MONTE CARLO ROLEX MASTERS 3RD RD, VERDASCO, CILIC AND MORE IN ACTION

The first major clay court event of the season, the ATP Monte Carlo Rolex Masters is upon us and there are several standout matches to spot in the market – from Verdasco vs. Berdych to Cilic vs. Montanes, and much, more.
Top UK bookmaker William Hill brings all the exciting action from the Monaco principality of Monte Carlo in the form of scintillating tennis betting markets; in fact, over 20 markets on each and every match are currently open for trading and that is not including all the Live Betting action that will become available once the matches gets underway.
Verdasco and Berdych kick off the third round on Court Central today and theirs is perhaps one of the more eye-catching matches of the day. The pair meets for the third time in as many Masters Series events this season, with Berdych 2-0 to the better.
 In spite of Berdych’s 2-0 edge over Verdasco on the season, which is part of a lifetime edge that stands at 6-3 to the better, the Czech is trading at equal odds to Verdasco, listed at 5/6 at William Hill.
Bookies are obviously undecided which way to lean because, although Verdasco has the surface edge and Berdych has the form edge, neither edge is enough to tip the balance in favour of one player over the other.
If I were betting with house money I have to say I would fancy Verdasco to come through – but in no way do I expect the win to be easy. A three-set affair sounds right. Tennis bettors looking to back Berdych can do no worse than risking a wager on his odds, bearing in mind that a win by Berdych would not be a shocker.
Cilic and Montanes kick off third round action on Court des Princes today but because their matchup is expected to be less dramatic than the Court Central affair between Verdasco and Berdych, running concurrently, there is less attention focused on them. I would maintain this match could be riveting, more than most would expect.
Cilic has everything going for him and as such he is the hot favourite to advance, listed at very favourable 2/5 odds. Montanes is a tempting puppy at 7/4.
Few tennis bettors expect Cilic to be challenged – the Croatian rising star is a heavyweight after all. Montanes the conspicuous middleweight. However, Montanes is a clay-court specialist and such surface edge over Cilic, a pace-player who excels on faster courts, could prove to be decisive.
A win by Montanes would be a huge upset though, make no mistake about that. Therefore, it would be a long shot punt, best suited for tennis bettors that are not risk averse. At 7/4 odds, Montanes is not priced out of the market so to make it a risque, hallucinatory punt. I personally wouldn’t be surprised if Montanes dumped Cilic but many in the online tennis betting community would be.