French Open Betting / Ben Caudell / 28 May 2009 /

Eighteen-year-old can continue on upward curve with a win against Bondarenko today, says Ben Caudell.

A second round thriller between wild card Josselin Ouanna of France and the legendary Marat Safin was the highlight of yesterday's play.

This nail-biting encounter had everything a tennis fan could wish for. Safin, a 2002 Roland Garros semi finalist and two time Grand Slam Champion, rallied from two sets down to level the match, he then took an early break in the fifth before succumbing to the 134th-ranked Ouanna 7-6, 7-6, 4-6, 3-6, 10-8 in just under four hours and 34 minutes. This will be Safin's last French Open as he will retire at the conclusion of the 2009 ATP Tour season, he will be sorely missed amongst all players and fans alike.

Today sees the conclusion of all second round matches including the number two and four seeded men, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic and the number two seeded female star Serena Williams.

Today's Selections:

Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) v Olivia Rogowska (AUS)
We could witness a star in the making today as 18-year-old Olvia Rogowska plays only her second ever Grand Slam match. After upsetting the odds in scincilating fashion by defeating her first round opponent Maria Kirilenko 6-4, 6-4, the Australian sensation will be looking to go further in her quest to break out of the ITF circuit and into the tennis elite with a win against against Keteryna Bondarenko.
Currently ranked 256 in the world but rising fast, Olivia has nothing to fear against a player already established amongst the top 50 ranked players. Her recent form reads won eight and lost two, albeit against lesser known players, however these matches were all played on clay and all wins were in straight sets.
At this year's Australian Open she faced Kaeteryna's older sister Alona Bondarenko and lost in three sets. I believe that especially in the womens gamethe more established players sometimes find it hard to play against the rising stars, fearing that they could one day be better! Therefore I think there is definitely value in backing the Australian starlet at the start of the match.
Selection: Back Olivia Rogowska @ [4.9] to win match; Lay Kateryna Bondarenko 2-0 @ [1.63].


Juan Monaco (ARG) v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)
One of the day's most promising encounters sees home favourite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga take on Argentinean Juan Monaco it what promises to be a classic battle between two of the most watchable players on tour. Tsonga is fresh from his first victory at Roland Garros against compatriot Julien Benneteau, so will be full of confidence and eager to prove once more that he is not a walkover on the red stuff. Monaco has reached the last 16 at Roland Garros so is accustomed to the slower clay courts and ousted Fernando Verdasco back in 2006.
Monaco Is in great form, he will be playing this match on his favourite surface against a player whose recent form on the clay has been pretty poor. He has had recent wins over Marcos Baghdatis, Janko Tipsarevic, David Ferrer, and Marin Cilic, in comparison Tsonga's best win on the dirt was against Safin.
I can see this match being a battle of power and wits, Monaco if he can maintain his consistent baseline play soaking up Tsongas power game forcing the Frenchman into errors than the Argentinean will win, if however Tsonga plays with the superior confidence he has shown in the past and plays to his very best capabilities than this match could swing either way.
Selection: Back Juan Monaco @ [1.81] to win match and @ [7.4] to win 3-2 (small bet)

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