Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th)

[edtkh]

Right, after weeks of shannanigans and rubbish tournies, the last Slam of the year is upon us and let's hope it will be business as usual as has been the case with all the other Slams. A quick preview for the US Open. In the Men's Draw, once again I wouldn't see past Federer (1.73 @ Betfair) for the title as he's quite simply in imperious form at the moment - cynics could go on arguing Federer has played in just one tourny since Wimbledon and even though he won that, there were times when his form was suspect; quite simply, I view that as the sort of class that's unique and exclusive to Federer which just sets him apart from the rest. On that basis, the US Open is clearly one for Federer to lose. That aside, one other bet that catches my eye has got to be Roddick (3.45 @ Betfair) to win in the Betting w/o Federer market. Roddick should have the beating of Nadal(which will basically be the clash of the bottom half if all goes to plan), who still hasn't convinced me entirely he's a top 3 player outside claycourts. Lasting 7 best-of-5 matches on the much faster hardcourts clearly remains a stern challenge to Nadal who will inevitably be consumed by fatigue at some stage given his all-action style of play. Considering the relevant experience, pedigree and form of the frontrunners, I'd have to fancy Roddick to book another appointment with Federer on September 11th. As for the Women's draw, this year's tourny looks more open than ever with no one in any shape or form in the run-up to the US Open to suggest anyone's a worthy frontrunner. However, a quick glance on the way the draw has shaped up and it's not hard to see who the biggest threats will be. On first looks, however, I like the look of Henin-Hardenne (5.20 @ Betfair) for the outright market as she does seem to have a relatively easy draw in her half with just Mauresmo and Davenport threatening her berth in the final - quite frankly, neither is in any shape or form to take on Henin-Hardenne given their fitness/inconsistent performances(and I don't see how Davenport exerting herself in New Haven a week before the big one actually helps her cause given how her match fitness had been questionable in the latter stages of the French Open and Wimbledon this year) over the last couple of weeks. Henin-Hardenne is certainly one to back, even if that's just for the sake of generating a superb back-and-lay proposition. The other bet that has caught my eye in the women's draw has obviously got to be laying Clijsters (3.25 @ Betfair). Granted, Clijsters could well beat just about anyone on the WTA, but as her record has shown down the years, winning a Grand Slam is quite simply another matter altogether. Clijsters has entered Grand Slams in better form than what she's shown over the last few weeks, been in positions to close out matches against big name opposition in previous Slams only to bottle it when it has mattered most - all that clearly does little to boost anyone's confidence in putting your money on someone who has yet to prove she has what it takes to deliver the goods when it matters most. Add that to the fact that she's got the Williams sisters to contend with in her quarter and Sharapova(in all likelihood) in the semis and you just start wondering how you could put a case for Clijsters to be priced at anything as ridiculously low as prices in the 3's. The top half is obviously a tough draw where anything could happen with Sharapova, Clijsters, S Williams(assuming she's lost some weight :lol ) & V Williams potentially providing the threat to Henin-Hardenne/Mauresmo/Davenport in the final. Come September 10th, though, I'd like to think I'd be really surprised - then again, what haven't we seen in the women's game? :rollin - if the winner doesn't come from one of these 3 : Sharapova/Henin-Hardenne/V Williams. I will stick up more thoughts on the individual matches when the tourny eventually gets underway...

[tranmerekev]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Can't disagree with a lot of what you say. I'm on Fed @ 1.88. What I want to know is where the hell is Monday's Order of Play? It has been decided apparently as I read a small snippet of it on another site and I've heard the US broadcasters have put up their TV schedules. The official site still hasn't put it up and I've looked everywhere. Can amyone point me in the right direction please?

[cluelessG]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Monday's Order of Play is now available: http://www.usopen.org/en_US/scores/schedule/index.html US broadcasters' schedule: http://www.usopen.org/en_US/about/tv_us.html?promo=leftnav

[Striker]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Good Luck Best first round bet for me today in the mens is GIORGIO GALIMBERTI to beat Young The general 1.57 appeals as he has come through qualifying beating Favourites like Sa and Dupuis,and will be fully used to the conditions.While local hope Young has lost all 4 of his hard court matches this season,failing to win one set.

[Jamesk]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Roddick to win his quarter at 5/4 (from 6/4) PaddyPs.Neither Grosjaean or Gasquet will be strong enough for him and Coria has'nt shown great form on hard courts still.

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Without much further ado, on to Day 1 action then... 10pts Tipsarevic-Ivanovic-Peng (3.22 @ Ladbrokes) I honestly can't remember Saulnier did himself any justice in a Best of 5 match and I just feel Tipsarevic is a tad too big even if he isn't exactly as good as the Frenchman at when Saulnier is at his best - however, Saulnier has been patchy lately and I feel Tipsarevic stands every chance in a 50-50 match. Value definitely with the Serb here. Shuai Peng is an up-and-coming Chinese player who will be on the circuit for years to come and having had a decent run in a tourny recently where she upset Clijsters, you've to feel she will walk this against Laine so long as she remembers to turn up with a racquet. Similarly, Ivanovic is a child prodigy who has demonstrated much to show she has what it takes to cope with pressure - if you can beat Mauresmo in the French Open, I don't see what's going to trouble her too much against Lindsay Lee-Waters. 5pts Peter Luczak to beat Tommy Haas (7.60 @ Betfair) 10pts LAY Tommy Haas 3-0 (1.81 @ Betfair) Haas is one of those who never turns up in Grand Slams and given the fact he's not even in any sort of a decent run coming into the US Open, he could have his work cut out against this steely Australian. While I'm not bold enough to suggest an upset is on the cards here, I'm convinced the value is certainly massively in the Australian's favour here as Luczak's big-serving game does have a knack of troubling many journeymen. 10pts Hernych-Gaudio-Petrova-Berdych (4.28 @ Ladbrokes) Gaudio, Petrova and Berdych should ease through to the 2nd Round against Baker, Birnoreva and Kohlschreiber respectively. These players are all big game players and should just prove too much for their lesser and inexperienced opponents. Hernych can't be this big against Malisse IMO - the Belgian hasn't been firing on all cylinders this year and Hernych has proved himself to be more than a decent player on hardcourts you just can't write him off in what's effectively a 50-50 tie. 10pts Jenkins-T Johansson (2.56 @ Ladbrokes) T Johansson should prove too strong for Zabaleta who basically hasn't got a game outside clay and there should, in all probability, only be one outcome in this one. Another value bet lies with Scotville Jenkins - Jenkins has been impressive in New Haven having beaten Nieminen and taken a set off Robredo last week. Quite clearly, that's not the sort of form that will suggest he should start this as an underdog given the fact Bastl has struggled in the US Open Qualifers and actually dropped sets against lesser players than Nieminen and Robredo. Cheers & Good Luck! :ok Starting Bank : 100.00pts Current Bank : 100.00pts Profits/Losses : 0.00pts

[1ted]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Day 1 10pts Kirilenko-Pennetta-Bartoli-F Schiavone (2.44 @WillHill) I see here Kirilenko win versus Pous Tio. Kirilineko likes to play on hardcourts as her opponent is more claycourt player. All three wins was on Pennetta side against Schruff. This time is no exception. Schiavone lead h2h 2-0 Kostanic and should win here as well. Bartoli is a good option to beat Strycova as rankings and play show that. 10pts Chela-Andreev-Bjorkman-Gaudio (2.59 @WillHill) Chela shows his great play on hardcourts and he's far too strong for Soderling and no need to comment all players as they're strong favourites to win they're matches. Good luck Starting Bank : 100.00pts Current Bank : 100.00pts Profits/Losses : 0.00pts

[NW1970]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) I'll have my two pennorth for this tournament, then. Starting with 100 points, a la the trusty Edtkh: First round: Srichaphan v El Aynaoui 1/7 Ancic v Lee 2/7 Gasquet v Martin 1/8 Ginepri v Garcia Lopez 1/8 Berdych v Kohlschreiber 2/7 All at sporting Odds. My bankers of the round, but those with odds that just about make it worth backing them. Hewitt and Grosjean are just not worth backing at 1/25 and silly odds like that. All these picks in reasonable form recently, playing players with no hard court form to speak of, excepting Kohlschreiber, who has put in decent performances recently. 20 point accumulator Andreev v Elseneer 3/10 Chela v Soderling 8/15 O Rochus v Vik 1/3 All prices at Coral. 15 point treble. Andreev has played quite well in the last few weeks. Chela knocked out Davydenko last week, though how up for it Davy was in the week before a Grand slam is questionable. Soderling has had injury niggles recently. Rochus is a good performer on hard. Bit dangerous to back against qualifiers (Vik and Elseneer), but their opponents are in sufficiently good form to cope with even an in form qualifier. Massu v Gambill 4/9 Starace v Schuettler 13/8 8 point double. I have backed Starace at 7/4, but have recorded here the best odds available now. Not entirely confident selections, but Massu should have enough to cope with Gambill, who is a wild card and could be in any sort of shape. 4/9 is more a reflection of Massu's unreliability than Gambill's ability. Similarly, a bet on Starace is mainly a bet against Schuettlet, whose game has gone to pieces over the last year or so. Starace a better player on clay, but generally he is improving. Phillipoussis v Kucera 4/6 Acasuso v Horna 11/10 Mirnyi v Gimelstob 4/9 7 point treble. Kucera is a spent force, and a fit Phillipoussis shouldn't have trouble in progressing. Acasuso beat Horna last week on the hard surface and is value to do so again. Can't understand the Mirnyi price, he is a decent performer on hard and Gimelstob has hardly set the world alight recently, if ever. Nieminen to beat Beck 5/4 A slightly speculative single, but see this as an even money shot. Beck is very hit and miss, and Nieminen's style may wera him down. 5 point single. Mello to beat Monaco 1.91 Betfair I see Mello as a slight favourite here, he has been producing his best tennis in the US hard court season, though not at his best so far this year. Monaco favours clay, I see Mello as a value proposition here. 7 point single. Good luck.

[Jamesk]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Gaudio is going to fcuk up all the accas if he doesn't stop serving like a retard.

[oldbigead]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Bet of the week is a lay of Serena Williams at around 15/1. This is free money.

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th)

Bet of the week is a lay of Serena Williams at around 15/1. This is free money.

Don't speak too soon, mate. ;) After watching Serena's match against YJ Chan, I must stress I'm thoroughly impressed with the way Serena has improved since Wimbledon - she seems to have shed a good few pounds and was getting the rallies and grounstrokes going as we'd come to expect of her once again. That said, I've yet to see the other frontrunners in action, but if what Serena's served is a prelude of what's to come for the next fortnight, I really wouldn't put it past her making a date at the Arthur Ashe on September 10th.

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th)

Mello to beat Monaco 1.91 Betfair I see Mello as a slight favourite here, he has been producing his best tennis in the US hard court season, though not at his best so far this year. Monaco favours clay, I see Mello as a value proposition here. 7 point single. Good luck.

Good call on Mello - missed that one! :tongue2

[NW1970]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Cheers Ed. Lost first set, but cruised it after that. just disappointed I didn't have the confidence to follow it through in running! Laid Mello after backing him at a big price after set 1. Gasquet in trouble after taking first 2 sets easily. amazing.

[Striker]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th)

Good Luck Best first round bet for me today in the mens is GIORGIO GALIMBERTI to beat Young The general 1.57 appeals as he has come through qualifying beating Favourites like Sa and Dupuis,and will be fully used to the conditions.While local hope Young has lost all 4 of his hard court matches this season,failing to win one set.

WON in Straight Sets:clap

[Sco]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Ok 2 bets for me at the 4 start. first one is to Lay Henman - he (if fully fit) should easily have the beatings of Verdasco, but he has been playing really badly of late, and will have the added pressure of having points to defend (after a good run last year). I would also suggest betfair as if Henman retires after the first set has finished it counts as a bet. Second one is Monfils. If he doesn't win this match il buy everyone here a pint! )Well maybe not but still...) 1.67 I feel is MASSIVE! Other games I'm interested in - Murrays, I am going to lay the Pavel 3-0 as I just cannot see Murray not getting a set, although in the In play market I am going to Lay Murray if he goes 2-0 up due to possibkle lack of fitness and a bad shoulder. Blake V Rysedski... What a match that should be. I'm leaving it alone but both will be REALLY pumped up for it. I coul;d see Blake just edging it though unless Rusedski can continue producing theform he has showed. For accas: Ancic and over 1.2 tb Lee is OK, and I think Kiefer at 1.1 also. Obviously there is feder, Roddick and agassi who will not lose bar an injury. Good luck and lets hope Murray can go all the way...who is federer???:rollin Sco

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Is there something wrong with the PL server? I do recall posting my selections a couple of hours ago, but there seems to be no record of it.

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Anyway, here goes although some matches have obviously started but I'd stuck up similar selections at Sports-Punter... 60pts Murray to beat Pavel (1.72 @ William Hill) :D I've been eyeing this one since the draw was first made. This must be the bet of the day without a shadow of a doubt. Pavel is one who never gets anywhere, but eternally seems to be overrated for whatever reason unbeknown to me. Throw in his horrendous Grand Slam record down the years and you just can't make a case for the Romanian veteran against any half decent player in such a big match at such short odds. That said, I'm just as aware Murray does have some fitness concerns(and he does seem to have a knack of picking up all sorts of weird injuries when he's closing out matches) and have deliberately placed this bet at Hills to safeguard my investment should Murray not complete this match. In essence, I just can't see Pavel winning this one - if he does, Murray will probably retire in all probability. 10pts Baghdatis to beat Tursunov (2.36 @ Betfair) :( Baghdatis is an incredibly reliable baseliner and a superb big-match player who never fails to rise to the occasion which a Grand Slam would inevitably bring. Hence, he's clearly not one whom you'll use too much of his form this year to gauge his potential in a Grand Slam match. Afterall, here's someone who had a good run at the Aussie Open and stunned Nalbandian 6-0 in the first set at Roland Garros before the Argentine regained his composure and recovered in time to curb the youthful exuberance of the young Cypriot. However, I don't see Tursunov having the ability to trouble Baghdatis the way Bandy did especially when you consider Tursunov's hardcourt record is hardly anything to drool over - this should be closer to a 50-50 shot, really. 10pts Wawrinka-Wessels (3.30 @ Ladbrokes) :D Wawrinka should prove too experienced for Ram whose run in ATP tournaments is incredibly limited and simply isn't ready for something as big as a Grand Slam - if Ram wasn't a wildcard, I wouldn't even have fancied his chances of making the actual tournament. Wessels to beat C Rochus at 2.10 is just a joke. Rochus doesn't belong in this league and has hardly made any impact on any hardcourt tournament with the exception of one in the US earlier in the year where he surprisingly made the final. That said, his diminutive physique isn't going to help mask the challenge awaiting him with Wessels' titanic serves being known to have troubled players more illustrious than C Rochus. A terrific value bet if you ask me. Cheers & Good Luck! :ok Starting Bank : 100.00pts Current Bank : 100.60pts Profits/Losses : +0.60pts

[rcgills]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) It's OK, I'll vouch for you, Edtkh, those tips were definitely on here earlier (and before the matches had started). :ok

[Sco]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Yep they definately were there. The really good thing about these tournaments is that there honestly hasn't been a game (including Monfils match) that I havent been 'all green' in on Betfair. The market changes so dramitically - a break for an underdog in the first game and the market swings...take coria game - I got coria at 1.94...ridiculous, even if he did miss the first set. All my hopes go to the ONLY englishmen left. Sco

[Matt]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Data problem earlier fellas with the server 12.30pm ish. No probs with the picks Ed I saw them as well ;)

[Tulenos]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) The Murray match has been really tight, lets hope he can win it now that he turned the corner at last. Fingers crossed, ed;)

[Mr Intensity]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) That was hilarious:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol:lol :puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke:puke Dirty boy:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank:spank

[Mr Intensity]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Right next to Pavels chair too. Pav chilling out next to the photographer, if/when Murray continues maybe Pavel will be interested again? Prices will be interesting the next 10 minutes....

[Mr Intensity]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Don't think Murray will be able to compete the rest of this set. Pavel @ 1.72 WillHill - great price

[Mr Intensity]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Price change very quickly and into 1.57 - not too sure about that as it is still on serve.

[Mr Intensity]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) ...and Pav's just blown his nut:wall:wall:wall:wall. Did you hear the naughty language?:eek

[Tulenos]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th)

...and Pav's just blown his nut:wall:wall:wall:wall. Did you hear the naughty language?:eek

Well, didn't hear it as I had the sound turned down almost completely, but can actually understand why. Murray just nicks it - but if it was not for the little help from the umpire:( than who knows - Pavel was not able to concentrate again after that hillarious overrun when the umpire called the ball in when nobody else saw it (and it happened at the very far corner from him!!!!!:( Can feel with anyone who was on Pavel. Good call, ed, anyway.;)

[edtkh]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Sco, I'm sure the English will appreciate the fact their only representative who remotely belong to their creed left in the tourny is actually Scottish by birth... :rollin Honestly though, I thought what Nalbandian said about Murray(Murray has great potential, but he still needs to develop physically if he's to realise his potential) a couple of weeks ago rings very true - IMO, this boy is easily the finest(technically, anyway) tennis player Great Britain has produced in a generation but he just somehow lacks the nerves to hold out games which he should rightfully be winning(think T Johansson at Queen's, Bandy at Wimbledon and the near-miss against Pavel last night). Of course, he has time on his side given his age, but I do honestly feel it'd be a remiss - for both the country and the game in general - if he doesn't go on to become a Top 10 player on a consistent basis in the years ahead as a result of a psychological problem which seems to afflict so many gifted British athletes. That said, I thought Murray was commendable in the way he carried the fight all the way last night(not to mention he's already played 3 qualifiers before the actual tournament started) in spite of the trying circumstances during the match, but all that just points me to a bigger mystery which I'm still yet to find a sensible explanation for : just what on earth do the bookies see in Pavel time and again? It's almost embarrassing how much I've taken off this lot by betting against the Romanian. :rollin Will be back with more later today... ;)

[NW1970]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) A mighty match, Murray v Pavel, an in running dream. Congrats to Ed for his 60 pts on Murray. Touch and go... My results: Won the 5 timer and the 2 singles, but lost on the double and treble due to Starace and Chela. The other treble is still undecided, but Mirnyi won in straight sets with Acasuso(who is now favourite to beat Horna after being 11/10 initially, and Phillipoussis to come). So far: Starting bank 100 points. Bet 62 points. Return 74.39 points. One bet undecided. Profit +12.39 points.

[NW1970]

Re: Tennis : US Open 2005 (August 29th - September 11th) Today's bets: Carlsen to bt Almagro 1.74 Betfair 10 points Fancy the old stager to have too much on a hard court for Almagro, who prefers clay. Make Carlsen 8/13 here, so a value proposition. Davydenko to bt Srichaphan 1/2 Haas to bt Schuettler 2/5 At Stan James. Davydenko has his moments, but feel he will be up for this tournament. Has been in good form on hard, and Srichaphan has not. Think Davy will be a bit shorter come the off, so taking the odds now. Both Haas and Schuettler are in ropey form, but I think Haas is coming back to something like his true self, whereas the slightest setback seems to derail Rainer at the moment. Thinking 1/3 a truer price for Haas, and as this is a 'void if retirement' bookies now, a safeish bet. 12 point double. And two of my favourites to oppose: Novak v Massu Lay Novak 3-0 3.15 at Betfair 6 points. Hrbaty v Seppi Lay Hrbaty 3-0 2.62 at Betfair 5 points. Novak and Hrbaty - when they're good, they're very good, when they're bad, they're terrible. Depends whether they're on a 'going' day. Still feel their opponents will have enough to take at least a set each. Contemplated backing Massu to win, but will just take the handicap. Seppi has played well on hard courts recently until losing to Spadea last week. Over 3/1 is too big for him to take out Hrbaty, but again I will stick with the lay of Hrbaty 3-0.