andy murray

We will get to enjoy some Andy Murray betting this week, as the Scot steps straight into the new season at the Brisbane International 2012. The first major of the season, the Australian Open Grand Slam will be with us mid month, and so this is going to be an important warm up for Murray. After missing out on Slams again last year, Murray has finally installed a new coach, with legend Ivan Lendl taking charge of Murray’s game, as the Scot continues his quest for a Grand Slam title. It will be interesting to see how he comes out of the block, and there is nothing technically wrong with his game, his mental approach will be worth studying. He is the head and shoulders favourite in ATP Brisbane tennis betting this week. This is the first time that the World Number Four has played at the event, as he usually takes some time out at the start of the year to play in the Hopman Cup, where you are guaranteed more games under your belt in a round robin tournament. Anyway, he is going straight for a title with the Australian Open in sight. Murray has made it to two Australian Open finals (including last year) but he just has not been able to get out over the finish line. Novak Djokovic has been a previous winner of this Brisbane International event, and last year’s winner Robin Soderling, is not back because of injury.

So Murray is red hot favourite to take the title here. He was in blistering form in Asia at the end of last season, so we will see if he picks up where he left off there. Murray will be pressed by second seed Gilles Simon, who made a disappointing exit in the first round here last year, while the rising stock of Alexandr Dolgopolov should be able to make some kind of impact here. He was around thirty places lower in the world rankings at the start of last season when he turned up here, but now he has broken the top fifteen and becoming a big threat. Murray would miss both Dolgopolov and Simon until the final. The highest seed that Murray has to concern himself with in the top half of the draw is Florian Mayer (4^th seed), but may have to also watch out for Gilles Muller. A decent enough field to take on Murray in Brisbane International tennis betting, but there is no reason why Murray shouldn’t walk away with this title at all. It would do him the world of confidence ahead of the Australian Open.

Brisbane 2012 International Tennis Betting Odds
Andy Murray: 10/11 at Stan James
Gilles Simon: 6/1 at Bet365
Alexandr Dolgopolov: 8/1 at SkyBet
Bernard Tomic: 12/1 at Stan James
Marcos Baghdatis: 16/1 at SkyBet
Jurgen Melzer: 18/1 at SkyBet

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It won’t be too long before we are looking at 2012 Australian Open tennis betting, so before that kicks off in mid January, it is worth taking a little time and looking at some tennis betting specials for next season. With no one really threatening to break up the dominance of the big four in the game, of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer, your list of tennis betting options on Grand Slam winners in 2012 is going to be as limited as it was this year. This is actually a good thing, because you can then go and look at estimations of how many Grand Slams each of the four will win next year, and there is profit to be made on that. Remember that it is also Olympic year, so you can pretty much look at a fifth title as well, which we will explore at the end of the Grand Slams. So it is time to look at the big four and see just what may happen at next year’s Grand Slams for your tennis betting.

Novak Djokovic
2011 Grand Slams: 3 (Australian, Wimbledon & US)
The rise of Djokovic has been stunning this year, going from the nearly man, losing out far too often to Federer and Nadal, to the man to beat. He was looking a tired player by the end of the season, and that is totally understandable. But a fit, rested and focused Djokovic will again be the man to rise to the occasion next year. Looking at him picking up four Grand Slams next year is looking beyond optimism. You can generally pencil in the French Open on clay to Rafael Nadal, and out of the other three, you would expect Roger Federer or Andy Murray to go close. That is why the option of taking the number of 2012 Grand Slam wins for Novak Djokovic as two for a price of 5/2 with Stan James, is not only priced well, but also a realistic betting option. The two he is most likely to win, the Australian and the US.

Rafael Nadal
2011 Grand Slams: 1 (French)
It hasn’t been a stellar year for the Spaniard, problems with injury and sometimes motivation has left him playing catch up to Djokovic. He has lost his world number one status, his grip on Grand Slam titles and so it will be interesting to see how he responds. This time last year, with the Australian Open on the horizon, we were looking at a Rafa Slam, the chance for him to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time. However, injury ruined his chances at the Australian Open, exiting at the quarter final stage. This is a man who has been to 14 Grand Slam finals and won ten of them, but defeats in the final of Wimbledon and the US Open this year to Novak Djokovic, will mean that he has to raise his level again next year. Can still see him getting on the board at least with the French Open on his favourite clay court surface. Even though he hasn’t been at his best this year, Nadal still reached three Grand Slam finals this year, so, like Djokovic, Nadal winning two Grand Slam titles in 2012 is a realistic shot at 3/1 with SkyBet

Andy Murray
2011 Grand Slams: 0 (Runner Up at Australian Open)
So we are all still waiting to see if Andy Murray can make the break through to becoming a Grand Slam winner. He made a marked improvement last season, as he reached the final of the Australian Open, where he completely never showed up against Novak Djokovic, and then reached the semi finals of the other three Grand Slam. So it was a step forward in many regards for Murray, who generally saved his best tennis for the Grand Slams. But the question remains, does he have the mentality to take it all the way to a title? He has now reached three Grand Slam titles his career and surely there has to be more to come from the Scot. His best chance is going to be at Wimbledon always, not only because of the extra support, but the surface suits him better. After moving up to third in the world rankings though, he is going to come into a lot more contact with Novak Djokovic in the Grand Slams now, so that is a challenge to rise to. How many Grand Slam titles is he going to win next season? Well, the bookies are pessimistic as None is best priced in the market (4/9 at SkyBet), but if he is going to make the breakthrough, Murray is unlikely to win more than one, so Exactly 1 for Andy Murray is 12/5 at Stan James.

Roger Federer
2011 Grand Slams: 0 (Runner Up at French Open)
After picking up at least one Grand Slam in each of the last eight seasons, 2011 was fruitless for the great Roger Federer. His best performance was a place in the final of the French Open where he fell to old rival Rafael Nadal. However, Federer came on strong at the end of the season, reigniting hope that he has not come to the end of his Grand Slam winning career. Still, the younger legs of the other three may mean he has to push harder, but should have learned a lot from this season. Can still see the old master getting a major title on the board, and it will most likely come at the US Open, still his favourite Slam. So if you are wondering how well Federer may fare next year, think that he will be able to bounce back and prove himself next season. So one Grand Slam for Federer fetches a nice 2/1 at Stan James.

2012 Olympics
We will see some great tennis action twice at Wimbledon next year, with the Olympic Games being held there. Out of the big four in the men’s game, the only one with an Olympic Gold medal is Rafael Nadal.  He is the defending champion after winning in 2008. Novak Djokovic finished third in 2008, while Roger Federer’s best effort with a 4th round exit at the 2000 games and Andy Murray bombed in the first round in 2008. The way to gauge this is look at the records at Wimbledon. Federer has pretty much been the man there with six Wimbledon titles, and it would be so fitting to see him with an Olympic Gold Medal. It would be a bit ironic if Andy Murray fails in all four Slams next season, but pulls out a win at the Olympics. Can totally see that happening. But on the grass, would look for Federer to step up and put another feather in his illustrious cap.

2012 Olympic Tennis Single Tournament Odds
Novak Djokovic: 7/4 at 888Sport
Rafael Nadal: 2/1 at 888Sport
Andy Murray: 11/2 at Blue Square
Roger Federer: 7/2 at Blue Square

It is going to be an interesting day’s play on Friday in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. So far we have Roger Federer qualifying from Group B with three wins out of three, and Spain’s David Ferrer, with a win over Novak Djokovic yesterday in Group A has also moved through to the semi. Ferrer has beaten the withdrawn Andy Murray and followed up with a pretty resounding win against Novak Djokovic to take top spot. There is one more match remaining for him against Tomas Berdych on Friday, and the only way that Ferrer won’t finish in top spot, is if he loses against Berdych and Tipsarevic beats Novak Djokovic, but the Spaniard would still qualify in second place in that scenario. Any other scenario would mean  simply that Ferrer wins the group. So basically, as long as Ferrer goes out and beats Berdych, he will move through as group winner and that will be so important, because it will mean that he would avoid Roger Federer in the semis.

The battle for the other qualification spot in Group A will be between Berdych and Djokovic, with the latter unable to win the group. So here is the big excitement of which could happen, is that Djokovic does qualify in second place with a win over Tipsarevic and basically hopes that Berdych doesn’t beat Ferrer, that we could see a Djokovic v Federer semi final. But while all Djokovic can do is win his own A win for Djokovic in three sets won’t be enough to see him through to the semi finals, if Berdych wins in any manner. The only hope for Djokovic is winning by two sets and hoping that Berdych loses by three against Ferrer. If Berdych loses of course, then Djokovic would progress with a win of any kind. If both Berdych and Djokovic lose however, the world number one will squeeze through in second place.

So a lot of permutations to look at here and it’s a bit more complicated than it sounds. Basically we are going to have an intense day of tennis. Which way are things likely to go? Well, Ferrer looks pretty strong at the moment. Yes, he arguably has been helped by his two opponents so far not having been at 100%, but he has still gotten the job done efficiently. Berdych, because he has a lot to play for in the final match of the round robin will probably push him harder. Still, would look for the Spaniard to pull through, because the Czech was pushed hard by Tipsarevic in his second match, having to save match point to finally go on and win. In the day’s other match, you would expect Djokovic to beat Tipsarevic 9 times out of 10, but there are just so many variables with Djokovic not being at his very best because of injury. He’s a battler and keeps going though. His class may just shine through at the end of the day, but really not sure about the physical condition which he is in because he really hasn’t been very threatening off his first serve. Coupled with the fact that Tipsarevic is in pretty decent form, it could be a tight match. Djokovic needs to pull out the stops though as he could be going home early.

Novak Djokovic v Janko Tipsarevic Tennis Betting
Djokovic 1/3, Tipsarevic 11/4 at Bet365

David Ferrer v Tomas Berdych Tennis Betting
Ferrer 5/6, Berdych 11/10 at Victor Chandler

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Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Outright Winner Odds
Roger Federer: 8/15 at SkyBet
Jo Wilfried Tsonga: 10/1 at Bet3565
Novak Djokovic: 10/1 at VC Bet
David Ferrer: 10/1 at Boylesports
Rafael Nadal: 12/1 at VC Bet
Tomas Berdych: 20/1 at Boylesports

Despite all the fuss about injuries, form and fitness heading into the ATP World Tour Tennis finals in London this week, Britain’s Andy Murray was the only one of the top four to lose their opening matches. Both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic both had to struggle their way to victories though, and only defending champion Roger Federer rattled off an opening Round Robin victory with ease. Andy Murray apparently strained a muscle ahead of his group opener against Spaniard David Ferrer, and upon losing the match, the Scot said that he would assess on Tuesday whether or not he would be able to carry on in the tournament. If he withdraws it will be a big disappointment to the home crowd of course, and already his back is against the wall, sitting in the same group as Novak Djokovic. Murray will likely have to win his next two matches to fight his way through to the semi finals, it will all be dependant on other results of course. Novak Djokovic had to endure a slow start against Czech Tomas Berdych, losing the first four opening games, before finally winning the encounter in a final set tie break. It was a steady entry for world number one Djokovic, who wasn’t serving all that strongly throughout the match, and looks to be playing at about 90%. As for Rafael Nadal, he had to hang on with all his might as well in his opening match against American Mardy Fish, needing a final set tie break as well to pick up his first victory. Just like Djokovic, Nadal did not look completely on top of his game in the first match, but where Djokovic and Nadal hung in, Murray couldn’t. So that leaves the outright favourite in the ATP World Tour Finals tennis betting, Roger Federer with the easiest win in the first round. Federer, who won the Paris 1000 Masters ahead of this, looking well in control for the most part, as he edged out Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in three sets to earn his first victory. Now we get to see one of the greatest ever tennis rivalries revisited, as Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal betting takes centre stage on Tuesday.

We can start off our Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal tennis betting with a look at the head to head record. Nadal leads here strongly, with a 17-8 lead over Federer. They have met three times this year, and it is the Spaniard who has won out on each of those occasion, two of them being on clay though where he excels. However, it is worth just getting behind Roger Federer for your tennis betting here because the Swiss superstar is the man in form. Nadal looked pretty beaten up in his opening match against Mardy Fish. There were questions about his form heading to London, as he suffered a shock loss to Florian Mayer in Shanghai a month ago, and has just not quite been at his best since the final of the French Open. Nadal is making mistakes at the moment, and he doesn’t look physically strong. He was also suffering from stomach problems which saw him take a lengthy bathroom break in the third set against Fish. Nadal actually looked very sharp for stretches of the match against Fish, but his standards will need to be a bit higher against Federer. Federer looks to be serving well and very powerful in his ground strokes, and the Swiss star will naturally try and move Nadal around the court as much as possible to tire him and take him out of his comfort zone. If anything Federer must have learnt from his encounters with Nadal this year, is that he cannot afford to let chances slide, not to let Nadal off the hook. While Nadal has a lot to offer still, Federer is the stronger of the two in form right now and that is where your tennis betting should go towards. This match is a repeat of last year’s final here at the ATP World Tour Finals, which Federer won in three sets. While Federer is looking for his 6th ATP World Tour Finals title, Rafael Nadal is still seeking his first. A victory for either one here would send them through to the next round.

So what is the tennis betting looking like for Federer v Nadal? It is Federer who is edging things as favourite with the bookmakers for this Group B encounter. Federer is trading at 1/2 with Ladbrokes to beat Nadal, while the Spaniard is out at a best price of 15/8 with Paddy Power to overturn form. Either way it should be a classic, as encounters between these two are always full of excitement and drama. Don’t be surprised to see this one go all the way!

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Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Outright Winner Odds
Roger Federer: 7/5 at Stan James
Novak Djokovic: 9/4 at Totesport
Rafael Nadal: 11/2 at SkyBet
Andy Murray: 15/1 at Stan James
Jo Wilfried Tsonga: 21/1 at Stan James
Tomas Berdych: 21/1 at BetFair
David Ferrer: 22/1 at Bet365
Mardy Fish: 80/1 at SkyBet

Tuesday’s other match from Group B at the ATP World Tour Finals, is Jo Wilfried Tsonga v Mardy Fish. With both of these tasting defeat in their first matches in the group, this is a must win affair for both of them. On paper it looks as if Jo Wilfried Tsonga, who has been in pretty decent form over the last month or so, is favorite to take the match. They have only faced each once before, and the head to head stands in favour of Frenchman Tsonga a 1-0. That meeting came at this year’s US Open, which Tsonga won in a mammoth five setter after being 2-1 down.
Jo Wilfried Tsonga 4/1, Mardy Fish 11/8 at William Hill

The draw for the 2011 Barclays ATP World Tour finals have been completed and that means we can take a realistic look at the betting opportunities on offer for this end of season showcase. The top eight points earners from the ATP season all qualify for the finals, which are being held in London again this year, and all of the top four in the world are in attendance, so we have some high class, thrilling action to look forward to. There are injury concerns over Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal though, so the two back up players on stand by are Janko Tipsarevic and Nicolas Almagro. The first stage of the tournament is broken into two groups of round robin format, with four players in each.

In Group A we have the current world number one Novak Djokovic and Britain’s Andy Murray headlining, while the old rivalry between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will resume in Group B. Naturally we will completely expect one of the big four to be lifting the title, and interestingly, the only two men in the field to have won it before are Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. The top two from each Round Robin group progress through to the semi finals, with the winner of Group A playing the Runner Up of Group B, and vice versa. Basically, if all four of the big guns reach the semi finals, then you just have to pick which one out of the four are most likely to beat at least two of the other three in the same tournament. If Nadal and Djokovic drop, then betting options get a little clearer! The winner may well have to beat all three of the other World’s top four, which makes the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals tennis betting so interesting. So let us explore our options a little more for tennis betting.

Group A
Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych
You may be surprised to see that Andy Murray is favourite to top the group here. It is not that much of a surprise because the Scot has been in great form lately, and with injury problems for Djokovic as well, it makes a sensible tennis betting option that Murray will be the strongest force here. This should be a more competitive group than Group B, because Tomas Berdych just snapped Murray’s long match winning streak, with a surprise victory at the Paris Masters. If Djokovic isn’t 100% then there could be surprises! Murray is 11/10 at SkyBet to win Group B in Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Tennis betting. Djokovic is 21/10 at Bwin to win the group.

Group B
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Mardy Fish
Best price on offer to take Federer to win this group is 4/5 at Victor Chandler and it should be jumped all over. Federer should get the better of Tsonga and Fish without too much trouble with the form that he is in, with Federer beating Tsonga in the final of the Paris Masters on the weekend. Mardy Fish pulled out of the Paris Masters with an injury last week too. So that will leave a showdown against Nadal. No idea what kind of form Nadal is going to be in, so Federer makes the sensible bet here to top the group in your Barclays ATP World Tour Finals tennis betting. Nadal is 5/2 at SkyBet to win Group B.

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Tennis Betting Outright Winner Odds

Roger Federer: 2/1 at SkyBet
The Swiss superstar is the outright favourite here, when all things are considered it makes a lot of sense. Federer just steamed to his first ever victory at the Paris Masters on the weekend, meaning that he is great form, and he did play very, very well there. Federer still has so much class to his game, and the power he generates from out of the blue in his shots is still enviable. He may not be as quick around the court as he was, but has still one of the top serves in the game, and has the craft and guile to get the job done. Because of the injury problems to Novak Djokovic, and the rustiness of Rafael Nadal heading to London, it makes sense to back the in form man as the favourite. Federer is one of just a few select players who have beaten World Number One Djokovic this year, and just can’t see him having any problems against Tsonga or Fish in the Round Robin. Definitely worth backing as he is the master here, with him gunning for his sixth ATP World Tour Finals title.

Andy Murray: 3/1 at SportingBet
The Brit heads to London with the best current form of all the top four players in the world. He won three back to back tournaments before losing out to Berdych in Paris last week. Murray lost his cool in that match a little bit, arguing with the umpire and probably frustrated at having Berdych’s serve on the ropes so many times but just unable to convert break points that it got to him. Still, he can use revenge as motivation in the Round Robin after drawing Berdych. You can’t argue with his form and he heads to the ATP World Tour Finals in perhaps the best shape of his career. Lost in last year’s semi finals against Rafael Nadal and could be on course for a rematch. Would fully expect Murray to get through to the semi’s, but will naturally face a tough match against Djokovic in the group. Has a great chance after winning 18 of his last 19 matches.

Novak Djokovic: 5/1 at Victor Chandler
The Serb had to withdraw from the Paris Masters last week because of injury. Hopefully he is fit enough to see this tournament out, because he is line to cap what has been a remarkable year for him. He has ten titles under his belt for 2011 and the World Number One would be fully justified in taking his second ATP World Tour Finals title. He made it to the semi finals here last year but lost out at that stage to eventual winner Roger Federer. The pain which he was reportedly in after having to withdraw from the third round in Paris last week, reportedly stopped him from sleeping. We know he is the best player in the world at the moment, but you wonder if he will have enough recovery time. It is hard to see him turning up and really being at his very best.

Rafael Nadal: 6/1 at Bwin
This year’s French Open champion has not had the best second half to the season. Has injury and fitness issues and decided to pull out of the Paris Masters so that he could be ready for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. He must be a little bit ring rusty though, especially compared to how well Federer and Murray have been playing of late. Either that or he will be more rested than everyone else and come out with all guns a blazing. Has not been infallible but you just cannot count him out. He has beaten Federer in all three of their meetings this year. Nadal has also been a thorn in the side of Andy Murray this season  in the latter stages of tournaments, but most of all looking forward to seeing Nadal renew his long rivalry with Federer in the group stage, a head to head which Nadal leads 17-8. Probably more of a threat than Djokovic, because he is something of an unknown quantity heading in the Finals. Has never won the ATP World Tour Finals.

Other Odds:
Jo Wilfried Tsonga: 16/1 at SportingBet
Tomas Berdych: 22/1 at Bet365
David Ferrer: 66/1 at SportingBet
Mardy Fish: 90/1 at Paddy Power

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There has been a bit of a turn of events in the Quarter Finals of the Paris Masters ATP Tennis betting. With Rafael Nadal sitting the tournament out, both Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic exited at the quarter final stage, leaving the path wide open for Roger Federer. Britain’s Andy Murray has his 17 match winning streak snapped by Tomas Berdych in the quarter finals. Murray had taken the first set, fought back from 5-3 down in the second to miss his chance in a tie break. Things were looking strongly in favour of the Brit, pushing Berdych’s service games extremely hard but Murray just couldn’t quite get the break. After an argument with the umpire, Murray lost his way and his focus a bit towards the end of the decisive set, and Berdych pounced. As for world number one Novak Djokovic, he had to withdraw from the tournament because of his troubling shoulder injury, which will now make him a doubt for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals now. So Djokovic’s withdrawal means that Frenchman Jo Wilfried Tsonga receives a walkover into the semi finals. So Federer will now square off against Tomas Berdych in the semi final as the highest seed left standing, and that will make him a great bet to take the Paris title. This is an event which Federer has never won and is attempting to alter that at his ninth attempt. Federer is in pretty good form, and easily the class act left in the reduced field right now. The other semi final will be contested between Tsonga and the winner of the final John Isner/David Ferrer quarter final. But this should all end up being the Federer show in the Paris capital, and snap him up as outright winner and head to Victor Chandler for a great tennis promotion. Not only does the bookmaker run superb live in play betting coverage on all tennis matches, but they also have a great Money Back Special which can’t be ignored. Back a selection in match betting in any ATP event, and if your player loses the mach in a final set tie break, then you will receive your lost stake back as a free bet. So this offer provides some great coverage in your tennis betting, and is worth having on your side if you are doing tennis match betting anyway. Victor Chandler offer a free £25 bet sign up bonus for new customers registering an account with them. The bookie will match the value of your first stake on a new account, up to the maximum value of £25, giving you some great free betting cash!

The BNP Paribas Masters, in Paris, France is the final ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tennis event of the season. This is the tournament which wraps up the regular season, and as attendance by the big guns is mandatory, we have a strong field in action, before we head to the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. There are still places up for grabs to reach the exclusive club of being in the top eight points earners of the year, those eight who will contest the ATP finale spectacle in London. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Roger Federer and David Ferrer have all been confirmed for the ATP Barclays World Tour Finals, but three spots are still open. In a wonderful regular season conclusion, we have all the players scrapping it out for places, hitting the French capital and looking for vital points. We have had a couple of big casualties already, with Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro both missing out on the BNP Paribas Masters through injury. Nadal withdrew from this early, because he wants to ensure that he is completely fit for the Barclays ATP World Tour finals, while Argentinean Del Potro, who was in the hunt for a place in the final eight, picked up a back injury last week, so with that injury goes his chances. Defending Paris Masters champion Robin Soderling does not return to the event to defend his title. Here is our ATP Tennis betting guide for the BNP Paribas Masters.

Andy Murray
We can genuinely look at the Scot and back his as favourite here, because the way he has played since the US Open, he won’t want the season to end. Since crashing out in the semi finals at Flushing Meadows, Murray has remained unbeaten, winning three titles back to back in Bangkok, Tokyo and Shanghai. In Tokyo, Murray got the better of Nadal in the final, and in the last two tournaments, he has dispatched Spaniard David Ferrer. So, with Novak Djokovic looking just a bit rusty, Andy Murray BNP Paris Masters tennis betting looks a pretty viable option. There are tricky opponents in his draw, like Andy Roddick, Tomas Berdych and the in form Janko Tipsarevic, with the latter two needing points to confirm top eight places. That should serve as motivation, especially for Tipsarevic, who needs to make it to the Paris final to stand a chance of squeezing in to the top eight. In the semi final stage, we should see Andy Murray face off against Roger Federer, something we haven’t seen enough of, so definitely a treat to look forward too. Very good value of money at the moment. Murray has never been beyond the quarter finals of Paris before, but stands a great chance this time as he eyes up more silverware.

Roger Federer
The Swiss superstar picked up his second title of the season on his home turf in Basel, Switzerland on the weekend, overpowering Kei Nishikori in the final. Federer still has immense class and looks good after a rest as well. That was his home tournament, and naturally the expectations were high for him, but he looked very, very confident and comfortable through the tournament, as he picked up his fifth Basel title. Interestingly, Federer has never won the BNP Paribas Masters in nine attempts now. His best run at the event was a semi final appearance last year, but with a good run last week, he is probably not as rusty as the other main contenders. Has Mardy Fish in his quarter of the draw, who is clinging on to 8th place in the Battle for London, and Gilles Simon, who needs to win in Paris to muscle into the top eight. Still, you would have to back Federer to sail through to the semi’s. The Fed Express would face off against Andy Murray in the semi finals, the winner of that, a strong favourite to take the title.

Novak Djokovic
The Serbian received a huge upset in Basel on the weekend, crashing out in the semi final against unknown Kei Nishikori. Right from the start of the tournament, Djokovic had looked a little bit rusty, because he had taken some good, and well deserved, time off from the game since the US Open. He has won the BNP Paribas Masters before, lifting the title back in 2009 when he beat Gael Monfils. The Paris Masters is a fascinating event, because it is one of those rare ones in which the big four really have not dominated as much as you would think. This is a stronger field than Djokovic faced in Basel and could have a tricky quarter final match up against Jo Wilfried Tsonga, who is playing well at the moment. However, with Rafael Nadal dropping out, it means that Djokovic will get an easier run to the final you would think, than Federer and Murray. The injured Del Potro was also penciled into Djokovic’s half of the draw. David Ferrer takes the spot as fourth seed and looks to be the biggest danger, although two times finalist Gael Monfils is floating around in there.

Has to really be worth looking at betting options on Murray and Federer for this one. The top players should be pushing hard now, because they will want to hit London in the best form possible. Andy Murray actually starts the tournament as favourite, at around 5/2  at BetFair, with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic not too far behind at around 3/1 with the Betting Exchange. You really want to start your betting options with those three, even though this is a packed field of potential, and players desperately scrapping for Barclays ATP World Tour Final points, they are the class acts and we should see one of them prevail at this ATP 1000 event. Outside of those, you will likely be looking for a good run from David Ferrer at 10/1 or last year’s losing finalist Gael Monfils at 14/1 with BetFair.

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Britain’s Andy Murray is looking to continue his impressive run of form out in Asia, as he is the main focus of the ATP Shanghai Rolex Open tennis betting. After winning the PTT Thailand Open, Nadal won his second straight tournament by beating former world number one Rafael Nadal in the final of the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. So now the Scot has the chance to win a hat trick of titles out east. With the pressure of the Grand Slams over for the season, Murray looks bang on top of his game at the moment. With a run of 21 wins from his last 22 matches now, Murray is suddenly looking like the man to beat on the ATP. Just to sum up what Murray achieved last weekend; not only did he win the singles title in Japan, but he also picked up the doubles title as well there. But most impressive was his third set demolition job of Rafael Nadal in the final of the Rakuten Japan Open. After having lost the first set to Nadal, who has largely been the scourge of Murray’s Grand Slam hopes this year, the Scot pulled back into the match, winning the second set 6-2. But there was more powerful stuff to come, as Murray crushed Nadal 6-0 in the third and deciding set. You are not going to set that happen too often to Nadal, but Murray just went for everything and landed everything. It was as complete of a set of tennis as you will have seen from Murray in his career. Currently the world number three, Murray has booked his spot at the end of season finale, The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals (in which the top eight seeds in the world qualify for at the end of November in London) but there is a chance to solidify his place in third spot ahead of Federer. With seven career ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles under his belt, the eighth could well be on the way, and with him impressive run of form, Murray is up to a 50-11 match record for the season. To further back up his credentials here in ATP Shanghai Rolex Open tennis betting, Murray is the defending Champion, after beating Roger Federer in the final here last year. Murray has a great looking draw ahead of him, Mardy Fish crashed out, so that was his most likely semi final opponent gone. Highest seed left that Murray can meet in the semi’s is Jo Wilfried Tsonga, but Murray looks in tip top shape. Three in a row for him?

Murray starts the tournament as favourite over Nadal at a price of 7/4  at BetFred. Pretty good reasons to back him at the moment, as he is on top of his game. There is no Djokovic or Federer around either, so that means the ATP Shanghai Rolex Open tennis betting will likely come down to either Nadal or Murray, and that is reflected in the overall outright prices as seen below. So what about Mr Nadal? Well, he was a finalist here back in 2009, but didn’t win it, and he crashed and burned in the third round last year in ATP Shanghai Rolex Open tennis betting against Jurgen Melzer. Still, this is a man with 19 ATP World Tour Masters titles under his belt and so can never be discounted. Not a great record at the event, whether that is down to lack of motivation or tiredness at the end of the year, who knows, but it is only 5-2 (compared to Murray’s 5-0 at the event). It has been quite a barren stretch by Nadal’s standards, whose last title on the ATP Tour was back at the French Open in the middle of the year. After losing to Murray in Japan last weekend, he has now accumulated seven defeats in finals this year. That is seven final defeats out of ten attempts this year. While most of them have been dished out by Novak Djokovic, this is not the Rafael of 2010 when he was dominating everything. Nadal is not quite as consistent in his form at the moment, but he is still usually too powerful for most on the ATP Tour, so don’t be too shocked to see him back in the final. One thing we can gather is that he is determined to improve. Really shouldn’t be challenged too much until the semi finals, where he could run into someone like Andy Roddick or David Ferrer. So a good bet that Nadal will be in the final. Outside of Murray and Nadal, you would probably only entertain a flutter on Tsonga, as the rest of the field is tough to pull a winner from.

ATP Shanghai Rolex Open tennis betting odds
Andy Murray: 7/4 at BetFred
Rafael Nadal: 15/8 at Blue Square
Jo Wilfried Tsonga: 14/1 at Boylesports
Tomas Berdych: 14/1 at Boylesports
David Ferrer: 28/1 at Boylesports

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ATP Tokyo tennis betting is the big line up for your odds this week. Here we have two of the top four in action, with Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal battling it out for supremacy. This is an ATP 500 event dominated by the return of Spaniard Rafael Nadal. Interestingly enough, Nadal’s last title was his big win over Roger Federer back at the French Open in the middle of the year, but he is the defending champion at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships and tops the betting. Nadal is 6/4 favourite at Boylesports. This is the level of tournament at which you expect Nadal to excel, because it really shouldn’t be too challenging by his standings. Only four of the world’s top ten are in attendance, so we can expect a good run from Nadal. He has Janko Tipsarevic in his quarter of the draw, but really if Nadal doesn’t get to the semi final, it will be a huge surprise. The biggest challenge in his half of the draw will actually be American number one Mardy Fish. Fish is pushing hard for a place at the Barclays World Tour finals and needs to secure points to make that happen. With all of the Grand Slams out of the way for the year, players are gearing up towards the end of season showcase, the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in November. Djokovic, Nadal, Murray and Federer have already booked their spots (by amassing rankings points over the course of the season) so there are four spots left up for grabs and that is why players are pushing hard. The likely semi final from the top half of the draw for your Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships is Nadal v Fish. Mardy Fish, who has really been strong over the summer, goes at 10/1 with BetFred. Still, even then you would back Nadal to make it to the final

Down in the bottom half of the draw we have Andy Murray. The Scot scored another title victory by winning in the PTT Thailand Open final against American Donald Young. Murray was strong and comfortable throughout the tournament and will be looking for another big run here. The draw ahead doesn’t look to stressful for Murray, with Juan Monaco a likely quarter final opponent. In the semi finals, it would most likely be a match up against either David Ferrer or Radek Stepanek on the cards for Murray, with the Spaniard Ferrer the most likely to make it. Ferrer, like Mardy Fish is another player looking to secure a top eight place in the rankings to make it to the end of season spectacular in London. When you are breaking it down for your ATP Tokyo Tennis betting, you really are only going to selecting from Nadal or Murray. The two have met several times this season, with Nadal holding the big upper hand, especially in the semi finals of the Grand Slams where Murray just has not been able to break down the Spaniard. It would make a great final to see them coming together again but even out of those two, the two strongest players in the tournament, you would look at Nadal first in your tennis betting.

ATP Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Betting Odds
Rafael Nadal: 6/4 at Boylesports
Andy Murray: 9/4 at BetFred
Mardy Fish: 10/1 at Victor Chandler
David Ferrer: 14/1 at Stan James
Janko Tipsarevic: 25/1 at Victor Chandler

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Andy Murray v Rafael Nadal betting sees two of the top four ready to slug it out for a place in the final of this year’s event. Andy Murray actually created a bit of history for himself as he became the seventh man to reach all four Grand Slam semi finals in one season. However, when you translate that to Murray still not having picked up a Grand Slam title, you do begin to doubt whether or not it will happen. But, he is back there ready to contest after seeing off big American John Isner in the quarter finals. Murray started off well enough in a tough match in which breaks were few and far between, but Murray did enough to open up a two set lead. It was the great returns of serve which Murray was able to play off to put Isner under pressure, as the tall American could not get his big powerful serve going quite as effectively as he would have hoped. Murray did have to see off a bit of a comeback from Isner, but Murray always just about had that edge. Murray again played well, no signs of the lapses in concentration which got him into trouble earlier in the tournament. Even when Isner found his groove with serving in the third and fourth sets, Murray still was able to hold his composure and take his chances, highlight by some great play in the fourth set tie breaker. However, it was a hot, gruelling match for Murray which has to have taken something out of him. Murray now steps back out on to court on Saturday to face the defending US Open champion, Rafael Nadal.

Spaniard Nadal has a big lead in the head to head over Murray, with twelve wins to Murray’s four. All four of their last matches have gone the way of Nadal, including all three previous matches this year. Two of those matches were in the semi finals of Grand Slams, with Nadal seeing off Murray at Roland Garros and at Wimbledon, with Murray winning just one set against the Spaniard. In fact, Murray has only taken one set off Nadal in their last three meetings. The last time Murray triumphed over Nadal was back in 2010 at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 in Canada. Murray took that in straight sets, but the wins for the Brit have been few and far between. We have seen Murray try and take on different tactics against Nadal, but nothing has worked. Murray did beat Nadal in the semi finals of the 2008 US Open though. Still, facing Nadal is never an easy task, because the Spaniard is just so powerful, and as he has displayed this season, he is still one of the most ruthless and unforgiving players in the world. When he senses a chance, he never hesitates to move in for the kill, often turning defence into attack in the flash of an eye. Murray will have to keep his first serve percentage up, and has to come out firing and not let his head drop. Nadal will force him into errors and that is when things may get difficult for Murray and his focus. Nadal saw off Andy Roddick in their quarter final match, with the Spaniard not wasting any time in taking firm control. He completely dominated the last American left standing, allowing Roddick to take just six games in the entire match, and ominous signs will await Murray.

Andy Murray v Rafael Nadal Betting Odds
Murray to win: 7/4 at William Hill
Nadal to win: 8/15 at Bet365

Andy Murray v Rafael Nadal betting tip: The incredibly swift performances that Nadal has shown in the past two rounds, in particular the quarter final win over Roddick have been phenomenal. He is the defending champion, and it is hard to see past him winning, especially as he taken down Murray so easily this season already.