No success with my tennis match betting advice this week, or for my outright selections at Geneva. The matches between Thiem and Mayer at Nice (2015 finalists) and Delbonis and Bellucci at Geneva did not reflect their previous close encounters and Mayer and Bellucci were both thrashed by the same score-line 6-3 6-0.
At Geneva, Carreno-Busta (28/1) failed to repeat his recent good form against the out of form Stan Wawrinka, losing 6-3 6-1 in yesterday’s quarter-finals while Kuznetsov (25/1) looked on to make the semi-finals when he went 6-2 up against the out of form Rosol, but surprisingly proceeded to lose the next two sets winning only one game.
It’s a surprise to see the top three seeds at Geneva this week, Wawrinka, Ferrer and Cilic, through to the semi-finals given their form so far this year. Top seed Wawrinka will face the unseeded Rosol and third seed Cilic will face second seed Ferrer in today’s semi-finals. Wawrinka has never lost against Rosol while Ferrer leads the head-to-head against Cilic 4-2 so we could see the top-two seeds fighting it out to win Saturday’s final.
Over at Nice our one remaining outright selection fifth seed Sousa (25/1) is through to today’s semi-finals and he will face teenage sensation Alexander Zverev today for the first time. Sousa is the outsider at 5/4 today and will have his work cut out against the young German, but Zverev has had to expend far more energy reaching this stage playing three tough three set matches and this could play in to Sousa’s hands.
If you can I would suggest following this match and look to cover your outright stake on Sousa by backing Zverev at Evens or above in play. If Sousa makes the final it will still be a 10/1 Place winner at least and another very satisfactory profit on the week.
Finally, defending Nice champion and top seed Thiem is through to the semi-finals and he will face surprise package, and the home fans hope today Mannarino, who was unseeded this week. History is not on Mannarino’s side as he trails the head-to-head 2-0 and he will have his work cut out against Thiem , who is a prolific winner of titles and matches at this level on clay.
On the eve of the second Grand Slam of the season the French Open, there was bad news for the fans of 17-time Grand Slam champion and world number three Roger Federer, who has had to withdraw from this year’s tournament due to a recurring back injury.
It looks like Federer is going to struggle to overcome this problem in a short space of time, which does not bode well for his Wimbledon chances, and with Nadal no longer a serious threat at SW19 I would suggest having a decent bet on Murray for the Wimbledon title at 9/2 as his form is peaking at just the right time.
