INDIAN WELLS QUARTERS: NADAL BATTLES BERDYCH

Nadal, fashion taste aside (I mean really Nike, is this best you can do for your poster boy?), has been hot in Indian Wells, advancing into the quarterfinals on the back of some convincing victories; even those that were hard fought were so, such as yesterday’s win over John Isner in the fourth round. Nadal is two victories away from negotiating a premier position in Sunday’s finale and a chance to successfully defend his title.
Standing in his way of a semi-final berth though is a dangerous dark horse in Tomas Berdych. The Czech has been devastating in Indian Wells, never more so than when he destroyed Fernando Verdasco 6-0, 6-3. If Berdych can bring that level of intensity against Nadal tonight, the Spaniard will have a real battle on his hands, perhaps his toughest to date in the tournament.
William Hill has rolled out a whole slew of scintillating markets on their quarterfinal clash. The crowning market is the outright win, which has Nadal listed as the 1/3 favourite to advance. Berdych is trading at reasonable 9/4 odds to mastermind what would be huge upset in the Californian desert.
The majority will most likely side with Nadal because he is the proven champion, the ultimate fighter on court and the most intimidating opponent.  There is also his pedigree, which is enough to inspire confidence.
Put against these qualities Berdych’s known characteristics, namely a penchant to unravel in high-stakes matches and doubt sets in. It doesn’t matter how well Berdych has played up to this point, the tipping question is whether he can replicate those convincing performances against Nadal. Methinks, not.
Speaking of performance, over 20 markets pertaining to the performance of each player are available for tennis bettors to bet on at . From Set Betting to Games Betting to predicting the score and so forth, the options are endless.
Berdych to win in straight sets, which would be a feat in itself, is trading at large 19/4 odds; while a more realistic win by the Czech, that is three sets, is on offer for 5/1. Nadal, the favourite to win may I remind you, is offered at 5/6 odds to win in straights and at 3/1 odds to win in three sets.
The first set is up for grabs at 13/8 to Berdych and 4/9 to Nadal. Complimenting this market is the correct score of the first set market. Berdych to blank Nadal is offered at 50/1, similarly, Nadal to blank Berdych is offered at 30/1. The 6-3, 6-4 score is typically the most popular and both these  are trading reasonably on Berdych, 10/1 and 8/1 respectably. Meanwhile, Nadal to take the first set by either or of those two scores is offered at 15/4.