The third round gets underway this Friday in Melbourne, one day after the surprising elimination of Novak Djokovic. Bookmakers Review breaks down the fixtures below and lists the best available odds from green listed bookmakers.
Berdych vs. Federer
When looking to the matches scheduled for this Friday, the highlight clearly goes to the match between Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer.
Despite his unbelievable talent and glorious past, it’s unlikely to see Federer returning to his best level. Besides his age, Roger has also struggled with some physical problems in recent months and after six months away from competition, the Swiss is still trying to find his best rhythm on court.
Berdych is always a tough opponent due to his tremendous firepower. The courts in Melbourne suit his game style with the Czech reaching the semi-finals two times already. Tomas featured a very solid performance in the previous round against Ryan Harrison, dismissing the American in straight sets.
Even though Federer won 72.72% of their previous meetings, Berdych is clearly at a higher level, which makes this a great opportunity for him to defeat the Swiss. For that reason, the value is clearly on the Czech’s price at 143/100 at 5Dimes while Pinnacle offers 33/50 for Federer’s victory on this game.
Tsonga vs. Sock
Two players known for their powerful forehand – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Jack Sock – will fight this Friday for a place in the 4th round.
When looking to Tsonga’s numbers through his career, the French always produces his best tennis on the main stages. Playing on the biggest courts in the world brings the best out of Tsonga with the 2008 Australian Open runner-up featuring a remarkable performance in the previous round against Dusan Lajovic with a 6 – 2 6 – 2 6 – 3 victory.
Known for his incredible forehand, Sock is the player on the ATP World Tour who generates the most rpm with that shot. Even though that shot can be a huge weapon, it’s not easy for Jack to perform at a consistent level. Looking to Sock’s numbers in the previous round against Khachanov, the American ended the match with 18 winners and 26 unforced errors with the forehand.
Jack’s problems to maintain a solid level are the main reason for his lack of success on Grand Slam events, with Tsonga winning their last encounter a few months ago at the US Open. Due to Sock’s inconsistency and Tsonga’s record on majors, the value is clearly on the French to win this match 63/100 at Pinnacle while Sock is available at 69/50 at William Hill.
Calculators
