in Tennis Free Picks

Brasil Open, Costa do Sauipe, Brazil
February 12-18, 2007
$456,000 / 32 Draw Clay

With all the action happening in tennis this week, the tennis betting enthusiast has much to chose from, one of which is the Brasil Open in Costa do Sauipe, Bahia, Brazil. Top seeded players arriving at this event that is already in full swing are No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero, No. 2 Augustin Calleri, No. 3 Nicolas Almagro, No. 4 Carlos Moya, No. 5 Gaston Gaudio, No. 6 Juan Ignacio Chela, No. 7 Filippo Volandri and No. 8 Luis Horna.

Prediction: No. 147 Igor Andreev favored on this line faces for the first time No. 120 Lukas Dlouhy. Despite his lower rank, Igor Andreev holds three career titles while Lukas Dlouhy holds none. This match is a tough one to determine. Neither player has a decided advantage over the other in stats. However, Dlouhy’s favorite surface is clay and considering he is a rising player on the ATP tour, poised to break into the Top 100, I like his odds in this match.

Pick: Lukas Dlouhy in three sets.

Prediction: These two veteran players meet for the first time. No. 57 Hidalgo is favored against No. 113 Galvani and should live up to expectations and advance.

Pick: Go with the favorite on this line, Hidalgo in two sets.

Prediction: World No. 27, Juan Carlos Ferrero should have no problems sending No. 77 Sergio Roitman home. While the two have not met before, based on ranks and stats, the favorite and No. 1 seed Ferrero holds the advantage over Roitman.

Pick: Ferrero in straight sets

Prediction: Carlos Moya, the fourth seed at this event and world No. 36, is a runaway favorite against No. 131 Thiago Alves. According to the line, he is the sure-fire winner in this matchup, although it may seem outrageous to place $800 to win $100 at this stage of the event.

However, Carlos Moya is off to a relatively good start in 2007. He was a finalist at the Sydney Final finals, where he lost to James Blake. At the Australian Open, his run was cut short when, in his first round match, he found himself facing James Blake once again.

On the other hand, Thiago Alves’s price tag of +425 is tempting, as any bet would be quadrupled should Moya falter. The Brazilian will be playing to a home crowd of cheering fans and, while he has acquired no titles since turning pro in 2000, at this stage of the event, he just might be bolstered enough to upset Moya.

Pick: Despite the tempting possibility of an upset, I pick the favorite Carlos Moya to advance in straight sets.

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

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