Can Ivanovic Shrug off the Slump and recent tournament Woes?

Zurich, Switzerland – The Zurich Open got to a difficult start for the seeded players as several favourites in the tennis betting market faltered in the opening round yesterday. Sixth seed Patty Schnyder, seventh seed Ana Chakvetadze and eighth seed Daniela Hantuchova were casualties on the first day of action.

Top seed Jankovic through to fifth seed Radwanska kick off second round tennis betting action; however, for all but Radwanska, the second round marks their opening match of the tournament as the top four seeds received a bye into the second round.

Of all the top four seeds, second seed Ana Ivanovic is the most concerning. Ivanovic has crashed out of the opening round in two of her last six events, stringing together back-to-back wins only once – at Wimbledon when she fell in the third round to wild card entrant Jie Zheng of China.

Next up for Ivanovic is Marion Bartoli of France.

Here is a look at their matchup:

Head-to-Head Analysis: Ana Ivanovic leads the head-to-head series 2-0. She earned the win against Bartoli twice in 2005.

Tennis Betting Line: Marion Bartoli +185 Ana Ivanovic -250

Tennis Betting Prediction: Neither female is known as a pressure player. In fact, both have one trait in common – after posting encouraging Grand Slam results (Ivanovic winning the title in Roland Garros and Bartoli finishing runner-up at the 2007 Wimbledon Championships), they both withered emotionally under the pressure, evinced by poor results in tournament action.

In Ivanovic’s case, her camp would have us believe she has been hindered by a thumb injury – maybe so, but any self respecting tennis bettor who has seen her in action can also clearly see her struggles with confidence. All but one of eight matches since she crashed out of the third round of Wimbledon were three set battles. This is a bit of a shocker because Ivanovic’s performance at the French Open was so convincing, dropping only one set en route to the title, that the fact that she has been unable to win a match in straight sets is telling.

On paper, Bartoli does not appear to be a huge threat. She trails 0-2 against Ivanovic –albeit they last met in 2005. She has had her share of woes. Her results have been sporadic. She reached the final in Paris and Stanford. She reached the semis in Montreal and the R16 at the US Open.

Tennis Betting Verdict: Bartoli is a quirky player that could be an unsettling challenger for Ivanovic. If she gets into the Serbians head and disrupts her rhythm – something she is completely capable of doing – she could provide the Serbian with another disappointing turnout. Normally, I would not pick Bartoli for the win but considering Ivanovic is mentally suspect these days on court I would rather bet on her unravelling than winning. Bartoli’s +185 price tag makes it worth the risk.

Tennis Free Picks: Bartoli in three sets

Nila Amerova is a freelance sports writer and regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room