Tennis: Top Shelf Open takes centre stage ahead of Wimbledon
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With the French Open concluded, attention turns to the grass courts of the Top Shelf Open in the Netherlands, with Coral providing the latest odds for the first round of matches. Although many star names are taking a break ahead of Queens Club and Wimbledon, there are still some great odds on offer.
Giles Muller is odds-on at 2/9 with Coral to beat Marsel Ilhan and the two have never played each other before, so it should make for an interesting tie. Ilhan, meanwhile, is 3/1 to progress.
Also playing is Jarkko Nieminen, who meets Marius Copil, with the Finnish veteran odds-on at 1/2 to advance. The former has a 100 per cent record against his 24-year-old Romanian opponent having beaten him twice, and after being knock out of the French Open in Roland Garros by Novak Djokovic, he will have his eye on reaching the later stages of this tournament.
Undoubtedly one of the favourites for the competition; Fernando Verdasco takes on fellow Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver, with the former an odds-on price of 1/7 to progress. While the two have never met, it promises to be an intriguing tie.
In the women’s half of the tie, there are some interesting match-ups for the first round, as Canadian hope Eugenie Bouchard, takes on Kazakhstan hope Yaroslava Shvedova, with the former 2/5 to progress. Bouchard, 21, has a 100 per cent record over her opponent, having recorded two wins.
The Canadian and 2014 Wimbledon finalist is looking forward swapping clay for grass, after being knocked out at the first round in Paris.
“I love playing on grass and I’ve played some of my best tennis on this surface,” Bouchard said when it was announced she would play in Netherlands.
Urszula Radwanska, sister of Agnieska, is odds-on at 8/15 to beat 21-year-old German Annika Beck and the former has a 100 per cent record over her opponent who reached the third round at Roland Garros, before being knocked out by Elina Svitolina.
American Maria Sanchez, is a 3/1 outsider to beat 23-year-old Russian opponent, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and the two have never played each other before.
