in Tennis Free Picks

The world-class 2007 Proximus Diamond tournament in Antwerp, Belgium that starts on Monday, February 12, 2007, is a Tier II event with a prize purse of $600,000. The event attracts some of the most notable in women’s tennis today. This year’s seeded players are No. 1 defending champion Amelie Mauresmo, No. 2 Kim Clijsters, No. 3 Nadia Petrova, No. 4 Elena Dementieva, No. 5 Patty Schnyder, No. 6 Dinara Safina, No. 7 Anna Chakvetadze and No. 8 Ana Ivanovic.

With the qualification round and the top half of the draw underway, Dinara Safina, Michaela Krajicek and Anna Chakvetadze all recorded victories to advance to the second round. Amelie Mauresmo and Nadia Petrova in the top half of the draw, and Elena Dementieva and Kim Clijsters in the bottom half of the draw, received a BYE to the second round.

With play in full swing, lets look at the rest of the playing field and the odds that are available with BetUS.com on head-to-head matchups in the bottom half of the draw.

Prediction: No.47 Sybille Bammer arrives in Antwerp following her victory over the weekend at the 2007 Pattaya Open in Thailand where she claimed her first-ever career title. Bammer is the favorite in this line against wild card contender No. 235 Belgian Carolina Maes. Holding a 1-0 head-to-head record against Maes and bolstered by her recent win, Bammer should have no problem advancing.

Pick: Bammer in two sets.

Prediction: No. 37 Olga Poutchkova is just another one of the rising Russian stars on the WTA tour. Favored on this line against France’s No. 35 Severine Bremond, Poutchkova should live up to expectations and advance to the second round, where Kim Clijsters will be waiting. Poutchkova and Bremond are tied at 1-1 in their head-to-head record, with the most recent win coming by Poutchkova in the 2006 hardcourt event in Quebec City.

Pick: Poutchkova in two sets.

Prediction: Lucie Safarova has been quietly taking the tennis tour by storm, jumping in ranks from No. 70 to No. 32 following her impressive Australian Open run. Then, her even better run at the Open Gaz de France, where she lost to Nadia Petrova in the finals, pushed her to No. 26.

In her 2007 campaign, Safarova has acquired some impressive notches on her belt, defeating top 20 players Amelie Mauresmo, Justine Henin, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Nicole Vaidisova. Despite her slight build, Safarova has a great backhand and an equally impressive forehand. Striking the ball with power and authority, she is not easily rattled in the face of bigger and higher-ranked players.

On the other hand, Ana Ivanovic is a great player in her own right. Her 2007 campaign got off to a great start with quarterfinal appearances at the Gold Coast and Sydney Final, but Ivanovic managed to reach only the third round of the Australian Open. Ivanovic has not faced Lucie Safarova before, but it is unlikely that the No. 9 Ivanovic will make the mistake of underestimating Safarova.

Pick: I have to go with Lucie Safarova. The young Czech, storming through the ranks has been coolly dispatching her opponents and I like her odds against Ivanovic.

Prediction: World No. 20 Tatiana Golovin is favored on this line against No. 22 Katarina Srebotnik, despite trailing 0-1 in their head-to-head record. This matchup could go either way.

Srebotnik is coming off a relatively good start to her 2007 campaign, following an impressive 2006 season that saw her crack through the top 20 for the first time. She arrived to the QF of the Sydney Final, the third round of the Australian Open, and captured the Gold Coast doubles title with her doubles partner Dinara Safina.

Golovin has also had a relatively good start to her 2007 campaign, reaching the second round of the Sydney Final and third round of the Australian Open. However, Golovin holds no career titles in comparison to Srebotnik who has four titles to date. If rank is an indication, then the favorite Golovin on the line should win this match, however, I like Srebotnik's price tag as well as her odds to win this match.

Pick: Srebotnik in two sets.

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

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