Delray Beach 2nd Round Winning Picks: Fish and Gulbis

Delray Beach, Florida – Online tennis betting action at BetOnline Sportsbook features Mardy Fish and Ernests Gulbis in the second round at Delray Beach. Mardy Fish is the defending champion and he takes on Germany’s Mischa Zverev for a spot in the quarterfinals. Elsewhere, Gulbis will take on Teimuraz Gabashvili for a spot in the quarters.

Tennis Betting Line:

Mischa Zverev +2 -115 +120 23½ O -125 U -115
Mardy Fish -2 -125 -160 23½ O -125 U -115

First Set Line: Mischa Zverev +110 Mardy Fish -150

Match Time: 07:30 PM Eastern Time Wednesday February 24, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: Mischa Zverev is gearing up for a battle against home favourite and defending champion Mardy Fish. Bookies list him as a mere +120 underdog, a price-point that is rather favourable for an underdog as it indicates there is more than an off chance he would mastermind the upset. Zverev hasn’t come up with season numbers to back this notion. He is only 4-5 on the season going into the second round of Delray Beach and weighs in at No.86. To get a sense of the quality of play by Zverev, his career tipping point was a ranking high of No. 45. He is but 22-years-old so better days could be ahead. In fact, Zverev was winless on the season until last week in Marseille when he navigated a course into the semis and lost to eventual champion Michael Llodra. Zverev clearly found form last week and it remains to be seen whether he can string together another similar run, if not better, in Delray Beach. Given all this, he does hold some value on the fixed market.

Mardy Fish enters this matchup as the favourite. The consideration given to him is largely because he is the defending champion and he has home edge. At -160, you can’t call him an untouchable favourite. Moreover, given his penchant to streakiness, he isn’t the sure play either. Adding to the concern is Fish’s form on the season, which is 4-4 going into the second round. Prior to Delray Beach, Fish reached the semis of Sydney and immediately afterwards went winless in back-to-back tournaments. Proof-positive of streaky play.

Tennis Free Picks: Zverev in three sets

To Bet on Tennis >> Join Now!

Tennis Betting Line:

Teimuraz Gabashvili +4 -140 +190 22 O -125 U -115
Ernest Gulbis -4 Ev -275 22 O -125 U -115

First Set Line: Teimuraz Gabashvili +150 Ernest Gulbis -200

Match Time: 09:00 PM Eastern Time Wednesday February 24, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: Teimuraz Gabashvili owns the 1-0 edge over Ernests Gulbis in ATP play having beaten the Gulbis at Bucharest in 2008, and he has three more wins against his Latvian opposite on the lower circuits from 2004-2007. Yet he has a ranking and form disadvantage coming into this match, which translates to a market disadvantage. Gabashvili, weighing in at No.104 to Gulbis No.72 ranking, was winless prior to Delray Beach, hence the bookies list him as the underdog at +190. Gabashvili recorded his first win on the season by taking out the top seed in Delray Beach, Tommy Haas. We are yet to see whether he will make that upset count.

Gulbis is off to a better start this season than last season. He is 6-4 coming into the second round of Delray and he was a semi-finalist during last week’s Memphis tournament. Gulbis also made it into the quarters of Doha at the start of the term. Gulbis is bidding for his third quarters on the season and everything about him suggests he should seize that spot. Tennis purists believe he is one of the most organically talented players on the Tour. His results don’t lend support though. At -275, bookies have taken a page from the purists. His inconsistency makes him an fair weathered favourite.

Tennis Expert Pick: Gabashvili in three sets