Here we go again...

Friday 3rd November 2023

Good morning. Friday is quarter finals day on the ATP Tour. And once again, we have a couple of opportunities for our big-odds Ones to Watch picks...

Our riders have tended to fall at this hurdle more often than we'd have liked this season. Today we have two more outsiders, playing well - and certainly in with a chance...

Rolex Paris Masters - Quarter Finals:

Holger Rune (backed at 50/1 - 40/1... now 12/1)

Karen Khachanov (70/1 - 40/1... now 14/1)

• View original advice here

Rune takes on Novak Djokovic. Obviously, the Danish youngster is the underdog in the betting, at around 7/2 (4.5) and 3/1 (4.0). But Novak didn't look at his best last night. And the head-to-head is 2-1 to the energetic 20-year-old - with Rune coming out on top in their one meeting so far this year, and also 12 months ago in the final of this very event...

Khachanov is up against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Again, the higher-ranked player is the favourite. While our man is priced as a 6/4 (2.5) shot. The head-to-head is in Tsitsipas' court - with the career record reading 6-2 to the Greek. However, Khachanov won their most recent meeting, on hard courts earlier this season. And Stef has had a ropey year by his standards. Khachanov won the biggest title of his career here in Paris back in 2018 - and that has got to give him some spirit...

Play starts in Paris from 1pm, UK time. Our matches are scheduled second and third on court. If you're able to watch live, Amazon Prime Video are showing all the action. Along with live streaming with the likes of Bet365.

• A note on one of our 'losing' selections this week. Jannik Sinner was handed a dreadful schedule in Paris - read more here. Can't blame him too much for pulling out with fatigue. Under most bookies' rules, Sinner's withdrawal after winning his first match makes our 9/1 tournament Outright Winner bet a loser. Although Skybet's rules suggest that they void bets in these circumstances... 

Next week, we'll be sticking with the men's indoor hard-court tennis - with the tour heading to Sofia and Metz...

Enjoy the tennis…

P.S
Want to get in touch? Email me at: oliver.upstone@oxonpress.co.uk

Best wishes,

Oliver Upstone

Ones to Watch