Big Names Favoured for Progress at Australian Open

With the men’s and women’s Australian Open tournaments now facing the quarter final stages, a number of superstars are still in the mix for the first major championship of the year. A, at times, shaky qualifying campaign from Roger Federer has seen him drop to second-favourite status behind Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard is seeking his fourth grand slam on the bounce.

Kim Clijsters is dominating the women’s division and her closest competition looks to be Caroline Wozniacki. The bookmakers seem to think the women’s tournament is a bit more open and shut with Clijsters priced at nearly even money with a 5/4 price being floated. Wozniacki’s odds trade at around 7/2.

None of the major players are facing other big contenders in the quarter-finals stage and the closest singles match appears to be Li Na vs Andrea Petkovic where the Chinese champion trades at a slim 2/5.

Andy Murray is a heavy favourite to take on upstart Alexandr Dolgopolov, who defeated perennial contender Robin Soderling in the fourth round. Dolgopolov is the longest shot on the board for a victory in the men’s tournament with a full 66/1 price being bandied about.

Federer is set to face off against Stanialas Wawrinka and the Swiss master is short-priced at 1/5 for the outright victory. Nadal is a shorter price for a win over David Ferrer. Those looking to back Federer or Nadal for the outright tournament win will be rewarded with a higher price for locking in now. Punters can expect to see Nadal drop below even money after his quarter final victory.