SAP OPEN BETTING TIPS: Verdasco vs. Becker

San Jose, California – Second seed Fernando Verdasco eyes a spot in the SAP Open quarterfinals but standing in his way is journeyman player, Germany’s Benjamin Becker.

Verdasco has not quite hit his stride this season, at least not in the same manner in which he did at the beginning of last term when he stormed into the Aussie Open semi-finals and delivered perhaps one of the best Grand Slam semi contests (against Nadal) of the season. At that time, Verdasco was hot to trot, explosive and intense on court, which made him very exciting to watch. If I were to describe his first month on the Tour, he has been as explosive as bubble gum, tepid as English Breakfast tea and as about as exciting as cucumber sandwiches.

Fernando Verdasco advanced into the second round and improves to 4-1 on the season but the manner in which he moved into the R16 is a bit concerning and doesn’t inspire confidence in his perceived ability to sustain a successful campaign in San Jose. I mean, he needed three sets to dispatch Yen Hsen-Lu (a minnow in comparison, weighing in beyond the top 100) 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3. What was that all about? He should have sent Lu packing in straight sets.

He survived which I am sure his fans will be quick to point out, but come on, if he persists with such lackadaisical play in the coming rounds he will suffer an untimely exit.

Seasoned veteran Benjamin Becker is a player that wouldn’t hesitate to take advantage of Verdasco’s lack of focus. He has collided with Verdasco four times in his career, three times last year. Lifetime, Verdasco owns the 3-1 edge; last year the mark was more representative at 2-1. Significantly, all their encounters were hard fought and tight victories.

Tennis Betting Line:

Benjamin Becker +4½ -130 +375 21 O -130 U -110
Fernando Verdasco -4½ -110 -650 21 O -130 U -110

Match Time: Not Before 11:00 PM Eastern time Thursday February 11, 2010

Tennis Betting Verdict: I would like to see Fernando Verdasco advance into the quarters because I think it is good for the tournament and for the game when guys who are supposed to navigate deep into a tournament keep their appointments. There is nothing worse than a fair-weather seed. Having said that I cannot say, in all certainty, Verdasco is a lock bet. To say his opening round match was less than a convincing display of bigwig tennis would be an understatement. It was sub-par and had shades of the Verdasco of past seasons (pre-2009) – utterly unfocused and susceptible to the yips.

That said the match is on his racquet and it is his to lose. At -650, bookies are confident he will win this match. If he does, it won’t be pretty. Evinced by

the fact that Becker is favoured to cover a spread of +4 ½ -130 and the totals of Over 21 -130 is the favoured outcome.

What this say’s is that Becker at +375 is not without a shot. He is somewhat large on the money line but he isn’t exactly an out-of-touch puppy. Becker was the last player to beat Andre Agassi at the US Open before he went into retirement. He is not intimidated by big names or players more popular than he is. Might he mastermind the upset in San Jose? Worth bucking the trend here, methinks.

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