by Countless tennis fans around the globe watch the game of tennis, which like any other sport, is easy to bet on. However, sports betting online, particularly tennis, is entirely different from betting in any other sport. While there is no way to guarantee 100% success when betting on tennis, there are some ways in which you can maximize the odds in your favor.
Understanding the game
For starters, the tennis scoring system is unique to this sport, making tennis betting attractive. The player who wins at least six games wins a set, and the one who wins three sets wins the match. At the start, the players’ score is at 0, followed by 15, 30, and 40. The player who crosses 40, the game point, wins the game. When both players tie at 40, it’s called a “deuce,” and the game concludes when a player wins by a gap of two points.
The tennis tour is split into tiers of events, with the four Grand Slams of the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Below these are the ATP 500 and ATP 250 events across many countries. Then there is Davis Cup, which is an annual team competition that provides ranking points. Also, some top players play several exhibition events in a year. The format for all the above events comprises the best of three sets save for the Slams and Davis Cup, which are played over five sets in the men’s event.
Pre-match betting tactics
There are many factors to ponder before placing a bet on pre-match odds in the tennis market and the prime factor to consider is value. Often, you may feel that a particular player will win, and win he or she does. However, blindly betting on a top-ranked player isn’t always going to reap the rewards. Tennis betting is rewarding so long as bets are placed at the right price.
Sports betting online can be successful, provided you analyze various factors before placing bets. Several tennis statistics websites such as Tennis Abstract, Matchstat, and ATP sites should provide information about individual players on many of the factors that we’ll discuss below.
- Fitness
Tennis players tend to nurse injuries of various types, and it would help to consider their upcoming schedule to gauge whether they would be risking any injuries on any given week. Players are fresher in the earlier part of a year and tend to pick up niggling injuries as the tour progresses. If a player has had a long week on tour in reaching the final and needs to travel a fair distance for the ensuing week’s tournament, then there’s a fair chance that the player is under par.
- Playing Surface
Another critical factor in pre-match considerations is the playing conditions, with some players being clay masters, some hard court specialists, and some love the serve-and-volley on grass court. Again, knowing the past track record of a player would help determine her expertise on a given surface.
- Motivation
There are times when 1.1 odds about a top-ranked player in the first round of the US Open against a novice might represent high value. However, that sort of price would not be worth the considerable risk in, say, an ATP 250 tournament a week or so after a Slam when the motivation factor would be lesser. At times, a top-ranked star participates in a minor tournament for a fat appearance fee and loses early (due to injury pull-out) at big odds-on. As a smart bettor, you need to be wary of such possibilities, and hence, understanding the significance of a tournament to a player is of prime importance.
- Head-to-head
A head-to-head is valuable for determining how a player copes with particular play styles. It is recommended that you take only recent head-to-head matches into account, as things change through a tennis season. Further, you should consider a substantial head-to-head record, e.g., a 3-0 win record, to be relevant.
- Left-handers
Left-handers tend to present a tricky challenge for right-handers (and some left-handers). Therefore, it’s worth checking how your chosen player has performed in the past against left-handers.
- Weather
The weather is a significant factor in outdoor tournaments, and the wind can play havoc with the tennis ball. For instance, when it’s windy, naturally attacking players are cut short as they have to play within limits while their natural game is to play closer to the lines.
Actual betting
Once you’ve analyzed the data on various parameters, you may have to wait to watch how things develop until you have discovered a favorable pre-match price. Some situational triggers could prove to your advantage here, e.g., how often a player saves breakpoints, wins breakpoints, etc. E.g., statistics about players can help you back a player, say at 0-40 down. You can get a far better price. If your player has a big serve, it could be deuce in moments, and you will have a chance to make a quick buck.
Tennis betting on longer duration matches can be rewarding as you tend to get a more accurate reflection of the respective abilities of the two players over longer matches.
Sports betting online can be rewarding if you are willing to invest some time analyzing critical factors to any sport.
