With multiple tournaments each week spread out across the globe, professional tennis can be a bit difficult to follow in-between the Grand Slam events. The action’s really beginning to heat up this week, though, as the AMRO World Tennis Tournament and both of the ATP events (Brasil Open, Memphis Open) have reached the quarterfinal stage. And we haven’t forgotten about the women, either– both the BNP Paribas Fortis Diamond Games and the PTT Thailand Open are ongoing, and BETDAQ is offering markets on every match.
We’ve combed through today’s slate looking for value and have settled on the following four matches:
**all prices are to BACK
ATP Memphis Open
Donald Young (2.4) vs. Bernard Tomic (1.58) (19:00 GMT)
American Donald Young has plenty of ability and he’s been on-form in Memphis this week, dispatching both Adrian Mannarino and Denis Kudla in straight sets, but he may be running into trouble on Friday in the form of young Australian Bernard Tomic. The 22-year old Tomic has improved rapidly over the past year and he’s played his best tennis in 2015, winning 9 matches already and putting a nice run together in the Australian Open, where he advanced to the 4th Round before losing to Tomas Berdych. His style of play is a bit quirky, as he relies on an excellent slice backhand and general craftiness to keep his opponents off-balance and control the pace of the rally. That type of thing should serve him well against Young, whose composure and mental toughness have been rightfully questioned at times throughout his career. Recommendation: Tomic at 1.58
John Isner (1.74) vs. Sam Querry (2.2) (Sat. 02:20 GMT)
Friends and occasional doubles partners, Isner and Querry have faced off three times before, but the last meeting was way back in 2010. Both have improved since then, especially Isner, who has climbed all the way to 18 in the world rankings and has proven his worth on the biggest of stages. With his monster serve and powerful forehand, Isner can look nearly unbeatable at times, and his 2nd-round win over Ivan Dodig on Wednesday was one of those times, as big John recorded 22 aces while only double-faulting once. However, his 6’10 frame makes it a bit difficult for him to get around, and he has trouble with opponents who can exploit that. I’m not sure Querry is that guy– he relies on a big serve and excellent forehand, much like Isner– but he’s proven up to the task before, beating Isner twice in 3 opportunities. And Isner has never fared particularly well in this Memphis event, failing to reach the semifinals in each of the past three years. An upset is a distinct possibility here. Recommendation: Querry at 2.2
ATP Brasil Open
Pablo Cuevas (2.1) vs. Nicolas Almagro (1.84) (21:00 GMT)
This is a must-see match for fans of clay-court tennis, as Cuevas and Almagro are two of the best in the world on clay. Almagro hasn’t had any success against Cuevas– they’ve only met twice, with Cuevas triumphing in straight sets both times– but he’s a slight favorite here after impressive straight-set wins over Blaz Rola and Tommy Robredo this week. Cuevas won his last match after his opponent Facundo Bagnis retired but he dropped a set in a Round 1 win over Jiri Vesely, and prior to that he had lost 5 of 6 “non-challenger” matches (Cuevas spends some time on the Challenger Tour). Of course, his one win in that stretch of six matches came against– you guessed it– Nicolas Almagro. Still, I’d be surprised if Cuevas can pull it off again, especially since Almagro has looked so comfortable on the clay this week. Recommendation: Almagro at 1.84
BNP Paribas Fortis Diamond Games
Andrea Petkovic (2.3) vs. Dominika Cibulkova (1.63) (20:15 GMT)
You who doubt Andrea Petkovic have learned the hard way lately, haven’t you? She may not be the most physically talented woman on tour, but the toughness and competitive spirit that Petkovic routinely displays on the court should be respected by all. Those attributes were never more evident than in her 1st-round match this week, when she fought off eight (that’s right…EIGHT) match points before defeating Alison Van Uytvanck 6-7 (7), 7-6 (5), 6-2. That win came on the heels of two marathon Fed Cup matches the previous week, when Petkovic outlasted Sam Stosur 6-4, 3-6, 12-10 and Jarmila Gajdosova 6-3, 3-6, 8-6. After such a grueling stretch of tennis, will Petkovic have anything left in the tank when she meets Dominika Cibulkova on Friday? Well, considering what we’ve seen from her lately, and considering the fact that she’s beaten Cibulkova three straight times and Cibulkova dropped a set against Indy DeVroome on Thurday, I’m not prepared to bet against her. Besides, the price is right. Recommendation: Petkovic at 2.3
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