With just a matter of
days left before Wimbledon gets underway, the likes of Andreas Seppi, David Ferrer, Petra Kvitova and Marion Bartoli take their preparation to the grass courts of Eastbourne
and Hertogenbocsch.
Eastbourne
Men
Last year's Men's Champion, Andreas Seppi
is back to defend his title on the South Coast of England. Following a
really successful outing in Paris, which saw him go two sets up against Novak
Djokovic before eventually tiring, the Italian will be hopeful of successfully
defending his crown this time around. Seppi is the third seed here, but there
isn't a lot to pick between him, top seed Richard Gasquet and no.2 seed
Marcel Granollers.
It's Richard Gasquet who comes in as the
favorite with the tennis bookmakers at odds of 5/2, but not having won a grass
court title since 2006, there's little to suggest the Frenchman's chances are
any greater than a host of other names.
For me, the Men's event here in Eastbourne is completely open. The likes of Sam
Querrey, Bernard Tomic, and Philipp Kohlschreiber all have as good a chance to
win as Seppi, Gasquet and Granollers.
Sam Querrey reached the semi-finals in
Queens last week and won the entire event at Queens
just two years ago. It's a tough pick, but at odds of 9/1, I'd probably be
tempted to pick out Querrey from the group.
Odds
Richard Gasquet - 5/2
Philipp Kohlschreiber - 5/1
Andreas Seppi - 8/1
Sam Querrey - 9/1
Bernard Tomic - 9/1
Marcos Granollers - 10/1
Andy Roddick - 12/1
Women
Marion Bartoli and Petra Kvitova contested
a fantastic final here in 2011, and, whilst the French woman was victorious, it
was Kvitova who went on to great success at Wimbledon
just a week later.
Both women are back for more this week and
both should do well, but it comes as little surprise to see French Open
semi-finalist, Petra Kvitova as the 15/8 favourite with the bookmakers.
Bartoli can be backed at 8/1 and does love
playing on the grass; however, Caroline Wozniacki, Angelique Kerber and Agnieszka Radwanska are all above her in the
rankings and all could succeed here.
Whilst I
expect Kvitova to go deep into the week, German Angelique Kerber has been in
fine form recently, and I'd pick her to go all the way this week.
If you're
looking for a dark horse, you could do worse than no.8 seed Daniela Hantuchova, who is always capable of springing surprises and comes in at odds of 18/1.
Odds
Petra Kvitova - 15/8
Agnieszka
Radwanska - 4/1
Caroline Wozniacki - 6/1
Marion Bartoli - 7/1
Angelique Kerber - 8/1
Daniel Hantuchova - 18/1
Hertogenbosch
Men
With most of the bigger names in action
over in Eastbourne this week, there's an
opportunity in both draws for some of the less successful grass court players
to bag themselves a title.
David Ferrer is the top seed in the men's
event. His superb couple of months on the clay notwithstanding, the Spaniard is not exactly famed for his capabilities on this surface.
Ferrer is the 15/8 favorite with the tennis
bookmakers, but the likes of Jurgen Melzer and Viktor Troicki will want to have
their say.
Serbian Viktor Troicki hasn't been enjoying
the most consistent of seasons but comes in as the second seed; his powerful
serve could do well for him here. Meanwhile, if you're looking for an outsider,
Olivier Rochus can be backed at 16/1 and is another who loves to perform during
the grass court season.
Odds
David Ferrer - 5/2
Jurgen Melzer - 8/1
Gilles Muller - 9/1
Viktor Troicki - 10/1
Xavier Malisse - 10/1
Olivier Rochus - 16/1
Women
Kim Clijsters continues her comeback in the
women's event, coming in as the tournament favourite despite the presence of
Cibulkova, Pennetta and Petrova. I'd expect one of these four women to win the
event, but I feel Clijsters may be happy with a couple of victories and some
grass court practice under her belt. Cibulkova has been in good form in
recent months and would probably be my pick for success. Further down in the
odds list, forgotten woman, Jelena Jankovic can be backed at 12/1 and Shahar
Per may have a chance at 33/1.
Odds
Kim Clijsters - 5/2
Dominika Cibulkova - 3/1
Flavia Pennetta - 8/1
Nadia Petrova - 8/1
Jelena Jankovic - 12/1
Shahar Peer - 33/1