rafael nadal

Spain‘s thrilling win over Argentina at the end of last year was their fifth Davis Cup triumph and it’s now 21 matches since the Spanish, winners in three of the last four years, were defeated on home soil. After going through a lean spell in terms of support, the Davis Cup has staged something of a revival in recent years and, in Spain alone, more than seven million TV viewers watched Rafael Nadal‘s epic victory over Juan Martin del Potro in December which clinched the trophy. Nadal won’t be on court when the champions begin the defence of their crown this week but his team-mates look to have a relatively straightforward first-round tie against Kazakhstan (500/1 with Boylesports and bwin), playing in the world group for only the second time, on clay in Oviedo and it’s a bit of surprise to see them as big as 7/1 with Stan James and bwin to retain their title under new coach Alex Corretja.

Argentina are a general 5/1 to go one better in 2012 and will almost certainly be a force again now that del Potro has regained full fitness. The former US Open champion will be challenging in most of the Grand Slam tournaments this year. Serbia have been installed as favourites (a best 3/1 with BetVictor and Coral) with Novak Djokovic having already pledged his support to the national team again this year. The world number one won’t play against Sweden (a general 125/1) in Nis in the first round, however, and that is a tricky opener for Bogdan Obradovic‘s team. France (a general 7/2) could also be vulnerable against Canada (a stand-out 125/1 with bwin) in Vancouver. The French have both Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils in their squad but the Canadians will have plenty of support in the Thunderbird Sports Centre and, in Milos Raonic, have a real superstar in the making. The tie of the first round, however, is undoubtedly Switzerland‘s clash with the USA in Fribourg. The indoor clay courts won’t be ideal for Roger Federer and the American squad, on paper, is good enough to take them a long way in the competition, though Mardy Fish and John Isner would also prefer a faster surface. Switzerland are 11/2 with BetVictor to win the 2012 Davis Cup while the USA can be backed at 25/1 with bwin to secure their first title since 2007, even though they are currently ranked nine places above their first-round opponents.

The other nations would need a massive of luck in the draw and on court to make the latter stages so the Americans could be the value in the event if surviving the first round.

Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal Australian Open Final tennis betting sees the world number one and two scrap it out for honours. Novak Djokovic, the current defending champion set up himself up for the defence of his title in the final, with an epic five set win over Britain’s Andy Murray in the semi final. Djokovic had to dig deep as Murray pushed him all the way, the Serbian taking the deciding set 7-5. That was Djokovic pushed hard and he still prevailed and he will know that he will have another tough encounter coming his way in the final against Rafael Nadal. The semi final will have been an exhausting affair against Murray, and Djokovic’s fitness has fully been tested now. He will have had a day’s less rest than Nadal will have had. After back problems at the end of last year, a suspected pulled hamstring and breathing problems during the action at Melbourne Park, there seems little sign of anything stopping the world number one. This time last year Novak Djokovic was about to embark on an incredible season of success. If he gets out to another strong start, it will be even harder to stop him collecting Grand Slam titles this year. It is just so difficult to get on top of Novak Djokovic to take three sets off him in a match. Murray came close, but the defence and determination which Djokovic pulled out was remarkable. That was a sign of a true champion, as if anyone didn’t know that anyway. While he fires off some remarkable winners, the defence which Novak Djokovic has is really the back bone of his game. Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal Australian Open Final tennis betting is going to be a test of endurance and it is the defence which will keep Djokovic in the games when the momentum is largely going against him. He is the complete player and will look forward to playing Nadal in the final more than anyone else. Djokovic has great respect for Nadal and knows that once again he will have to go through the great one to make it.

Rafael Nadal saw off the challenge of Roger Federer in the semi, overcoming his old foe in one of the great epic rivalries. While the Nadal v Federer rivalry is always a thrill to watch, seeing Nadal go up against Djokovic is probably the best final which the tournament could have produced. World number one v world number two for the honours, again. This is a repeat of last year’s Wimbledon final. A repeat of last year’s US Open final, and in both events the Spaniard came off second best. So Nadal will be looking for some revenge, even though he is going into the final as underdog and he is apparently quite enjoying that status. At the start of the new season, Rafael Nadal knew that he was playing catch up to Novak Djokovic in terms of ability and fitness. It was a difficult year for Nadal, losing his world number one status, battling with some injury and motivation issues and watching Novak Djokovic surpass him. So can Nadal can get a strike back early in the new season against Djokovic? Nadal has to get behind his first service game, because if that is not working, then Djokovic will be all over the Spaniards second serve, a big deciding factor in previous matches between the two. Rafael Nadal looked fit and strong in his semi final against Federer so we don’t see any issue with him keeping pace with Djokovic. However, the longer the match goes on, it is hard not to back the Serbian in endurance. Nadal’s biggest weapon is going to be his incredible forehand, and like Djokovic, reaching into the depths of his incredible defence (which was brilliant at times against Federer in the semi). All credit due to Nadal, who went into the Australian Open as fourth favourite behind Djokovic, Federer and Nadal. This is such an important match for him, can he break the cycle of Djokovic victories over him.

Have to look at some Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal head to head stats for your Australian Open Final tennis betting. In an incredible year last year, the two players met six times, all in the finals of tournaments. The outcome, well, six straight victories for Novak Djokovic. That is the hold which the Serbian has over Nadal at the moment and that really can’t be ignored. Which is the stronger will? Novak Djokovic defending his title, or Nadal getting some revenge and trying to avoid a seven game losing streak against the world number one. If this goes the way of Djokovic, who is favourite, then it will be a huge dent of confidence for Nadal, who has been working on improvements in his game in order to get closer to the Serbian.

Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal Australian Open Final tennis betting
Djokovic 4/6 at SkyBet
Nadal 6/4 at BetFred

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Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal Australian Open semi final tennis betting is just what was on the cards from the moment the draw was announced, and now we get the treat. The old rivalry is renewed at the semi final stage of the first Grand Slam of the Year, as the two greats took one step closer to the title. Roger Federer had a tough looking match against big hitting Argentinean Juan Martin del Potro on his hands for the quarter finals, but the Fed Express completed something of a demolition job, winning 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. Federer raced out of the blocks in the match and just looked fluent and supreme. Federer, who has now won 28 out of 31 Grand Slam quarter final matches and that win over Del Potro came in Federer’s 1000th career match. The great one is actually looking a fantastic bet for the title as he made light work of the challenge from the Argentinean. Federer just cruised through the match and continues his run without dropping a set so far, and there is something else about this Federer, he actually looks hungry. He looks determined. Federer is usually non-descript and hard to read on the court with his emotions, but he is up for this. He clearly wants more Grand Slam titles after missing out last year and he looks to be putting all that old magic back together at the right time. Federer has looked better and better throughout the rounds at Melbourne Park and he will be strongly fancied to get one over his rival Nadal in the semi final.

Nadal had a much tougher time of things in his quarter final match against Tomas Berdych, which lasted around four hours (Federer had taken less than two hours to see off Del Potro). Nadal was edged out in a tie break for the first set by the Czech player Berdych, who is world number seven and Berdych missed a crucial set point in the second. If Berdych had pulled out to a two nil lead, it would have been a very long an even more exhausting way back for Nadal. But the Spaniard pounced on the missed opportunity in the second set, and stole in 8-6 on the tie break to draw the match level. Nadal then went on to take the third set, and as the fourth set went on, you could tell Berdych knew that he had missed his chance as he slowly started drifting further and further from contention. So Nadal had a lot of work to do in order to book his semi final place and he admitted afterwards that he was tired. Nadal has had strapping on his ankle and his knee at different times throughout the Australian Open and although his sheer class and determination has been pulling him through the rounds, the big question mark will be over his fitness levels against Roger Federer. Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal Australian Open semi final tennis betting should serve us up a treat, and it is the Spaniard who holds the lead in the head to head record between them.

Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal Australian Open semi final tennis betting really never fails to thrill the crowds, and we saw them come together four times last year, with Nadal taking three wins to Federer’s one. But here is the thing, Federer’s win came at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, at the end of the year where you could see the Swiss superstar was more relaxed and not playing with pressure and looking sharper than ever. He has really rolled back the years at Melbourne Park to play some fantastic and effortless tennis and that is why he is being fancied to take out Rafael Nadal. We really don’t know what fitness issues Nadal is going through, but if either of them are going to face Novak Djokovic as expected in the final, then Federer is likely to give the world number one a tougher time than Nadal will at the moment. But Nadal holds a 17-9 head to head record against his respected (if not liked much) rival Federer. Their big clash last year was in the final of the French Open at Roland Garros which Federer started so well, but couldn’t put the first set to bet, and giving opportunities to Nadal on clay isn’t a great idea. The last time they met at the Australian Open was back in 2009, again in the final (as so many of their meetings have been) and Nadal won that encounter in a titanic struggle over five sets. Who is the sharper at the moment? Federer. Who is looking the more relaxed and confident? Federer. That is why the bookies are believing that it will be 16 times Grand Slam champion Federer who will take the spoils of this match.

Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal Australian Open semi final tennis betting odds
Roger Federer 5/6 at SportingBet, Rafael Nadal 7/5 at Bet365

Set Betting: Roger Federer 3-1 for 10/3 at Bet365

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To Win Australian Open 2012
Federer 11/4 at Bet365
Nadal 5/1 at Totesport

Rafael Nadal v Tomas Berdych Tennis betting should prove to be an important test for the former world number one. Czech star Tomas Berdych, seventh seed at the Australian Open, who showed some decent form over the latter quarter of last season, has shown up pretty well at Melbourne Park. He booked his quarter final place alongside Rafael Nadal with a tough fourth round match against Spain’s Nicolas Almagro. Berdych had to come a real battling match, and after he lost the opening set, he fought back to take the next three, all on tie breakers. Quite a remarkable match really, but it was hard work and will have taken something out of him ahead of the match against Nadal. Nadal on the other hand made things look pretty easy in his fourth round match against his fellow countryman Feliciano Lopez, taking the match in three sets. Nadal has breezed through all of his matches so far without dropping a set. The former world number one’s motivation and fitness has been questioned, and it does appear as if he was struggling with both ahead of Melbourne Park. However, he has looked pretty comfortable so far, this is a Grand Slam and this is where Rafael Nadal lives. He will know that he is playing catch up to Novak Djokovic though, and with that prospective final on the cards for the weekend, would back Nadal to continue through. There is the mouth watering semi final clash against Roger Federer which is likely to come first as well. Winning Grand Slams isn’t easy, it isn’t at the moment for anyone not named Novak Djokovic, but Nadal is still there and still a major, if a little understated this year, threat. Nadal holds a 10-3 head to head record against Tomas Berdych, winning the last nine straight against the Czech. Really hard to see any surprise result popping up here.

There looks as if there is still more to come from Nadal though, who is looking powerful but just holding back a little bit from full exertion. The basic upshot is that he is playing smart tennis. The bookies still have him back as fourth favourite because he hasn’t really been tested yet. Will be happy with the quarter final draw who should be another progressive test on the road to meeting either Roger Federer or Juan Martin del Potro in the semi finals.

Rafael Nadal 1/4 at Boylesports v Tomas Berdych 7/2 at Stan James

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Rafael Nadal is 6/1 at Bwin to win the Australian Open

Rafael Nadal 2012 Australian Open Tennis betting Preview. After all the struggles of last season, former world number one Rafael Nadal will be hoping to turn up the heat in the early stages of the new season, with a strong showing at the Australian Open. However, the Spaniard, who appears to have been battling both fitness and focus problems over the last six months or so, doesn’t look to be in prime shape ahead of his Melbourne quest. Nadal’s first outing of the season came in Doha, where he lost in the semi final to Gael Monfils (a result which Nadal said was better than expected), and losing out to David Ferrer in an exhibition tournament following that, there is clearly more work to be done if the Spaniard is going to get back to the heights of being number one. Looking at Rafael Nadal 2012 Australian Open tennis betting odds, he has drifted out to fourth favourite, because of the problems which he has been having. He did look in decent shape when he helped fire Spain to the Davis Cup, but there is just something lacking to his game at the moment, which puts doubts on whether or not he can go all the way in a long, arduous Grand Slam challenge at the moment. Nadal lost a lot of power to Novak Djokovic last season, as Nadal only managed to get his hands on the French Open and that was it. Nadal won the 2009 Australian Open title against Roger Federer but you will remember his sorry exit from last year’s Australian Open, when injury in the quarter final against fellow countryman David Ferrer, meant that he couldn’t compete. But he is back for more, as he has kept talking about finding the new fire and passion for the game, and  knowing that he needs to step up his form if he is going to be able to match Novak Djokovic.

So Nadal hits Melbourne Park with a patched up shoulder, an injury which has been bothering him and with an adjusted racquet, which is designed to help him get higher balls back over the net with force. Nadal has been one of the most vocal players in disapproval at heavy calendar scheduling, and with only a couple of weeks of preparation for the first Grand Slam of the season, which hasn’t gone terrifically, you wonder what kind of threat Nadal is going to be able to muster up. The bookies are leaning towards him being the weakest of the four main contenders in this year’s 2012 Australian Open tennis betting. He is back as fourth favourite, going off in the bottom half of the draw along with Roger Federer. The big dream semi final clash in the bottom half would be Nadal v Federer, just to reignite that old rivalry even further, and looking at Nadal’s quarter of the draw, you would expect an 80% fit Nadal to still get through. There is the likes of John Isner, Nicolas Almagro and Tomas Berdych in his quarter who could test Nadal if the Spaniard is not on top of his game, but we will find out soon enough just what kind of shape he really is in. He has looked vulnerable, appearing tired and fatigued at the end of last season, lacking a bit of drive, but he is a champion of the sport and going into a Grand Slam he will expect nothing less than his best. Nadal’s camp really does not sound as confident as the words coming out of Novak Djokovic’s and Roger Federer’s. So does the Spaniard have something special to produce? A good couple of solid victories before the real challenges start around the fourth round would surely set him up well. If he makes it to the second week of competition, would you could him out? Nadal carries a 143-20 match record in Grand Slams (with ten major titles) into Melbourne Park and on the hard court surface, Nadal holds a career 263-83 match record. Nadal opens with a first round match against Alex Kuznetsov, a qualifier from the USA.

Rafael Nadal to win 2012 Australian Open betting Odds: 8/1 at William Hill

Rafael Nadal to reach final: 3/1 at VC Bet

Name the Finalists:
Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal: 4/1 at Bet365
Andy Murray v Rafael Nadal: 10/1 at Bet365

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The ATP Doha tennis betting final pits Jo Wilfried Tsonga v Gael Monfils against each other in a battle of the top French players. It has been an odd start to the new season on both the ATP and WTA sides of the fence, and with the Australian Open just around the corner, it is important to pay attention to these warm up tournaments. We are looking at Jo Wilfried Tsonga v Gael Monfils betting because the two favourites, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal exited at the semi final stage. Everything was being set up nicely for a first Federer v Nadal clash of the season in the final of Doha, but it wasn’t to be. Roger Federer, a four time champion here, pulled out of his semi final clash against Tsonga with a back injury, while Gael Monfils broke his losing streak against Rafael Nadal. Once news that Federer had to retire ahead of his semi final clash, all eyes turned to new favourite Rafael Nadal in the tennis betting. A lot of money would have been lost on the Spaniard, as he couldn’t stand up to a wonderful second set recovery from Monfils. The Frenchman had taken the first set, thanks to converting the only break point of the entire set in the sixth game. After Nadal had raced out to a 4-1 lead in the second set, it looked as if the Spaniard would drive home. But Monfils fired himself up tremendously, got into attack the Nadal serve and came back to take a 5-4 lead and then served the match out. That was the first time in six attempts that Monfils had beaten Nadal.

So which way to turn now in Jo Wilfried Tsonga v Gael Monfils betting? Well the Doha tournament draws to a conclusion and the smarter money will be on Tsonga. He is the highest ranked player out of the two friends, and really stepped up a gear over the last six months.  He will also have benefited from an extra rest from having a walkover in the semi final. Tsonga does also hold a 2-1 head to head record against Monfils, but the last time they met, which was way back in 2010, it was Monfils who took the match then in France. But Tsonga is proving to be a real gritty player at the moment, and is hard to work over as he doesn’t allow opponents time to boss him around from the baseline. So would take Tsonga as the favourite here, he should have more composure and class, while Monfils is a very high energy player and probably had his big tournament game against Nadal.

Jo Wilfried Tsonga v Gael Monfils Doha Tennis Final betting odds
Tsonga to win: 4/5 at BetFred
Monfils to win: 6/5 at Bet365

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There is a little bit of Men’s Tennis betting happening at the moment, as we await the start of the new season, which gets underway on January 1^st, 2012. We have the Mubadala World Tennis Championship going at the moment, which is an exhibition tournament, and not affiliated with the ATP at all. So it is nothing more than a warm up ahead of the busy January schedule, which of course includes the 2012 Australian Open, the first tennis major of the year, starting midway through the month. There was the odd number of six participants entering this, with third seed Roger Federer and second seed Rafael Nadal both receiving byes through to the semi finals. World Number One Novak Djokovic saw off Gael Monfils very easily in his quarter final match, while fourth seed David Ferrer had a massive tussle with Jo Wilfried Tsonga before moving through.

So we have the tasty prospect of Novak Djokovic v Roger Federer betting to have a look at in the first semi final. With the form that Roger Federer showed towards the end of the year, after a fruitless run in the Grand Slams of 2011, he will be keen to have another crack at Djokovic. Federer believes that he still has titles in him, and his victory over Djokovic in the French Open was one of the great matches of the season. There’s really little form to go on here, because you are not going to see top draw, 100% effort tennis in this exhibition tournament, as players start to slowly prepare themselves for peaking at the time of the Australian Open.

In the other semi final of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship betting, we have the all Spanish clash of David Ferrer v Rafael Nadal. Nadal lost his number one status to Novak Djokovic, who had that incredible 2011 winning three Grand Slams, so the Spaniard needs to find a way to raise his game again. He struggled with injury and fitness for quite a bit of 2011 and we haven’t seen the best of him for quite some time. His opponent Ferrer is a real work horse, not as classy and powerful as Nadal at his very best, but is always capable of an upset and giving the best players in the world the run around.

Still, everyone is expecting, and probably hoping to see a Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal final in Mubadala World Tennis Championship betting, but Roger Federer will have a big say in all this. He is on a quest to prove to himself and everyone else that he is still a Grand Slam contender and nothing will boost his confidence here more than taking out both Djokovic and Nadal ahead of the new season. Unsure of fitness levels and everything here, but would take a good look at Federer because he was looking fresh while Nadal and Djokovic were running out of steam in December.

Roger Federer v Novak Djokovic Betting Odds
Federer 10/11, Djokovic Evens at Bet365

Rafael Nadal v David Ferrer Betting Odds
Nadal 2/5, Ferrer 23/10 at SkyBet

Mubadala World Tennis Championship Outright Winner Odds
Roger Federer: 13/8 at Bet365
Novak Djokovic: 7/4 at SkyBet
Rafael Nadal: 11/4 at Bet365
David Ferrer: 12/1 at Ladbrokes

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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

With the ATP and WTA tennis seasons having drawn to a close, we can turn our attention to the final of the Davis Cup over the next few days, as we look at Spain v Argentina tennis betting. This is the conclusion of the tournament, which started way back in March of this year. Spain, who are  will be lead by Rafael Nadal, who has won 18 straight singles rubbers for his country. Nadal is not in the greatest of form though, highlighted by his sub par showing at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London recently, where he failed to qualify from the round robin stage. Nadal has only managed just one Grand Slam title this year, and has lost four matches out of his last ten. It has been a relatively difficult year for him, suddenly looking vulnerable and tired, especially stood up against the power of world number one Novak Djokovic, who took over from Nadal at the summit of the rankings this year. Spain as a whole look a strong team, as they also have David Ferrer in there, along with the doubles pairing of Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco. They are the top ranked nation in the world and do go as favourites, especially as the 2011 Davis Cup final is being played in Seville, on clay.

That should be a huge advantage for the Spaniards, with Nadal and Ferrer clay court specialists. Ferrer has not lost a rubber on clay for Spain, so you would think with all this, that Spain have it in the bag. However, both Ferrer and Nadal played last week in the Barclays World Tour Finals, while all of the Argentinean team have been resting up. Nadal and Ferrer are obviously the backbone of the Spanish team, and Ferrer has been complaining about desperately needing to stop playing and to take a rest because he is so tired. So with Ferrer exhausted and Nadal way below his best, there is a chance for Argentina to get revenge for their 2008 Davis Cup final loss against the Spaniards.

This is Argentina’s fourth crack at the Davis Cup final, having lost three times before. They are led by Juan Martin del Potro, who will square off against Ferrer on Friday and then will meet Nadal in the singles rubber on Sunday. The tall, powerful, big serving Del Potro really could be the key to the success of Argentina here, because if he can take advantage of weaknesses shown by a tired Nadal and Ferrer, then he could well put Argentina firmly in the driving seat. He will be backed up with team mate Juan Monaco in the singles, and David Nalbandian and Eduardo Schwank will be fighting it out in the doubles. While all the advantages seem to be in Spain’s court for this, with the world number two and number five heading up their singles, Argentina could yet have the biggest advantage of all. Going in as underdogs without pressure and better fitness levels than the Spaniards.

The big clash which everyone is looking forward to in 2011 Davis Cup final tennis betting, is definitely Rafael Nadal v Juan Martin Del Potro on Sunday. Nadal holds a 6-3 head to head record over the Argentinean, who is ranked 11th in the world. They have met three times this year, and Nadal took all three matches, including a win on Clay in Madrid. So Del Potro needs to find a way through for his country, who are ranked 3rd in the ITF rankings (behind Spain and Serbia). Argentina caused an upset in the semi finals when they knocked out Serbia 3-2 in September, with Del Potro going one set up against Novak Djokovic, before Djokovic had to retire.

With all things summed up, Spain are the stronger side, you just have a little concern about their fitness levels. Still, with the Davis Cup rubbers records of Ferrer and Nadal, the experience they have should be able to see them through. It could be a very tight affair at the Estadio Olimpico in Seville over the weekend.

Spain v Argentina Davis Cup Betting
Spain to win: 1/6 at SkyBet
Argentina to win: 4/1 at Paddy Power

Friday’s Matches: Nadal v Monaco and Ferrer v Del Potro
Saturday’s Match: Lopez/Verdasco v Nalbandian/Schwank
Sunday’s Matches: Nadal v Del Potro and Ferrer v Monaco

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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