WTA Monterrey Quarters: Pavlyuchenkova vs. Zakopalova

Monterrey, Mexico – The WTA Monterrey Open has reached the quarters and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has come through as I had expected. She was my dark horse pick for the tournament; so far, so good.

Pavlyuchenkova’s quarterfinal appointment is with Klara Zakopalova, another underdog to have punched above her weight class in this tournament. With a semi-final spot on the line, it remains to be seen which of these two players will continue good form. I have my ideas.

Pavlyuchenkova reaches the quarters on the back of solid, convincing performances. She beat qualifier Ana Tatishvili 6-1, 6-2 and Polona Hercog 6-2, 6-3. She hasn’t dropped a set and only relinquished eight games in two matches.

Zakopalova took out sixth seed Anabel Medina Garrigues in the first round, outlasting the favourite 7-5, 7-5. She backed up her win over Garrigues with a convincing performance over Patricia Mayr, 6-4, 6-3.

Clearly, both players are set up well for their quarterfinal clash. They were clear winners in both their matches and that should give them confidence for their clash. However, only one player can be the winner and if I were to bet house money, I would go with the big-hitting Russian, Pavlyuchenkova because I think she has a significant edge over Zakopalova on this surface.

Tennis Betting Line:

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova -6 -130 -650 19 O -110 U -130
Klara Zakopalova +6 -110 +375 19 O -110 U -130

First Set Line: Pavlyuchenkova -450 Klara Zakopalova +275

Match Time: 04:00 PM Eastern Time Friday March 5, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: The bookies are on side, favouring Pavlyuchenkova at solid -650 odds as I would have expected. Pavlyuchenkova is also a firm favourite to take the first set at -450. Judging by the spread, the bookies are further discouraging bets on Zakopalova with a generous +6 -100 price-point. The idea is that Zakopalova will be blown off court, evince by the totals as well, offered at Over/Under 19 – with the under the expected outcome at -130.

Tennis Free Picks: Tennis bettors looking to bet on this match are better off going with the market cast. Pavlyuchenkova has the significant ranking edge over Zakopalova and she is the more on form of the two; not to mention, methinks she is the better player overall with more aspects to her game than Zakopalova has. Pavlyuchenkova is the recommended play on the outright market to win at -650 and to take the first set at -450. Hedging bets on Zakopalova on the spread is a good option, listed at +6 -110. There is a chance Zakopalova might account better than most would expect. The Over 19 -110 would therefore complement such a play. However, if you are going for the blowout, then take the Under 19 at -130.

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Davis Cup Betting: Early Round action

Davis Cup action is underway in several corners of the globe as 16 nations kick off the first round of World Group action. BetOnline is taking action on all the matchups, so tune into our sportsbook for the latest, cutting-edge odds.

Here is a breakdown of some of the action already completed and the standings as follows.

Spain 0 vs. Switzerland 1
Venue: Plaza de Toros de la Ribera, Logrono, Spain (clay – indoors)

Spain suffered an early set back today when Nicolas Almagro lost to Stanislas Wawrinka in a five set thriller, 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3. Switzerland takes the early 1-0 lead off the first rubber win. Next up is David Ferrer and Marco Chiudinelli in the second rubber. Ferrer is coming off a title victory in Acapulco. He is in good form and one has to give him the edge over Chiudinelli, especially as they are set to slug it out on clay. Captain Albert Costa has Marcel Granollers and Tommy Robredo listed as his doubles partnering for the third rubber on Saturday against Yves Allegro and Wawrinka; and, Ferrer vs. Wawrinka and Almagro vs. Chiudinelli on the reverse rubbers on Sunday. Of course, at any point in time these matchups could change – it is the coach’s discretion to do so, up to a few minutes before the start of the match. Clearly, Costa is relying heavily on Ferrer and Almagro to do the job in the absence of bigger names, Nadal, Verdasco and Lopez.

FRANCE 1 GERMANY 0
Venue: Palais des Sports, Toulon, France (hard – indoors)

Gael Monfils gave France the early lead when he beat Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1, 6-4, 7-5. The victory marked Monfils first-ever Davis Cup win for France. Next up is Jo-Wilfried Tsonga against Benjamin Becker. In fact, they are currently slugging it out. Tsonga is on the verge of giving France a 2-0 lead with what looks like a four-set victory over Becker. They are in the fourth set, with Tsonga leading 5-2, a game away from taking the match. Coach Guy Forget has veterans Llodra and Benneteau listed for the doubles rubber on Saturday. The pair have played doubles together on numerous occasions, even winning the doubles title in Marseille a few weeks ago. One has to give them the edge over Christopher Kas and Philipp Kohlschreiber on Saturday. France looks to sweep this tie 3-0.

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RUSSIA 2 INDIA 0
Venue: Small Sports Arena "Luzhniki", Moscow, Russia (hard – indoors)

Russia has the early lead off wins by Kunitsyn and Youzhny in the first two rubbers. Somdev Devvarman accounted well for India against Kunitsyn, stretching the match to five sets but his fellow compatriot Rohan Bopanna succumbed in straights to Youzhny. All is not lost for India as they have one of the world’s best doubles players taking the third rubber on Saturday, Leander Paes. Paes and doubles partner Bhupathi might be able to get India on the scoreboard and thereby salvage some national pride by avoiding a Russian blank out. India however are long shots to comeback in this tie for the win. The best score is a 3:1 to Russia score.

Elsewhere Sweden has the 1-0 lead over Argentina and the Czech Republic has the 2-0 lead over Belgium. Sweden and Czech Republic, respectively, are the favourites to come through. Sweden has the tougher tie and might have to battle harder for the win but for all intended purposes both sides should make the quarters.

Chile and Israel are set to kick off on Saturday, BetOnline is offering odds on this matchup, with Chile the massive favourites at -1200 and Israel the huge underdogs at +600. Chile really should win this tie handily and is therefore the better bet. Value plays could be found in the individual matchups.

For more Davis Cup action, check out the Davis Cup 2010 odds at BetOnline.