US Open Men's Betting: Five potential first round upsets

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Six Potential Champions League Upsets: City to ruffle Real's feathers?

"A pre-Abu Dhabi cash injection Man City would have been no match for Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in Group D. A lot has changed in the last four years, however, and the blue side of Manchester can now compete with some of the world’s most illustrious clubs."

The Champions League group stage begins on September 18. Alex Lee provides us with half-a-dozen long shots to get your betting mind ticking before the big kick-off

Difficult to favour draw specialists
Statistically, the most commonly occurring result in football is the home win. Dynamo Kiev, however, qualified for the group stage of the Champions League on the back of an impressive away win at Borussia Monchengladbach. Their Group A opponents PSG on 18 September, however, are currently draw specialists and don't have the kind of home form that will instil any fear in Ukrainian circles. A lay of PSG @ 1.75/7 or under is therefore one way of covering both the draw and the away win.

Schalke can shade it
Sometimes, when assessing a team's UEFA Champions League chances, a good way is to compare the relative merits of its domestic league against that of its opponents. While Olympiacos have home advantage in their first Group B match against Schalke, the Greek league pales into insignificance against an ultra-competitive Bundesliga and this is why Schalke are a great shout for an away win at a price of around the 2.915/8 mark.

Malaga to get case of home jitters
In Group C, Malaga face Zenit St Petersburg, who are unbeaten in their travels this season. While the home side has got off to a good start domestically, a fixture in the Champions League group stage is completely unknown territory for them. Zenit, on the other hand, are hardened competitors at this level and qualified for the knock-out phase last season. For the above reasons, it might be wise to lay a blinking-into-the-UEFA Champions League-headlamps Malaga @ 2.35/4.

City are the Real deal
A pre-Abu Dhabi cash injection Man City would have been no match for Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in Group D. A lot has changed in the last four years, however, and the blue side of Manchester can now compete with some of the world's most illustrious clubs. The proud owners of one of Europe's most parsimonious back lines, Manchester City are more than capable of forcing a draw or sneaking a win in Madrid when they lock horns later this month. A lay of Real Madrid, therefore @ 1.674/6 is a potential steal.

Benfica to provide tough test
While Celtic are the undisputed kings of Scotland at present, the lack of any real competition due to Rangers' fall from grace means that Benfica will be of a much higher calibre than the Hoops are used to welcoming to Celtic Park in Group G. Furthermore, the away team's odds of around 2.111/10 are just too good to turn down when you consider they brushed aside Spanish aristocrats Real Madrid, albeit in a friendly, 5-2 during pre-season.

Nordsjælland can shock Shakhtar
When it comes to causing an upset in football, there is often nothing better than the unknown quantity. Nordsjælland, from Denmark, fit the bill perfectly. With a Champions League place secured on the back of winning their first ever domestic league title, the Danish minnows have nothing to lose. Meanwhile, the home fans of Shakhtar Donetsk will be expecting a comfortable win, which as we all know can bring considerable pressure. A lay of Shakhtar at around 1.42/5 is a cheap option for those of you looking for an in-running trade if Nordsjælland somehow get their noses in front.

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Wimbledon Women's Draw First Round upsets: JJ to KO the great KC

"But, with this being Clijsters' last Wimbledon, the sprightly Jankovic, fresh from a run to the final of the Aegon Classic, will be looking to make it a short final visit, and the Serbian seed is too good a price to pass up."

Gary and James Boswell have found six players at odds-against who can cause upsets on the first two days at Wimbledon in the wonmen's draw. Here they are.

Although the weather might not indicate it, it's Wimbledon time again. Another year's exciting tennis approaches and James Boswell has been up to his eyeballs in racquets picking the best odds of the women's first round.

Jelena Jankovic to beat Kim Clijsters priced around 3.352/1

Without doubt, the pick of the first round is the match-up between 4 times slam winner Kim Clijsters and 18th seed Jelena Jankovic. Both former world number ones, this promises to be a veritable clash of the titans which could light up the whole tournament. Clijsters carries a formidable record into the game, having beaten Jankovic in seven of the pair's eight meetings. But, with this being Clijsters' last Wimbledon, the sprightly Jankovic, fresh from a run to the final of the Aegon Classic, will be looking to make it a short final visit, and the Serbian seed is too good a price to pass up.

Tamira Paszek to beat Caroline Wozniacki priced around 3.12/1

Coming in on the back of an unlikely victory at the Aegon International in Eastbourne, Tamira Paszek faces the Danish superstar Caroline Wozniacki. Only six months her opponent's junior, Paszek hasn't enjoyed the same success as the illustrious Dane, but that could all be about to change. Grass is clearly her preferred surface, as shown by her win by the sea, as well as a quarter final finish at last year's Wimbledon. And she's a real fighter on the court, which could upset the more fluid Wozniacki. It will be a big ask to beat the former world number one, but if she can do it, the Austrian could go far.

Vania King to beat Petra Cetkovska priced around 2.781/1

My third choice sees the American Vania King pitted against Czech hopeful Petra Cetkovska. A Wimbledon doubles winner, King has never managed to translate that promise onto the singles court at SW19, but this year is set to be the turning point. Although it feels like she's been around forever, King is only 21, and she's in the best singles form of her career. She will want to attack the 23rd seed from the outset and, although Cetkovska has previous, with an impressive 4th round performance last year, King could just prove to be too strong for the Czech.

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez to beat Ana Ivanovic priced around 4.73/1

And the prize for longest odds on my list goes to... Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, the Spanish doubles specialist. Like King, Martinez Sanchez is another player whose singles form is not as strong as her doubles', but, like King, she is a player on the rise. Her singles ranking has slowly been rising after years in the wilderness, and she is looking a more and more rounded player without a partner. Her opponent, the vivacious Ms. Ivanovic, is not to be trifled with, but she is certainly not at her strongest on the grass, so look for the Spaniard to capitalise by controlling the pace of the game. A shock in the making.

Arantxa Rus to beat Misake Doi priced around 2.31/1

One of the youngest match-ups in the first round, the meeting of the monosyllabic Rus and Doi promises to be a lively affair. Former junior world number one Rus looks a lively player who has given a good account of herself at the other majors. Doi, on the other hand, has a poor record everywhere else, but had a run to the third round at SW19 last year. In head to heads, Rus holds a slight advantage, having beaten Doi twice and lost only once, but none of these matches were played on grass. Ranked 27 places higher than her Japanese opponent, Rus is the clear favourite in my eyes, so her slight outsider odds are there to be capitalised upon.

Alexandra Panova to beat Mirjana Lucic priced around 2.581/1

The last name on my list is the Russian Alexandra Panova. Playing in her first Wimbledon, she is at the opposite end of her career to her opponent, the Croatian Mirjana Lucic. By her age though, Lucic had already won the Australian Open doubles with Martina Hingis, as well as making the Wimbledon semi-finals. After a long hiatus, Lucic has made a steady comeback, but has not made any impact at the majors. It's not the easiest of introductions to SW19 for Panova, but she does carry the higher world ranking and a 2-0 record against Lucic into the tie. Panova's is the corner to be in.

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Wimbledon Mens' Draw Betting: Five first round upsets

Wimbledon Betting / Sean Calvert / 18 June 2011 / Leave a Comment

Robin Soderling may struggle against a real grass-court specialist

"As for Soderling, he hasn’t bothered with a warm-up tournament on
grass and looked really poor against Nadal in Paris, where the
unforced error machine was cranked up to the maximum. Against a
grass-court player as good as Petzschner, this will be no formality for
the Swede."

Those odds-on shots are always tempting to stick together in a Multiple but the first round at Wimbledon has thrown up some favourites worth taking on, especially when they're grass-court haters. Sean Calvert tells us who they are.

Robin Soderling [1.22] v Philipp Petzschner [4.8]

Let's start with a potential big upset, with number five seed, Robin Soderling looking like a dodgy one to include in a Betfair Multiple, against proven grass-court performer, Philipp Petzschner.

The German reached the final on grass in Halle last week before retiring in the final with a back problem, but I would imagine that was more of a preventative measure with an eye on Wimbledon, where he's defending doubles champion, alongside Jurgen Melzer.

Petzschner's run at Halle was no real surprise, given that he reached the semis there the previous year before losing to Roger Federer; he also ran Rafa Nadal close at Wimbledon last year, when he lost in five sets after leading 2-1.

As for Soderling, he hasn't bothered with a warm-up tournament on grass and looked really poor against Nadal in Paris, where the unforced error machine was cranked up to the maximum. Against a grass-court player as good as Petzschner, this will be no formality for the Swede.

Jurgen Melzer [1.29] v Alejandro Falla [4.5]

Melzer has cost me a few quid over the years with his wildly inconsistent play, but at [1.29] I certainly won't be backing him to beat handy grass-court performer, Falla.

Many will remember Falla's performance in defeat against Roger Federer last year when he was two sets up before Fed clawed it back, but on the back of a fine effort at Roland Garros, the Colombian has a shot here.

Falla reached the fourth round at the French Open before moving swiftly to England for two grass events ahead of Wimbledon and he comes here with confidence.

Melzer had a shocker in Paris where he lost in the second round at [1.15] to Lukas Rosol and the Austrian hasn't made the effort to play a warm up tournament, which is rare for him.

At around [4.5] it's worth a back-to-lay investment that Falla can catch Melzer cold early on.

Nicolas Almagro [1.62] v Jarkko Nieminen [2.6]

Almagro has such a bad record on grass that it's worth backing him to lose against pretty much anyone in the top-100.

The Spaniard has played just 13 matches on grass in his career, stretching back to 2005 and he's lost nine of those - the latest one being at s'Hertogenbosch to Michael Berrer in the first round, when he was number one seed.

Berrer's match immediately prior to that one was a 6-0, 6-1 beating by Jo Wilfried Tsonga at Queen's, which should give you an idea of how poor Almagro is on grass.

And his two losses on the green stuff prior to that were to Andreas Seppi and Denis Istomin, so Nieminen should have a great chance in this one.

The Finn isn't the best on grass either, but his record is much better than Alamgro's and he's a former Wimbledon quarter finalist.

Another early exit beckons for Almagro, who clearly couldn't care less
about the grass-court season.

Thomaz Bellucci [1.72] v Rainer Schuettler [2.36]

Regular readers of this column will know that I've done well by backing Rainer Schuettler against seeds in Slams over the years and this match up looks like it could be another one.

The flashy Bellucci is not a lover of the grass-court season, having only bothered to turn up to Wimbledon twice before, with a best of one last-32 appearance. Indeed, he's only played nine matches on grass in his entire career.

His high risk game will need to be on to get past the solid grass-court-loving veteran, who at 35-years-old still has the fitness and guile to trouble the top players.

The Brazilian struggled through two rounds at Queen's before losing to an injured Marin Cilic, whereas Schuettler has won five of his seven matches on grass this season and is a former Wimbledon semi finalist.

Bellucci won't fancy this and when it gets tough he'll be looking for a quick exit, which the German should provide.

James Ward [3.1] v Michael Llodra [1.45]

On the back of his breakthrough week at Queen's Club, Ward is an attractive-looking price to see off serial Wimbledon first round loser, Llodra.

The Brit's confidence will be sky high after his semi final run on the green stuff and he's more than capable of giving the fragile Frenchman a run for his money on home turf.

Llodra has lost five times in the first round at SW19 and has only beaten Jesse Witten and Josh Goodall here since 2007 - and it took him five sets to defeat Goodall, who's currently number 436 in the world.

The Frenchman is also struggling with injury after retiring at Queen's, where coincidentally he would have played Ward had he not quit against Jo Wilfried Tsonga. And he's not shy of a retirement, having clocked up an amazing 25 retirements or withdrawals in his career.

Three of those have come at Wimbledon, where Llodra is yet to record
consecutive wins. Back Ward to continue the pain.

When it comes to wildcards in the first round at Wimbledon, ignore the Brits and focus on the foreigners, says Jack Houghton....

Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are the only guys who can win Wimbledon. Of these we must favour the latter because he's been the best player this year and has the kindest draw, says Sean Calvert....

There were signs during and after his Queen's win over Jo Wilfried-Tsonga that Andy Murray is enjoying his tennis and life as a whole. With Wimbledon starting next week, that's a good state of mind to be in, says Ralph...

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French Open Women's Draw: Five potential first round upsets

French Open Betting / Gary Boswell / 21 May 2011 / Leave a Comment

Gary believes Vania King could cause an upset in round one

"No way would I want to back Cornet as favourite – even with the partisan crowd on her side. The value clearly lies with Voracova at around [2.6].

The Boz tuned in to the French Open Women's draw on Friday and he's been at the form books ever since, working out his potential first round shocks. The following are his top five to turn over the odds.

Vania King to beat Dominika Cibulkova - priced around [5.0]

Absolute monster price for what is essentially a very tight match up. The Slovakian 22- year-old Cibulkova is in good form and is arguably the greater clay court player but she has a 0-2 head to head to overcome and the first of those defeats was the classic match of three tie-breaks which tells you how close this one is to call. I'd have it [2.1] the pair.

The recent match, at the 2010 Australian Open, produced another close three setter which the American won 7-5 in the last. She has slid down the rankings a tad since those days and, with both wins on hard court, it's perhaps easy to overestimate the current 94 ranked player as she attempts to dump the seed. The price being so wrong as a reflection of the difference between them makes me want to bet! I can't resist such an over generous offer.

Romani Oprandi to beat Ekaterina Makarova - priced around [3.2]

If you take the previous form between 77 ranked Italian Oprandi and 36 ranked Russian Makarova literally you can only make one favourite. Oprandi holds a 2-0 head to head score and both wins came back in 2006 on her favoured clay surface that they'll meet on here. In the first three sets between the two, Makarova won only four games, going down 6-1 6-3 and 6-0 before rallying to tie ten games all in the two final sets of the three set match in Denain.

The Russian was only 17 then and pretty green and of course she has improved immeasurably since and passed her 25-year-old opponent in the rankings but that head to head form is never forgotten and always influential. Oprandi comes in to the game knowing how to beat Makarova and beat her convincingly while Makarova comes in with the reverse feeling and the pressure on her to justify her revised rating since last they met.

That's a strong reason for taking the lesser ranked player in my book, especially when you are being offered such a price differential.

Renata Voracova to beat Alize Cornet - priced at around [2.6]

For 122 ranked Czech Voracova, this is a first appearance at Roland Garros and she is likely to be in the bear pit against local heart throb Alize Cornet who has herself slipped to a lowly 80 ranking after 12 months of indifferent form. Back in 2007, great things were forecast for the 21-year-old French woman as she triumphed in the junior French Open. She's lost her way a fair bit since then and has an unimpressive head to head against the 27-year-old to boot. Defeats at Poiters in 2007 and Linz in 2010 were both in straight sets and Cornet has that ability to simply not turn up. No way would I want to back her as favourite - even with the partisan crowd on her side in this (just as much a negative as a positive depending on how well you are playing). The value clearly lies in the debutante at around [2.6].

Kirsten lipkens to beat Lucie Safarova priced around [4.8]

The diminutive Belgian has dropped to 96 in the rankings but can be fancied to overcome the odds against 24-year-old Czech Safarova who has a serve to die for and claims to like the clay. That liking is not transparent to this observer who might fancy her to take this on grass but can see the weakness in Safarova's groundstrokes being influential in the outcome here. Flipkens keeps it low and I remember watching their only previous meeting at Estoril back in 2008 where it was a closely contested affair, won 7-5 6-4 by the Belgian who exerted with her return.

When the Safarova serve is not dominating, she is not a difficult opponent to master and I seriously fancy the reverse here despite the huge gulf in current rankings. Value once more lies in taking on the 37 ranked Czech.

Pauline Parmentier to beat Ksenia Pervak - priced around [2.2]

Can't pretend to have seen much of the new Russian on the block - 19 year old Ksenia Pervak - about whom I've heard several dogs barking of late. Her 88 ranking tells me she is not yet that exciting however and this is one where the home support might work in underdog Parmentier's favour. The French player also boasts much greater match experience and in 2009 she was able to blow the diminutive Pervak away 6-2 6-3 in Barnstaple. That will do for me at the odds on offer. The least confident of my picks but another slice of value nevertheless.

Recommended bet is level stakes singles - all five with one, two or three needed to prevail to successfully register a profit.

It's day one at Roland Garros and Ben Caudell is here to select the best bets and find the value that could give you a winning start......

On the eve of the French Open, Sean Calvert selects five matches in which punters could find the first round value......

She is the world number one but still doesn't have a Grand Slam singles title. Guy McCrea as if Caroline Wozniacki will end that wait at the French Open ......

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French Open Men's Draw: Five potential first round upsets

French Open Betting / Sean Calvert / 21 May 2011 / Leave a Comment

"In contrast to Verdasco, Monaco warmed up nicely with some fine displays in Dusseldorf this week and he has to be backed as the underdog here."

On the eve of the French Open, Sean Calvert selects five matches in which punters could find the first round value...

Marcos Baghdatis [1.8] v Frederico Gil [2.2]

After suffering a bout of flu a few months ago, Marcos's form has really taken a dive, with just two wins from 11 matches and six losses as odds-on favourite.

The Cypriot lost in the first round in his warm-up event in Nice to Julien Benneteau in straight sets and he hasn't won a set on the dirt since beating Alejandro Falla in Madrid.

His record at Roland Garros is also poor, with three first round losses from six starts and Baggy has never beaten anyone ranked higher than number 62 in the world at the tournament.

In two of his last three visits to the French Open, he's lost in straight sets in the first round and he was also beaten by Gil the last time they met.

That match was on Baggy's favoured hard-courts, so this one has upset written all over it with Gil posting wins over Gael Monfils and Florian Mayer already in 2011. Back the Portuguese at around [2.2]

Fernando Verdasco [1.78] v Juan Monaco [2.3]

Verdasco has had a really poor year so far and has dropped down to number 17 in the world rankings from being inside the top-10 this time last year.

And just when it looked like he was finding a bit of form in Rome, he blew three consecutive match points on his own serve against Robin Soderling and went on to lose the match.

His already brittle confidence must be shot now and what he doesn't want first up here is a match with Monaco, who has won five of their last six meetings and seven out of nine overall.

The Argentine has won all but one of their clay meetings and also won the only one at Roland Garros in 2006.

In contrast to Verdasco, Monaco warmed up nicely with some fine displays in Dusseldorf this week and he has to be backed as the underdog here.

Richard Gasquet v Radek Stepanek

By rights, Gasquet should be brimming with confidence after beating Roger Federer in Rome after being a set and a break down, but I won't be going anywhere near the [1.25] about him beating Steps in the first round here.

The Gasman's record at Roland Garros is atrocious, with four first round losses from seven starts and a solitary last 32 place his best result in Paris.

Gasquet has always struggled with the weight of expectancy and beating Federer win won't help in that regard.

The inconsistency is still there, with his first round loss against Daniel Gimeno-Traver in Madrid when around the same price as this one being a prime example.

Steps is not the force of old, but he does well here, with the last 16 being his best and he has just one first round loss from his seven visits to Roland Garros.

He loves an upset and stunned Fernando Gonzalez here in straight sets in 2007 when Gonzo was world number five, as well as beating Tommy Robredo in 2008.

The Czech's recent form is good, with a run to the semis in Munich before retiring with a leg injury, which is a concern, but he's still worth a punt at a handy price.

Daniel Gimeno-Traver [1.75] v Robin Haase [2.3]

This one should be tough for Gimeno-Traver against a big match, big occasion player such as Haase.

The Dutchman has only been beaten in the main draw of Slams by current or former top-10 players and the Spaniard is surely only favourite for this because he finally found some form in Madrid recently.

Prior to that run to the last 16 in Spain, he had lost 13 of 15 matches in 2011 and he's never beaten anyone ranked inside the top-90 in the world at Roland Garros.

GT's overall career record is 40 wins and 72 losses, which is hardly inspiring, but it's his record after losing the first set that leads me to question his temperament.

The Spaniard has won just seven of 70 matches when he's gone a set down and Haase rarely goes down without a fight in Slams, as his last three results show.

A four set loss to Andy Roddick in Melbourne followed a five set loss to Nadal at Wimbledon and another five setter at Roland Garros to Nico Almagro.

Haase was also a regular winner on clay on the Challenger circuit last year and has a win over Nikolay Davydenko on dirt this season, so all-in-all I think he could be value in this one.

Lleyton Hewitt [3.0] v Albert Montanes [1.5]

Hewitt makes his comeback after foot surgery at Roland Garros this week after three months out and Tony Roche is sure to have the former world number one spot on for this.

The Aussie's record at Roland Garros is very respectable, with only Rafa Nadal (four times!) David Ferrer, Gaston Gaudio, Tommy Robredo, Guillermo Canas and Juan Carlos Ferrero beating Hewitt here since 2001.

Montanes, despite being the higher ranked and being generally regarded as more proficient on the dirt, has been below par lately on the clay, with early losses in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid and Rome - the latter two in the first round.

The calibre of opponent that he's been losing to is a concern for Montanes backers, with Sergiy Stakhovsky, Pablo Andujar, and Feliciano Lopez all besting him on his favourite surface.

The pair have met twice before with Hewitt winning both and with their similar grinding styles, this could come down to mental strength with Hewitt likely to come out on top.

It's day one at Roland Garros and Ben Caudell is here to select the best bets and find the value that could give you a winning start......

The Boz tuned in to the French Open Women's draw on Friday and he's been at the form books ever since, working out his potential first round shocks. The following are his top five to turn over the odds....

She is the world number one but still doesn't have a Grand Slam singles title. Guy McCrea as if Caroline Wozniacki will end that wait at the French Open ......

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