We’ve reached the quarter final stage of the Citi Open in Washington and plenty of players will fancy their chances of picking up the trophy on Sunday as well as gaining some valuable match practice on the hard courts.
Yesterday’s departure of the number one seed Dominic Thiem – who extended his miserable record against Kevin Anderson to 0:6, coupled with defeats for Juan Martin Del Potro and Gilles Muller have blown the draw wide open with only 8 men left.
Outright Betting
The outright market as always is governed by who’s due to play who and where the threats in the draw lie.
Milos Raonic – 11/4. The big serving Canadian dispatched of Marcos Bahgdatis yesterday and will he hoping to do the same in a very tricky looking match against home favourite Jack Sock.
Kei Nishikori – 11/4. ‘Special Kei’ will be hoping last nights performance against Juan Martin Del Potro can be a catalyst for a successful hard court swing. He faces American wildcard Tommy Paul next and will certainly be fancying his chances of progressing to the semis.
Alexander Zverev – 7/2. Seeded number 3, Zverev has kept a relatively low profile in the draw and as yet, has avoided some of the big names. Daniil Medvedev waits next in what promises to be one of the matches of the tournament so far.
Kevin Anderson – 11/2. The big serving South African has been in great form since Wimbledon and kept that run going with a great win over Thiem yesterday. Yuki Bhambri awaits next and backing Anderson as this point could be a shrewd move as he has – on paper – one other easier quarter final match ups.
Match Betting Kei Nishikori vs Tommy Paul
Tommy Paul’s two set demolition of Gilles Muller yesterday took everybody by surprise. The young American wild card has risen to the occasion here in Washington, but this looks a big ask with Nishikori in such great form. Paul is 11/2 with Bet 365 whilst Nishikori doesn’t represent great value either at 1/8 with Sky Bet.
Head to Head
This is the first meeting at ATP Tour level between these 2 men – Nishikori is ranked number 9 in the world whilst Paul is currently sitting at 225 in the standings.
Top Bet
Nishikori will be hoping to continue his recent form and whilst Paul is playing well, he could struggle here. Under 20.5 games in the match is a very tempting 5/6 with Paddy Power.
Match Betting Kevin Anderson vs Yuki Bhambri
Two men who’ve exceeded expectations so far in this event, meet for a place in the last 4. Anderson dispatched of top seed Dominic Thiem yesterday, whilst Bhambri knocked out Gael Monfils in style earlier in the week. Anderson is the heavy favourite at 1/5 whilst Bhambri is 4/1 with Bet Victor to repeat his heroics against Monfils.
Head to Head
This is the first meeting between these two players, with their styles surely due to contrast. Anderson is ranked 45 in the world whist Bhambri sits down at 200.
Top Bet
Despite Bhambri’s strong performances this week, this looks a very tall order. Anderson is back on song and seems full of confidence. Kevin Anderson to win 2 sets 0 is 8/13 with Betfair.
Match accumulator bet:
Backing Milos Raonic, Alexander Zverev, Kevin Anderson and Kei Nishikori – all to win – pays a very healthy 1.61/1 with Ladbrokes and if you make use of their tennis accumulator bonus of 10%, it could be a very lucrative bet.