at the warm-up event in Brisbane.
That match was a textbook example of what we?ve come to expect from these two. Clijsters showed better athletic form, but was nervous and coughed up an early lead to the steely Henin. And yet Clijsters was able to get back on her horse and regain the advantage, showing a composure at age 26 (and as a wife and mother) that she wasn?t always able to muster before her retirement.
Clijsters? triumph in Brisbane makes her the co-favorite to take her first-ever Australian Open at 7-2, ahead of Henin at 5-1 and tied with current World?s No. 1 and defending Open champion Serena Williams. Serena?s Aussie warm-up is underway right now in Sydney, where she?s the first seed in a draw that has already claimed four of the top 10 seeds in the opening two rounds. Clijsters beat both Serena and Venus Williams (16-1) at the U.S. Open last year. The draw for the Australian Open won?t be released until later this week but Henin has the most value of the top three contenders at this point.
Is Roger done?
As for the aforementioned Federer, he?s already hitting the ball around at Melbourne after losing 4-6, 4-6 to Nikolay Davydenko at the opening event of the year in Qatar. Davydenko went on to defeat Rafael Nadal in final (three sets), completing the 1-2 sweep of the top seeds on the men?s draw. He?s never even been to the finals at a major tournament, but the sixth-ranked Davydenko is suddenly an interesting outside bet at 12-1 to win this month?s Open.
Roger remains the 5-2 favorite to take his fourth career Aussie Open, but he?s got some company near the top of the odds list. Nadal, the defending champion, is next at 9-2, followed by Andy Murray at 11-2.
Murray is on the cusp of a breakout season; the young Scotsman has beaten Federer in six of their last nine matches (all on the hardcourt) and split his last four encounters with Nadal, going 2-1 on hard surfaces. Murray comes into this event rested and has some adjustments to make after losing to Tommy Robredo, the No. 16 player in the world.
Federer and Nadal are very likely to be put on opposite sides of the draw, so anyone else with dreams of winning the Australian Open will very likely have to beat both men, as Davydenko did in Qatar. The only other players being given a fighting chance by the betting public are No. 3 Novak Djokovic and No. 4 Juan Martin Del Potro, each priced at 7-1. Djokovic upset Federer but was able to avoid Nadal en route to the 2008 Australian Open title. Del Potro, on the other hand, completed the Nadal-Federer double to win the 2009 U.S. Open, his first-ever major victory. Looks like we have a very competitive tennis season on our hands and the value is buzzing for gamblers.
Check out the Odds
