Shanghai Masters Betting: Andy's finding form in China

Events / Ben Caudell / 14 October 2010 /

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Can Andy reach the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters?

"There's not much value in backing Murray at short odds so I'll back him to win in straight sets with the possibility of a tie break being played."

Andy Murray has an impressive record against Jo Wilfried Tsonga and, with the Frenchman lacking match practice, the Brit is likely to triumph again, says Ben Caudell.

Andy Murray (GBR) v Jo Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)

By beating Jeremy Chardy, Andy Murray reached his fifth Masters Series quarter-final of 2010 and secured his qualification for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, which takes place in London next month.

With the pressure off Murray's shoulders, having safeguarded his qualification for the end of season finale, the 23-year-old can now focus on his next challenge, a match against another Frenchman and a player he holds a 3-2 head-to-head series advantage over, Jo Wilfried Tsonga.

Twelfth seed Tsonga knocked out Florian Mayer of Germany 7-5, 6-3 in 85 minutes, saving three of four break points, the Frenchman will be looking to reach his third tour-level semi-final of the year and his first semi-final match at Master Series level in 2010. The enigmatic powerhouse will be trying to recapture the form he showed when defeating Murray at the 2008 Australian Open, but Murray holds the advantage coming into this match, winning their last two head-to-heads.

Murray is the understandable odds-on favourite at [1.4]. Known as a counter-puncher, he is starting to play a more attacking game, winning nine of his last 10 matches at Master Series level. He's also triumphed in six of his last seven against a big server and five of his last six when priced as a moderate favourite. Tsonga on the other hand has lost four in a row against top 10 players and four of his last five as underdog.

The fact that Shanghai is only Tsonga's second tournament since his loss to Murray in this year's Wimbledon quarter final. A first round loss against Jarkko Nieminen in Tokyo last week only highlights his vulnerability.

I believe that there is not much value in backing Murray at such short odds so my bet of the day will be to back the fiery Scot to win in straight sets with the possibility of a tie break being played.

Recommended bet: Back Andy Murray 2-0 @ [1.95]
Back Andy Murray @ [1.4] to win the match

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