Tuesday 24 January 2012

Berdych

What a splendid match Berdych played against Nadal today. First of all he was trying to improve a horrendous HTH. It's now 11-3 to Nadal, the Spaniard having won their last ten encounters. Yet it took Nadal four and a quarter hours to put him away in four tight sets. Berdych won the first set and had a set point in the second set which he failed to convert. Oh how different it might have been if that volley had dropped in! Having said that Nadal never gives up.

To me he looked a much more mature player today. His serve was very impressive and unplayable at times. This renewed confidence may well be because of the shake up in his coaching arrangements. Certainly if I could play the game properly then this is how I would like to be able to play (aside from his occasional mental weakness of course!)

We had a nice touch on Berdych at Wimbledon in 2010 when the Czech player beat Federer in the quarters and Djoko in the semis. The latter victory was the only time in nine attempts he has beaten Djoko. Of course he came unstuck against Nadal in the final, where he looked very nervous to me. We had played the each-way @ 50/1 so we were rewarded @ 25/1 place money, enough for Coral to unfortunately no longer accept meaningful internet bets from me.

Well that's enough about the past - I've been looking at the Wimbledon 2012 prices and I see Ladbrokes quote a very generous 80/1. He seems to have had a very long career but he is still only 26. I have therefore had the following speculative punt:-

1pt each-way Tomas Berdych @ 80/1 with Ladbrokes (1/2 odds 1,2) to win Wimbledon 2012.





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