Tennis Betting Advice - June 2020
33/1 underdog for the Battle of the Brits...
Tuesday 23rd June 2020
In your Ones to Watch email today:
Bookies deliver for the Battle of the Brits…
It’s not often the bookies give you what you want. But I’ve been banging on for the last couple of weeks about how good it would be to see a few firms price up an Outright Winner market for this week’s ‘Battle of the Brits’ tournament. And a good set of bookmakers have obliged…
In fact, the likes of Skybet have even priced up Outright markets for the Singles, Doubles AND Group Winner categories. Good to see.
As anticipated, the big names are at short prices. And the Outright Winner, Each Way terms are 1/3rd odds for reaching the final, rather than the standard 1/2 odds.
But that’s fair enough, considering this event is played in a round-robin group stage, with the top two men from each group going to the semi finals. In that respect, it’s less precarious than your usual knockout tournament; you can lose a match and still stand a chance of turning it around and qualifying for the semi finals.
Play starts in the Singles event from 2.30pm today. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the players & prices:
‘Henman Group’:
Andy Murray
Kyle Edmund
Liam Broady
James Ward
‘Rusedski Group’:
Dan Evans
Cameron Norrie
Jay Clarke
Jack Draper
Outright Winner prices – taken from Bet365:
Dan Evans 13/8 (2.63)
Andy Murray 7/4 (2.75)
Kyle Edmund 11/4 (3.75)
Cameron Norrie 12/1 (13.00)
Jack Draper 33/1 (34.00)
Liam Broady 40/1 (41.00)
Jay Clarke 40/1 (41.00)
James Ward 40/1 (41.00)
Ones to Watch picks at 12/1 and 33/1…
With the group draws and outright prices in mind, the two players I like as Ones to Watch outsider selections are 12/1 Cameron Norrie and 33/1 Jack Draper.
In the Rusedski Group, I strongly fancy one of those two to go through, along with the favourite Evans. From then on, Norrie or Draper would be in the semis, one match away from the final and an Each Way return.
There’s a strong likelihood that if that pans out, Cameron or Jack’s semi final opponent would be Andy Murray or Kyle Edmund. But in these post-lockdown, behind-closed-doors conditions, we certainly can’t rule out the possibility of a shock.
Murray has been having fun on social media in the build-up and promotion to this event, poking fun at himself, praising his opponents and their chances. And with tongue in cheek, Andy has been basically suggesting that he has ‘no chance’ here. Yes, he has a metal hip, is 33 years old now and hasn’t played for some time. But this guy is a born competitor, knows how to win, and loves winning.
Favourite backers might not go far wrong predicting a final involving any two of Murray, Edmund and British No.1 Evans. But those Outright Winner prices listed above don’t do much for me.
As underdogs that can make a mark here, here are my thoughts on Norrie and Draper:
Norrie is on my radar as the British ‘best of the rest’ after that trio, and with a double-figure price tag, the sometimes-fiery left-hander might be keen to prove himself here. All of his career Singles finals have come on hard courts, which is the playing surface for this event, at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton.
Draper garnered a bit of hype as a 16-year-old, and now age 18, the teenager can start to make his name on the Senior tour in the months & years to come. He’s another left-hander. Before lockdown hit, Draper had started 2020 in good form, winning 13 out of 16 matches on the lower-tier tours, all on hard courts.
Murray has been joking around and exaggerating things a little in his online comments this week. But Andy does keep a keen eye on the progress of his fellow Brits – and maybe this comment has something to it:
“Favourite’s Evans. Norrie and Draper most likely winners if they can hold it together under the bright light”…
Battle of the Brits:
Outright Winner – Each Way
Each Way terms: 1/3 odds 1-2 places.
Play starts today from 2.30pm, so if you’re betting in the Outright markets, you’ll need to get your bets down by then. If you miss out, don’t worry, the market will go back up at the end of the day’s play. Norrie & Draper play tomorrow.
Every match is being shown live on Amazon Prime Video.
I’ll be back each day of the Battle of the Brits this week, with my analysis and advice. Over the next few days, we’ll also be looking at the women’s event in Charleston, USA, which starts this evening.
See you tomorrow.
Enjoy the tennis,
Best wishes,
Tom Wilson