Marseille Open 13 First Round Betting Action

Marseille, France – The Open 13 in Marseille is already underway and getting the tournament off to a good start on Monday, in what was a limited day of action, was Marcos Baghdatis, the No.7 seed, along with Mischa Zverev and French hopeful Florent Serra. Day 2 of the Open will feature a more compact menu with several interesting clashes. Here is a breakdown of what tennis bettors can look forward to.

Tennis Betting Line: Arnaud Clement -150 Andreas Seppi +110

Match Time: 04:00 AM Eastern Time Tuesday February 16, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: Frenchman Arnaud Clement is favoured in his first round clash against Andreas Seppi of Italy. Clement is listed at -150 to win outright while Seppi carries a price of +110. Clement had had a good start to his season, finishing runner-up in Auckland. However, he slipped in form since that positive start; he is only 4-5 on the season ahead of his first round encounter. Seppi is 3-4 on the season. Also slow to get going and more likely he will continue to struggle because hard courts are not his strongest surface.

Tennis Free Picks: Clement in straight sets

Tennis Betting Line: Christophe Rochus +200 Denis Istomin -300

Match Time: 04:00 AM Eastern Time Tuesday February 16, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: Istomin is after an impressive run in San Jose, where he reached the semis, marking his first-ever ATP semi-final in his career. Most likely, he didn’t expect to do so well in San Jose, otherwise I cannot imagine him making plans to attend an event on the opposite side of the globe. As good as he played, last week, he is at a bit of a disadvantage going into his first match with jet lag. Nevertheless, he is the better player. All things being equal, he should win this match. However, a surprise outcome is possible.

Tennis Free Picks: Istomin in three sets

Tennis Betting Line: Gilles Simon -275 Olivier Rochus +190

Match Time: 04:00 AM Eastern Time Tuesday February 16, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: Simon has been missing in action for some time with injuries. He is making his first appearance at an ATP level event and he comes with many question marks. Whether he is fit, enough to compete well in Marseille is a big if. Nevertheless, the bookies have him as the favourite, listed at -275 to win outright. Olivier Rochus, has the 1-0 edge over Simon but the mark dates back to New Haven 2006. Of course, Simon is not match ready so Rochus has a theoretical shot. Yet, the crowd will be behind Simon. I still like his shot to advance.

Tennis Expert Picks: Simon in three sets