Tennis Betting Advice - October 2021
Rising Star: Symmetry for Sinner at 25/1...
Tuesday 26th October 2021
In Ones to Watch today:
The clocks go back this weekend. Everywhere I go, I see pumpkins. The central heating’s been on. Autumn is here, folks…
This time of the year triggers a few annual Ones to Watch tasks for me. The tennis season is not over yet – far from it. We have some big tournaments still to come. Starting with the Paris Masters next week. And the 2021 ATP and WTA Finals to follow.
But there’s no doubting that as we reach November, the tours will be heading towards a brief winter hibernation. Before coming back with a bang in January 2022 – hopefully with a full quota of events, and fans allowed in stadiums.
That hasn’t been the case at the Transylvania Open in Cluj-Napoca this week, with the Romanian government bringing in new coronavirus measures, requiring the tournament to be played behind closed doors.
Back to my end-of-season jobs. One of them is going over the form, results, and achievements of the players listed in our annual Ones to Watch report…
The rising star…
Our pre-season Ones to Watch in 2021 document contained several names to look out for, focusing on young & improving players. The potential stars of the future…
One that I want to talk about today is Jannik Sinner.
Here’s what I said about Jannik in our past two pre-season reports – having also named him as a Ones to Watch youngster in our 2020 instalment…
At the start of 2020:
Jannik Sinner
Age: 18
Country: Italy
End-of-2019 World Ranking: #78
Jannik Sinner is just 18 years old but is already approaching 100 career match wins. The 6’2” right-hander is shaping up to a be a very promising all-court player: of his 98 wins, 39 have been on clay, 25 on hard courts, 32 indoors and 2 on grass.
The young Italian put himself on the radar on the main tour in the second half of 2018, reaching the semi finals at ATP Antwerp and then lifting the trophy at the end-of-season ATP ‘Next Gen’ Finals (for players aged 21 and under) indoors in Milan in November. Those results helped position Jannik as the youngest player currently in the Men’s Top 100 rankings. He won the 2019 award for ATP Newcomer of the Year.
On the lower-tier ATP Challenger Tour, Sinner reached four finals in 2019 – and won three of them. A first full ATP Tour title beckons in 2020.
And then again in our 2021 report, ahead of the current campaign:
Jannik Sinner
Age: 19
End-of-2020 World Ranking: #36
In comparison to the women’s game, where five teenagers finished 2020 inside the Top 100. The men’s ATP 2020 season-end rankings featured just one teenager in the Top 100 – Jannik Sinner. He leapt from No.78 to No.36 in the world last year. Impressing on several occasions with his whip-smart forehand, and cool temperament. Reached the quarter finals at the French Open, giving champion Nadal a very good run for his money. Before ending the year with a first ATP title win, indoors at Sofia.
And now, let’s update that record to take in all that the young Italian has achieved this season…
Jannik Sinner
Age: 20
Current World Ranking: #11 – new career-high
Jannik Sinner is starting to make a serious name for himself as a rising star of the men’s game…
The 2021 season isn’t finished yet, but another big leap in the rankings is already ensured. After defending his title at ATP Sofia last week, Jannik is now up to a new career-best ranking of no.11 in the world. He’s knocking on the door of the Top 10.
Having turned 20 years of age in August, Sinner is looking well set for a big career and many years ahead at the top level of the sport.
He’s added four more ATP trophies to his roster this year. All coming on hard courts, at Sofia (indoors), Antwerp (indoors), Washington, and the Great Ocean Road Open in Melbourne.
With a total of five ATP titles to his name at the age of 20, the Italian joins some illustrious company as an early high-achiever in the men’s game…
Fourteen years later, and Djokovic is the long-established world no.1, with a record-equalling 20 Grand Slam trophies in the cabinet.
After Novak made that five-titles+ breakthrough in 2007, he stepped things up at the start of the very next season. Winning his first Major at the Australian Open 2008, as a 33/1 outsider, age 20…
Get Jannik in the book for Australia…
With his impressive 2021 form behind him – including a runner-up appearance at the ATP Masters 1000 Miami Open for us as a 33/1 Each Way shot – Sinner is without a doubt one of the young contenders to make the big Grand Slam breakthrough in 2022.
I’m not saying that there’s anything written in the stars regarding the symmetry and comparisons with Djokovic here (five ATP titles under the belt, 20 years of age…). But Sinner is looking every inch a future Top 10 mainstay and Major contender.
Along with the possibility that fitness issues might yet derail the Australian Open chances of the longstanding order. Made up of course of the Big Three – Djokovic who is now age 34, Rafael Nadal age 35, and Roger Federer who is now 40 years old…
The case for getting a smart youngster like Sinner in the book as an ante-post bet for the first ‘Slam of 2022 looks a good one to me. Odds of 25/1 and 20/1 may only go in one direction from here on in.
Ones to Watch
Men’s Australian Open 2022
Outright Winner – Each Way:
Each Way terms: 1/2 odds 1-2 places.
P.S
We’ve already got a 100/1 teenager in the book for the women’s Australian Open 2022. With 18-year-old Clara Tauson backed at the top early-bird prices in September. That same month, the Danish youngster, who will turn 19 in December, landed us a 16/1 winner at WTA Luxembourg. Tauson is now trading at 66/1 for January’s Australian Open (Bet365, 888 Sport), and 50/1 in general.
I’ll be back in touch again soon with more players and prices for you.
Enjoy the tennis…
Best wishes,
Tom Wilson