Tennis Betting Advice - August 2022
Ones to Watch the week before the Open…
Sunday 21st August 2022
The road to New York is nearly done – and the big prices keep on coming…
No dice for us last week, but we continue to sniff around in the right ballpark. Our 100/1+ pick Jil Teichmann had a match point to beat Petra Kvitova in the Cincinnati 1st round. Kvitova clung on to win… and went on to go the whole way and reach this evening’s final. At the start of the tournament, the Czech was 80/1.
The other WTA Cincinnati finalist is Caroline Garcia, who has come through qualifying – so she becomes yet another huge-odds surprise in the Outright Winner markets.
In the men’s event in Ohio, 150/1 shot Borna Coric is in the ATP Cincinnati final, marking a great moment in the 25-year-old’s comeback after a couple of seasons battling with injuries. Coric will take on 20/1 Stefanos Tsitsipas in tonight’s final.
Elsewhere, another quarter final but no silverware for Jessica Pegula. While our early-bird 100/1 US Open men’s pick Cameron Norrie continues to make quietly impressive progress. A final at ATP 250 Los Cabos was followed by a Last 16 finish at the 1000 Masters in Montreal, and then a semi final at the 1000 event in Cincinnati…
Can Cam go one better and make the final in the Big Apple? Don’t rule it out. Tim Henman says this is the most open US Open he can remember in 20 – 30 years. And that’s just the men’s…
The 2021 women’s US Open produced a pair of teenage, 100/1+ finalists. An exciting New York fortnight is just around the corner.
Ones to Watch the week before the Open…
Three more North American hard-court tournaments on the schedule this week, starting today. The final stop-offs on the tours before all eyes turn to Flushing Meadows, New York…
WTA 250 Granby – Championnats Banque Nationale de Granby
WTA 250 Cleveland – Tennis in the Land presented by Motorola Edge
ATP 250 Winston-Salem – Winston-Salem Open
As is the usual statement the week before a Grand Slam: don’t expect to see many of the big names in action in these three 250-grade events. The star players will be looking to keep themselves fit and healthy for the US Open. Injury withdrawals are common in weeks like this, too; again, as players take extra caution ahead of the impending Grand Slam.
That means we often see young, new, and/ or unheralded players get to the trophy match in the tournaments directly before a ‘Slam. Let’s see who appeals at nice prices this week…
WTA Granby:
This low-status Canadian event has already seen two seeded players drop out. World no.10 Daria Kasatkina is top seed, and the 11/4 (3.75) favourite in the Outright Winner betting. Dasha has been having her best year on tour for some time, but I’m not interested in that price at all. Having reached the semi finals at the French Open this season, and then been ineligible to play Wimbledon, the likeable Russian should have her main focus on delivering on her potential in New York.
In the other side of the Granby draw, I like the chances for another ‘Dasha’ – tournament second-favourite DARIA SAVILLE. The Australian representative has only got one WTA singles title to her name, and that was on hard courts at New Haven, USA, back in 2017…
The 28-year-old is known for playing with a smile on her face, and she’s been doing a lot of that this year. In her last four WTA main-tour hard-court outings, Daria has reached a semi final in Washington, quarter final at the 1000-grade Miami Open, Last 16 at the 1000 event in Indian Wells (where she came through qualifying, winning five matches in a row before retiring injured), and a quarter final at Guadalajara. If I was Saville, I’d be looking at this week’s event as a serious opportunity to reach a final. Odds of 12/1 – 10/1 are a decent bet, given the context of this tournament.
ATP Winston-Salem:
Plenty of potential title winners here, with the young guns on the list including ones to watch such as Holger Rune and Lorenzo Musetti. Big servers and hard hitters have a habit of winning this trophy though – John Isner, Lukas Rosol, Kevin Anderson, Hubert Hurkacz, and Daniil Medvedev all franking that criteria in years gone by. As does 2021 Winston-Salem champion ILYA IVASHKA. The 28-year-old Belarusian packs a punch with his shots, and all eight of his pro-career titles at all levels have come at hard court events. Given the fact that he excelled here to lift his first ATP main-tour title last year, odds of 20/1 appeal for Ivashka this week.
I also like MAXIME CRESSY at 14/1. The American is another breakthrough player that we’ve been following this summer – including as a 40/1 shot when he made his first ATP final on grass in June at Eastbourne. Since then, Maxime has won his maiden title on the tour. And with his big serve and delicious serve & volley game continuing to deliver results, Cressy is one to follow this week in the States.
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Ones to Watch picks:
Outright Winner – Each Way (1/2 odds 1-2 places):
WTA Granby – Championnats Banque Nationale de Granby
ATP Winston-Salem – Winston-Salem Open
More bookies to price up this afternoon before play begins. Eg. Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook, BetVictor, Boylesports, Betfred, Betway.
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Play starts from 4pm UK time at Granby, and 7pm for Winston-Salem. Bookies take down their Outright Winner markets during the day’s play.
P.S
A 125/1 long-shot for today’s golf…
As you know, as well as the tennis, I also like to follow a bit of the golf. We had success with 25/1+ Cameron Smith winning The Open last month. Going into the final round of the BMW Championship today, one player to keep an eye on is Cameron Young. The American rookie is on -6, six shots off the lead. He’s come very close a few times this season, and certainly has the talent to reel off a string of birdies. Odds of 125/1 Each Way appeal if you fancy a speculative bet (1/5 odds 1-3 places with Bet365, Skybet, William Hill, Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook).
Cameron Young tees off at 5.20pm UK time.
Enjoy the tennis (and the golf)…
Best wishes,
Tom Wilson