Our hunt for upsets paid off yesterday with one of our tennis tips coming in, and we achieved the same strike-rate with the football. Mischa Zverev made short work of Fernando Verdasco, and after two stoppages due to crowd trouble, Hertha Berlin saw off Hansa Rostock to guarantee us a return. Plus, if you played it safe and went with the double chance in the Finnish Premier League game, you would have earned even more.
The beauty of a Lucky 15 is that as it turns four separate bets into one four-fold accumulator, four trebles, six doubles, and four singles, two or more wins can be quite lucrative. We are going to adopt a similar strategy today as the Cincinnati Masters continues and there is plenty of domestic and European football to look out for too.
Here are today’s bets:
- Tennis: Diego Schwartzman to beat Karen Khachanov at around 11/8
- Tennis: Jared Donaldson to beat Roberto Bautista Agut at around 5/2
- Football: Cardiff City to beat Sheffield United at around 17/20
- Football: TSG Hoffenheim to beat Liverpool at around 11/5
Jared Donaldson to beat Roberto Bautista Agut
This is an opportunity for Jared Donaldson – handed a wildcard – to prove that his performances last week in Montreal were no fluke. He despatched Lucas Pouille and Benoit Paire before pushing Diego Schwartzman close. Although Bautista Agut reached the quarter-finals, he looked well below his best when he fell to eventual champion Federer and the struggles he faced in matches before then could just leave him a little weary. The pair have never met before, but Donaldson has played more during this hard court swing. He has a 9-7 record on hard courts this season and at these odds, is worth a punt.
Diego Schwartzman to beat Karen Khachanov
Talking of Schwartzman, we think he is an attractive option at odds-against to beat Khachanov. While he took out Dominic Thiem en route to the Montreal quarter-finals last week, Khachanov fell early to Pablo Carreno Busta, whose season has faded after a strong start. The pair met in Miami earlier this year, and Schwartzman won on a tie break in the final set. They have moved in similar directions since, but the Argentinian has added a level of consistency to his game in recent months that I think gives him the edge.
Cardiff City to beat Sheffield United
Cardiff have started the season like a train, following up an away win over Burton with a 3-0 hammering of promotion favourites Aston Villa. Meanwhile, Sheffield United lost to Middlesbrough at the weekend and looked goal-shy up against fellow Championship opponents. Cardiff have not lost in the last four meetings between these two – although they have drawn the last two at home. If you want a safer bet, go for the Cardiff or draw double chance, available at around 1/5.
Hoffenheim to beat Liverpool
This will be a tricky encounter for Liverpool as they look to make a return to the Champions League group stages. Newcomers Hoffenheim were unbeaten at home in the Bundesliga last season so will be no pushovers. Liverpool’s 3-3 draw against Watford in their Premier League openers shows they have work to do and there are gaps for the Germans to exploit. Again, take the Hoffenheim or draw double chance at around 4/7 if you want to play safe and think Liverpool having started their league already gives them a chance of going home with the scoreline level.