Live Wimbledon Blog / Gary Boswell / 05 July 2008 / 1 Comments

The Boz will keep you in touch with all the action from Wimbledon as Venus takes on Serena

16.10 The Boz signing off for Wimbledon 2008 and out to spend his winnings! Thanks to all those who emailed in and good luck tomorrow backing The Fed to do as Venus has done and defend his title. Final % on the Boz straw poll shows 63% of Betfairians think The Fed will win so the 1.86 might be a value price. I can't make my betting mind up as Nadal looks so young and hungry. In the end though, class tells on grass and The Fed's first serve looks invincible. I'll be backing him to win the aces competition anyway. Small stakes though. Keeping most of my Venus moolah for another day!

Bad luck to all those who emailed in with Michael Stich as the answer to today's BOZ quiz question. That's what I thought too but the answer is the more 'obvious' Boris Becker.

The Boz is off for a month now before returning back to his winter profession as the non-league football correspondent. Plenty of tips coming up in that. Enjoyed my summer of tennis though and looking forward to another Federer-Nadal classic tomorrow. Farewell and don't forget to back the Williams girls in the doubles final later!! Absolutely nailed on!

16.02 QUEEN VENUS!!! and the Boz no longer has sweaty palms as she grunts out on her second championship point to be the Wimbledon queen for the fifth time. 7-5 6-4 and not the classic people hoped for. Perhaps you could say that the 'let' point at the end of the second set was the defining moment. Serena never really seemed to want it enough after that. She had a break lead in each set though so it was actually Venus who did the fighting back and vindicated the Boz's pre-tornament assertion that Venus is better on grass and that Serena had her Wimbledon days in 2002/03 when she was younger and hungrier. A good comeback tournament for Serena though and her wins against Mauresmo and Kenapi and her demolitions of Radwanska and Zheng showed that she's no write-off just yet. Have to be more careful laying her in future. Don't like sweaty palms!!

16.0 Two championship point for Venus but first one saved with an ace!!

15.57 5-4 to Venus so now Serena has to serve to stay in the match! Serena now as long as 4.0 in the match odds if you think she could still make a fight of it!

15.55 Ace score is 8-4 to Serena but I still reckon Venus might be value at 15.0 if it should go three sets. 4-4 in the second and Serena still well in it. Tie break possible now in second set?
2.24 for that if you think no more breaks likely in this set.

15.47 Venus an interesting 15.0 inplay to register most aces! Worth a speculative punt at this stage?? Serena ahead at 3-3 in the second but may still be a long way to go yet and Venus just served her fourth ace to keep in touch.

15.37 Would you adam and eve it!! Venus breaks straight back in a three minute game for 2-2 in the second. Never write the champion off and I'm glad I never actually found time to do some more hedging!! C'mon Venus!!

15.30 A 15 minute third game and 21 points which Serena secures to gain an early set break again. Venus ends it on her derriere! The older sister suddenly looks tired and I think the issue of the younger sister being the fitter suddenly comes in to it. Serena has beat Venus after losing the first set before and I'm getting sweaty palms and thinking of a bit more of a hedge!
Serena in to 2.16 and Venus out to 1.66 as the younger sister seems to have rediscovered her focus after that first set 'let' distracter.

15.22 email in from Ian who says that only Venus can beat Serena now (can't argue with that!!) and am I sweating on my pre-tournament big six lay that included Serena (but not Venus). Answer is yes mate I am but first set to Venus helps enormously. Have hedged a bit of my winnings by taking Serena today at 3.2. Gonna be in trouble if the younger sis stages a fightback now but I like the way that 'gentlemanly conduct' issue at the end of the first set seems to have unsettled Serena a bit. Unlike her though to go down without a fight. I notice also that Serena doesn't have the thigh strapping today. I was hoping perhaps her three set stamina would be compromised by that! Am still expecting a second set fightback and this third game is into the umpteenth deuce. Venus not as dominant on her serve as usual so all not lost for Serena yet.

15.15 129mph record equalling serve from Venus at the start of the second. She holds for 1-0 and is in to 1.48. Serena still looking a little too serene! What happened to that fearsome shouting and grunting? She still looks affected by that sisterly concession but the value is now in Serena making a fight of it as she drifts out to 3.2. Holds her serve easily and it stands at 1-1 second set.

15.05 A 55 minute first set and it's first blood to Venus 7-5!!! Congratulations to those who followed my lead in suggesting that Venus was value at 3.2 when she was a break down! Congratulations also if you took the 7-5 in play which was matched at 18.5.

New prices at the start of the second. Serena 3.05 - Venus 1.47. Could Ben Caudell and the Betfair readers have got it wrong or will Serena stage the fightback? The Boz is getting excited cos his 8.0 pre-tournament on the champ is now looking good. Serena suprisingly tentative in much of that first set to say she was an early break up and played so well in losing the ninth game. That sisterly concession seems to have taken some of the natural fire out of her.

14.55 A really high quality ninth game with tremendous service returning by Serena but an amazing sisterly concession to make it 5-4 to Venus! I'm not complaining!! Umpire tried to make them replay game point but Serena wouldn't have it. Ball was called out by Venus during play which is not allowed but Serena agreed that it was out and wouldn't replay point. Incredible stuff. Takes me back to when Roger Taylor gave up his Wimbledon chance by being a gentleman and conceding a point that the umpire tried to give him. Against Borg if I remember right. Anybody confirm that? Another quiz question for yer cos I'm not that sure it was Borg. email sw19betfairblogger@hotmail.co.uk as Serena serves to stay in the first set.

14.43 Venus breaks back!!! 4-4 and the champ is back to 2.16. Congratulations to all those who kept the faith in Venus and took the 3.2 inplay. A simple hedge back now to guarantee moolah! Makes up for me the fact that I backed against Dementieva and Zheng making the semis!! Not one of my better calls!

14.36 Boz quiz question of the day: Who was the last German to win the Wimbledon men's title? Caught me out in a pub quiz earlier this week. Answer to Monday's quiz was Agnieska Radwanska. She of the disguised underarm serve which I notice she didn't use on Serena. Wonder why not?? Any theories? What do you think to the idea that Serena nd Venus work out who wins before coming on court? Can't see it myself. Maybe neither has quite the same hunger as when they play someone else but apart from that...Good game in prospect I reckon. Two of the best women's players the world has ever seen Venus pitching in there at 40-30 in game seven and still a break down at 2-4 but still looks value to me when she goes 3.2 in the inplay. 3-4 and looking ok. All the value is in the champion!!
email at: sw19betfairblogger@hotmail.co.uk

14.26 I've just read that the well informed Ben Caudell is backing Serena! Can't really disagree after what I've seen of the q-final and semi-final demolitions of Radwanska and Zheng.I'm clinging on to Venus on grass though. Stats don't really bear it out in Venus-Serena head to heads but the older sister always strikes me as more natural on the surface. Four Wimbledon titles bears that out and she's 2-3 now and still a tasy price to me at 2.94 both on match odds and the tournament outrights. Boz is off to have a bet! First set Serena 7-5 looks a big price too at 16.0. If you fancy that or any other, email me at sw19betfairblogger@hotmail.co.uk and there is still time to vote in my Rafa v The Fed straw poll for tomorrow if you have an opinion on that. 60-40 The Fed at the moment.

14.16 First two games to Serena and already the Boz straw poll looks likely to land another success! Betfair readers went for Andy Murray against Gasquet when I was on Live Monday and today they are flying in the face of the Betfair writers again and going 60% Serena and only 40% for the defending champion. 2.0 on it being a three set match looks a good bet to me!! 1.47 Serena after her super start and a whopping 3.1 Venus now after losing her first service game. C'mon Venus!!! The Boz was on at 8.0 before the tournament began and Serena was one of my big six lays. No doubt which way I'm flying. Venus holds for 1-2 and is back to 2.92.
Still looks a big inplay price in what is sure to be a close match!

14.15 This is the Boz calling in at SW19 for the day of all days - Venus versus Serena. Which one are you with? 1.85 Serena and 2.16 Venus looks generous for Venus fans but Serena is in such good form. Only thing I'm sure of is that the girls will win the doubles!! Wouldn't have Raymond and Stosur with my grandmother's washers!!

Tags: Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Wimbledon Ladies Final