Tennis: French Open Betting preview
April 15, 2008
TENNIS – FRENCH OPEN – May 26 to June 8
Tournoi de Roland-Garros, commonly known as the French Open, is a major tennis tournament held over a fortnight between late-May and early June in Paris, France. It is the second of the Grand Slam tournaments and the most prestigious clay court tennis tournament. The slower clay playing surface and the five-set men’s singles matches with no final set tiebreak, lead the tournament to be considered the most physically demanding event in the tennis calendar.
HISTORY
The event began as a national tournament in 1891 as the Championat de France International de Tennis. The first women’s tournament was held in 1897. Both events were played on grass. In 1912, the tournament was held played on a red clay surface (”terre battue”), made up from the crushed wastes of red brick. In 1925, the French Championships was opened to international players, with the event held on a grass surface, alternately between the Racing Club de France and the Stade Français. In 1927, the famous “Mousquetaires” (René Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Henri Cochet, and Jacques Brugnon) won the Davis cup, in America. For the 1928 Davis Cup renewal, a new tennis stadium was built at Porte d’Auteuil, named after the World War I hero, Roland Garros. The new Stade de Roland Garros hosted the Davis Cup challenge and ever since the tournament has gained prestige. In 1968, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to allow amateurs and professionals to compete alongside each other.
THE FRENCH OPEN TODAY
In comparison to grass or hard courts, clay courts tend to slow the ball down producing a higher bounce. As a result, certain players, whose skills are suited to the surface, develop into clay court specialists. Such players often prevail at the French Open. For example, Pete Sampras, who won fourteen Grand Slam singles titles, never won a French Open. Similarly, Roger Federer, the current World Number One, has won Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and Australian Open, but never a French Open. Contrastingly, “clay specialists” like Rafael Nadal and Gustavo Kuerten have won the French Open, but no other Grand Slam event. Of the last fifteen Men’s Singles titles, thirteen have been won by players who have not won any other Grand Slam event. The story is similar in the Ladies’ game, with the likes of Maria Sharapova and Martina Hingis, prevailing in the other three Grand Slam tournaments, but failing in Paris.
Recent Winners
The most recent winners of the Men’s and Ladies Singles titles have been, respectively:
2007 Rafael Nadal, Justine Henin-Hardenne
2006 Rafael Nadal, Justine Henin-Hardenne
2005 Rafael Nadal, Justine Henin-Hardenne
2004 Gasón Gaudio, Anastasia Myskina
2003 Juan Carlos Ferrero, Justine Henin-Hardenne
2002 Albert Costa, Serena Williams
2001 Gustavo Kuerten, Jennifer Capriati
2000 Gustavo Kuerten, Mary Pierce
BETTING ON THE FRENCH OPEN
Just about all online betting sites will be offering prices on the French Open. Best prices at 17th March.
Men’s Outright
4/6 R. Nadal (Blue Square), 7/2 R. Federer, 7/1 N. Djokovic, 20/1 D. Nalbandian (all vcbet), 24/1 D. Ferrer (Stan James), 33/1 N. Almagro (Boylesports) 40/1 BAR. Each-way terms 1/2 the odds 1, 2.
Ladbrokes also offer a special bet of 5/2 about a Nadal-Federer final.
Ladies’ Outright
13/8 J. Henin (Paddy Power), 7/1 M. Sharapova, 8/1 S. Williams (both vcbet), 10/1 A. Ivanovic (Blue Square), 14/1 V. Williams (vcbet), J. Jankovic (Blue Square), 16/1 A. Mauresmo (vcbet), 20/1 BAR. Each-way 1/2 the odds 1, 2.
Online betting sites will offer a vast array of opportunities to bet on the ultimate Championship winners, individual matches or any of the other available markets.
The playing surface invariably leads to some unexpected results, making The French Open Tournament an exciting prospect on which to bet.
For those contemplating a bet on the French Open, primary considerations should be:
Seeding
It goes without saying that the tournament is not necessarily won by the top seed. However, highly seeded players do have a good record, though unseeded players have occasionally prevailed.
Form
Current form is also a key factor in making a selection or selections for The French Open. Beware players recovering form injury, as this may still affect their performance.
Stamina is often an important attribute in performing well in the French Open. From an online betting perspective, avoid players who have played in a lot of tournaments prior to Roland Garros. Additionally players who have been involved in long matches in previous rounds of the championship itself may also be fatigued.
Style
Style of play is perhaps the most important consideration when weighing up prospects for an online bet at the French Open. Players with a history of success on clay courts tend to perform well. “Baseline” players tend to perform better than “serve and volley” players.
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