US Open Women's Betting: Five to defy the odds

US Open Betting / Gary Boswell / 26 August 2008 / Leave a Comment

The Beijing tips were not The Boz's finest hour but he saved his blushes with two first round upsets out of four and gave the type of first round banker treble that he will be hoping to replicate at Flushing Meadow.

My three first round good things to put in a treble include Austria's Sybille Bammer who comes up against 119 rated Aiko Nakamura. Bammer was an excellent quarter finalist in Beijing and comes here in good form and has a previous clear victory over Nakamura on the surface.

Second up is China's Shuai Peng who has a double victory to her name over the Greek Eleni Daniilidou. The latter has been busy slipping down the ratings this year and is currently at a lowly 58. The treble is completed with Russian Elena Vesnina who beat Vakulenko in the 2007 Australian Open and can be fancied to repeat that here.

All of those are picks with the odds but there are five I fancy to defy the odds. Top of that list is Nuria Llagostera Vives in her first round tie with 26 ranked Francesca Schiavone. The Italian has a win against the Spaniard this year but also two defeats on the surface and the 96 ranked underdog is one who gets seriously under Schiavone's skin so that the upset is a definite possibility again.

Second best is the brilliant Tamira Paszek to oust the 23 ranked Russian Maria Kirilenko. Their only previous meeting was a whitewash for the talented Austrian wunderkid who has been very out of form in the second half of 2008. She has seen her rating slip from 35 to 69 which will all help to boost her price of course. I fancy her to get back on the radar here.

Anabel Medina Garrigues might not prove the underdog in her first round game against hot young thing Tsvetana Pironkova whose rating has rocketed to 42 in recent months. The Spaniard is ranked 27 and is the senior player with a 3-0 head to head including one win on hard. I just have the feeling that Pironkova is such a flame at the moment that the money will come for her. If it does, I'll be taking it as Medina Garrigues has a good record in the majors and should enforce her seniority here.

Two others to consider. Nathalie Dechy will be considered no match by many for compatriot Amelie Mauresmo. The 79 ranked French woman does however have a good record against the former Wimbledon champion whose day has now surely gone. It's one all on hard surface over the years and I'll be considering this one if the odds offered on Mauresmo reflect the glory of her former years rather than the struggle to win any game at all that she currently has.

Finally, the doyen of the Olympic crowds Na Li may also not be considered an underdog in her first round match against 25 ranked Shahar Peer. The Chinese girl is still officially ranked just 36 however so if that dictates the odds, we should take advantage. That 36 is clearly false as her victory over Venus in Beijing demonstrated. She also has a previous victory over the Israeli on hard this year and can be added to the bankers if she turns out to be the oddsmakers idea of a fav!