WTA Indian Wells Tennis Betting

The Indian Wells Tennis Open, throws up some interesting betting options, as most of the stars of tennis are participating. Some have already fallen by the wayside (Justine Henin, Na Li and Melanie Oudin) but the competition is going to be fierce for this one. Neither of the Williams sisters, nor Dinara Safina are at the event, but those are pretty much the only noticeable omissions from this Premier Tier tournament (which means that there are big tour points and money up for grabs). Prize money at Indian Wells totals $4,5000,000 and is played on a hard outdoors court. Defending champion is Vera Zvonareva who beat Anna Ivanovic in the final. Here below are some of the betting highlights of the second and third round matches, along with outright chance of players, for this WTA event.

All of the action from Indian Wells Tennis Gardens can be followed live with Bet365. Funded account holders can gain access to live streams from California, as this major tennis tournament for both men and women occupies most of the next week or so. For punters wanting to open an account, there is Bet365′s generous welcome offer of up to £200 in free bets to take advantage of.

Top Half of the WTA Paribas Indian Wells Open

Svetlana Kuznetsova (1) v Caria Suarez Navarro
Top seed Svetlana Kuznetsova opens her account against Spain’s Caria Suarez Navarro. Kuznetsova is not in any kind of sparkling form, but has the potential to breeze her way to at least the quarter finals. She beat Navarro easily in their only previous encounter, and with not too much to worry about in terms of seeded players in her quarter of the top half of the draw, makes a decent bet, but on the grand scheme of things, her top seeding doesn’t really equate to her being favourite in terms of betting.
Kuznetsova 2/9 at SkyBet, Navarro 7/2 at Paddy Power

Alisa Kleybanova (23) v Tsvetana Pironkova
Kleybanova won her first WTA tour title recently, and could be on course for one of the more interesting third round match ups. If she wins through, as expected, the big serving and powerful Russian will run into Kim Clijsters. There is a lot of promise for future stardom about Kleybanova, and after breaking through for her first title, now has a good chance to make an impact in one of the major competitions, to put her further on the map.
Kleybanova 2/9 at Bet365, Pironkova 22/7 at Bwin

Kim Clijsters (14) v Barbora Zahlavova Strycova
Continuing her comeback, the Belgian star who won the US Open late last year, has a tough draw. There was more expected of her at the first Grand Slam of the year, but she didn’t quite deliver, crashing out in the last 32 against Nadia Petrova. That came after she won the season opener tournament in Brisbane against Justine Henin. Clijsters should be a shoe-in to win this match, hopefully setting up a match against Kleybanova (see above).
Clijsters 1/20 at SkyBet, Strycova 12/1 at Bet365

Victoria Azarenka (3) v Sybille Bammer
This is the beauty of much of the second round, it should be fairly straight forward from a betting point of view. Azarenka, a personal favourite, has a great all round game, and the Belarus star is one of those players who really could dominate the world. She is seeded number 3 for the tournament, 6th in the world, but if she has one downfall, then it is her own temperament. She is real feisty one, is Azarenka, but if she can turn all of her energy in focusing on her racquet then she should make a good bet for this tournament. Has beaten Bammer easily in their last three encounters.
Azarenka 1/10 at Bet365, Bammer 13/2 BetFred

Jelena Jankovic (6) v Petra Martic
Jankovic is another potential star, if only she could get her game together all of the time. Has struggled to get past the last 32 of her tournaments this year, and crashed badly in Monterrey recently where she was top seed. A wildcard in terms of betting, but has a decent draw. Must be due to make a major impact soon.
Jankovic 4/11 at Boylesports, Martic 19/7 at Bwin

Samantha Stosur (8) v Julie Coin
Australian Stosur is the top seed in the most interesting quarter of the top half of the draw. Should have no trouble with her second round opponent, but from then on, it is going to be tough opposition. Hasn’t done much so far in 2010 to suggest that she’ll make an impact at Indian Wells, and despite rankings there are players in much better form that her, which she’ll have to come up against.
Stosur 2/6 at Extrabet, Coin 10/3 at Bet365

Vera Zvonareva (12) v Sloane Stephens
Zvonareva, seeded 12, is the current defending champion of Indian Wells. She is in decent form too, winning in Thailand and then reaching the quarter finals in Dubai, where she ran in to Azarenka. Zvonareva, with her piercing eyes, beat pin-up Anna Ivanovic in last year’s final, and the two of them are expected to meet in the third round. Zvonareva should have the edge when that happens, as Ivanovic really has not got her game going in 2010.
Zvonareva 1/9 at SkyBet, Stephens 5/1 at Stan James

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (25) v Karolina Sprem
If you are looking for a good outside bet, then Pavlyuchenkova should draw a lot of attention. A rising star she is, and in great form for 2010. She recently won her first WTA title in Monterrey, beating the more experience Daniela Hantuchova in the final. That tournament, while not laden with top talent, should give her a lot of confidence for this one, and could be a threat as she continues her rise. Tricky test here against Sprem, but should get through.
Pavlyuchenkova 1/4 at Boylesports, Sprem 3/1 at Bet365


Bottom Half of the WTA Paribas Indian Wells Open

Agnieszka Radwanska (5) v Anna Chakvetadze
Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska doesn’t draw a lot of headlines, but she is in with a great chance of doing so at Indian Wells. Seeded 5th in the tournament, she was expected to meet comeback queen Justine Henin in the third round, but the Belgian Australian Open finalist, a wildcard entrant for this tournament, crashed out to Argentina’s Gisela Dulko (31) in the second round. Radwanska is a strong favourite to win her quarter of the bottom half of the draw. Keep an eye on her. Lost in the semi finals in Dubai against Azarenka, her best finish this season. Chakvetadze incidentally, beat Britain’s Anne Koethavong in the first round.
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Elena Dementieva (4) v Aleksandra Wozniak (3rd rd)
Both players went through their second round matches with relative ease. Dementieva will draw a lot of bets as she is a great player, and it wonderful form so far this season. She is one of, if not the fittest player on the WTA, and looks such an accomplished player out there. A strong candidate to win at Indian Wells, and would be a popular winner. Has reached three finals this year already, winning two of them. Kleybanova (see above) beat her in the final of Kuala Lumpur, which is why Kleybanova is a good outside bet, while Dementieva is a genuine challenger.
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Elena Baltacha v Alicia Molik
Yes, even though she is a qualifier, Britain’s Elena Baltacha is worth a mention, after beating number 7 seed Na Li in the second round. This is another great feather in the 2010 cap of the smiling Baltacha, as the British number one continues to make a great name for herself. She is in a fascinating quarter of the bottom half of the draw, as seed Anabel Medina Garrigues has already crashed out, and Maria Sharapova (10th) struggled in her second round match. Also in the mix is China’s Jie Zheng (18th) as a strong contender. This is a fantastic chance for Baltacha to really push on.
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Maria Kirilenko v Caroline Wozniacki (3rd rd)
A good test of Kirilenko’s development as a player here. While she looks fantastic on the court, her performances haven’t translated into as many wins as her potential suggests. She squares off now against Caroline Wozniacki, who is seeded 2nd at Indian Wells. There is a sniff of an upset here, and the young Russian could well be worth a punt. Winning the tournament would be a mighty stretch for her mind, you. This game, a maybe, although Wozniacki has beaten her three times, including once at Indian Wells.
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