Ladbrokes are refunding all losing outright bets on the ATP World Tour Finals if Andy Murray wins and that could cost the Harrow-based bookmakers a pretty penny.
Murray is only a best 3/1 with sportingbet to end his season on a high despite being drawn in the same first-round group as world number one Novak Djokovic (a general 9/2). The Serb was forced to pull out of the recent Paris Masters with a shoulder injury and has been struggling to regain full fitness ahead of the season finale at London’s O2 Arena. Murray also beat him at Cincinnati before the US Open, though again Djokovic was hampered by his shoulder. Also in their group are David Ferrer (66/1 with sportingbet and bwin), whom Murray beat in the final of the Shanghai Masters, and Tomas Berdych. Given Djokovic‘s current problems, it may well be the Czech (22/1 0n betfair and with bet365) who provides the Scot’s biggest challenge in the group matches as he holds a 3-1 career advantage over Murray and knocked him out of the Paris Masters at the quarter-final stage.
The second group sees yet another clash between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer but it’s the Swiss who comes into the ATP World Tour Finals in the better form. He’s won back-to-back tournaments in Basel and Paris and has already won this event six times. Nadal may have won 17 times in head-to-head encounters compared to Federer‘s eight but hasn’t won a tournament since beating his old rival in the final of the French Open in May and was a long way below his best when losing to Florian Mayer in Shanghai when last on court. There’s a chance a rest will have done him some good but sportingbet think otherwise and are prepared to offer 6/1 against the Spaniard. Federer, on the other hand, is a best 21/10 with Boylesports to go on and win the event after emerging relatively unscathed from a group that also includes world number six Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and American Mardy Fish. Fish (90/1 with Paddy Power) has only won one of seven previous meetings with Federer and, as the rankings and betting suggest, looks the weak link in the ATP World Tour Finals but Tsonga has had a good year, winning in Vienna and Metz, and will give both the Swiss and Nadal a game.
Stan James have also opened a book on naming the two finalists and lead with a Federer/Murray showdown at 11/4. They would have to be the two on current form, while Ladbrokes are out on a limb in offering 6/5 against Murray reaching the final.
