Marion Bartoli v Ana Ivanovic

Ana Ivanovic surprised me in her opening round with a confident performance and victory over Alisa Kleybanova. Teaming up with Steffi Graf’s former coach may be paying off after she claimed she was in much better shape now than previous. If that means we will get to see more of Ana at her best again then it’s good news all around. Of course, 1 victory over the world number 26 means little. A bigger test faces her in round two when she comes up against Marion Bartoli on Thursday. The 4th seed had no problems, as expected, defeating Ashley Harkleroad in her opening game. Although she’s enjoyed several runs in tournaments this year, there have been few results that stand out. The bookmakers have the odds right on form, but there’s better value on the underdog, Ana Ivanovic tomorrow.

Pick: Ana Ivanovic

Shahar Peer v Maria Kirilenko

Shahar Peer’s Stanford Open and my big Tuesday bet looked in jeopardy after she dropped the opening set 6-0 to Daniela Hantuchova. A long night in front of the screen ensued as Peer broke early in the second set, and despite a lapse towards the end she held on. During that the odds were flashing in both players favour, but it would be the world number 16 who would progress; 0-6 6-4 6-3. Peer has been playing some of the best tennis of her career this year prior to the grass season. Returning to hard court will suit her and she is capable of overpowering her Russian opponent on Thursday. Maria Kirilenko had a convincing victory in her opening round over a lesser opponent, but other than a run to the quarter finals at the Australian Open had a dreadful start to the year on this surface. Tomorrow may be a long day for her when she comes up against the powerful Shahar Peer who is capable of beating her on her day.

Pick: Shahar Peer

Andy Murray v Tim Smyczek

Andy Murray’s long-awaited return, at least from the British perspective, comes to an end on Thursday when he starts his hard court season in Los Angeles. Straight into the second round, he faces relatively unknown Tim Smyczek. Smyczek recorded his first ATP victory, aged 22 in the first round here against a very disappointing Teimuraz Gabashvili, but there’s little to his game that will give the world number 4. Just a few days after splitting up from his coach, you may think there’s potential for a Murray bust here. His runs up to the last two Grand Slams have been disappointed, but I’m confident in him tomorrow as he doesn’t lose to nobodies. His price is much higher than it would have been but for the recent news and summer form.

Pick: Andy Murray

James Blake v Benjamin Becker

Normally not one to trust, my James Blake tip on Tuesday came through and never looked in doubt to be honest. The American came out firing from the start as he looked determined to have a good run in Los Angeles. Leonardo Mayer, a clay courter struggled on his own service game, whilst failing to cause problems on Blake’s serve. While Blake was crusiing into round two, Benjamin Becker didn’t have it all his own way, beating Mardy Fish’s replacement, Giovanni Lapentti 7-5 7-6. Becker, still yet to produce good performances in hard court is over rated going into this match, and facing a better hard court player in James Blake, his run in this tournament looks set to be a short ride. While I don’t like touching James Blake when he’s odds on, he looks good value here and there’s little else in Los Angeles tomorrow.

Pick: James Blake

Olga Savchuk v Agnieszka Radwanska

Qualifier Olga Savchuk performed well in her opening round victory over American, Jill Craybas. But the difference between a lowly American and the third seed are a gap too far for the Ukrainian. Meanwhile, Agnieszka Radwanska has made a slow start in Stanford, taking three sets to defeat Chanelle Scheepers. Playing in her first tournament since Wimbledon, dropping the second set was a wake up call for the world number 11. Don’t expect her to make too many mistakes this evening.

Pick: Agnieszka Radwanska

Samantha Stosur v Christina McHale

The French Open runner up, Sam Stosur has made her return on the WTA tour for the first time since her first round elimination at Wimbledon. That’s given her plenty of time off to rest, train and get back in the swing of the hard court surface. Christina McHale faces an uphill task in her second round match, but comes into it full of confidence having turned around an opening set loss, to defeat Kai-Chen Chang 3-6 6-0 6-2 on Tuesday. Expect her to struggle against the Stosur serve and eventually be picked apart by a top player in the women’s game.

Pick: Samantha Stosur

Rainer Schuettler v Robby Ginepri

Two players who haven’t picked up back-to-back victories since, and including Wimbledon, come face-to-face in Stanford this evening. Home favourite Robby Ginepri comes into this match as the favourite. Last week in Atlanta he went out at this stage, round two, to eventual champion Mardy Fish. Rainer Schuettler went out in the same round to American Michael Russell. I think the home advantage and determination from Ginepri will see him through here. It may go down to the final set, but even then Ginepri will get the support of the crowd.

Pick: Robby Ginepri

Janko Tipsarevic v Somdev Devvarman

Seventh seed Janko Tipsarevic will want to continue from where he left off in round one, dropping just 1 game against Santiago Giraldo. Somdev Devvarman came through his opening round match with American qualifier Steve Johnson, 6-4 6-4. Janko Tipsarevic is certainly the better of these two on paper and shouldn’t have a problem in progressing from this match. In the process, he would be ending Devvarman’s run of losing to American’s in his last 5 losses.

Pick: Janko Tipsarevic

Kimiko Date Krumm v Dinara Safina

Dinara Safina says her back is getting better now. Presumably she would not be making her return this early if she wasn’t ready. The bookmakers don’t think so with the price she is at. Defeat to Kimiko Date Krumm at the French Open may have shortened the odds of the 39 year old here. If Dinara Safina wants to have a serious shot at the US Open, I expect her to be in top condition and top form. With the lack of match practice she’s had this year, I expect her to come racing out of the blocks on Tuesday morning and tie the score with her Japanese opponent with a victory in Stanford.

Pick: Dinara Safina

Shahar Peer v Daniela Hantuchova

One of the ties of the opening round places Shahar Peer and Daniela Hantuchova together. Peer has found her form in 2010 and had been as consistent as any prior to the short grass court season. Back on the hard court she will be in her comfort zone as she prepares for a shot at the US Open. A good build up tournament for her, it won’t be an easy start against another player who favours the hard court. Daniela Hantuchova has had success in the past on this surface, but too struggled on the grass court this summer. That came as a surprise, with Hantuchova being a top grass court player. Her form on the hard courts at the start of the year was anything but convincing and the same performance here would ultimately see her eliminated in the first round. That is what I expect to see with Peer powering through the Slovakian.

Pick: Shahar Peer

Kevin Anderson v Illya Marchenko

Kevin Anderson produced some big serving and solid performances in Atlanta last week where he reached the semi final, losing to the bigger-serving John Isner in three sets. The South African defeated Janko Tipsarevic and Lukas Lacko on his way. His Ukrainian opponent in Los Angeles is Illya Marchenko who was dispatched in the second round at the same event last week, to Xavier Malisse. He’s not the worse player in the world in these tournaments, but hasn’t picked up more than two victories in any all year. I don’t see him forcing too many break point opportunities on Anderson’s serve and that will be the key to this match.

Pick: Kevin Anderson

Leonardo Mayer v James Blake

James Blake is anything but a safe choice in tennis, and is one player I haven’t backed as favourite for years. The American who was tipped for the top more than a decade ago when he turned pro has never lived up to his expectations. Now he is playing in all the tournaments to pick up prize money before he calls it a day. Without a singles title in nearly 3 years, he looked anything but a champion in his first round defeat to Taylor Dent last week. This time he faces a clay court opponent in Leo Mayer. An opportunity for the American to pick up a victory in his own country. And Blake comes into this match as the underdog. I feel on hard court and in his own country, James Blake has to produce a performance here. Not one for a large stake, but as he’s odds-against he’s worth considering.

Pick: James Blake

Melanie Oudin v Aleksandra Wozniak

Both players are making their first appearance on the WTA tour since Wimbledon. And both will be putting themselves under heavy pressure to win their opening game on Monday. For Melanie Oudin, it’s a home crowd. For Aleksandra Wozniak, it’s the home of the only tournament she has won at senior level. That was two years ago. The odds suggest a close match. I am favouring the American to come through in this bout. Oudin performs well in front of her home crowd, and as she did in Charleston last year, defeated Wozniack in straight sets with a bagel.

Pick: Melanie Oudin

Alisa Kleybanova v Ana Ivanovic

Ana Ivanovic enters Stanford as a wildcard after her 2010 form has been anything but successful. But for runs in Brisbane and Rome, Ivanovic hasn’t made it past round 3 this year. She hasn’t made it past the second round in any of her last four tournaments, including a first round defeat to Shahar Peer at Wimbledon, her last event. Alisa Kleybanova’s form hasn’t been great either, but the Russian’s victory over the Serbian at the French Open this year showed us that she is a good match up for the former Roland Garros champion. Kleybanova dropped just 3 games that day and has won 3 of her 4 meetings with Ivanovic, including a 6-2 6-3 victory in their Fed Cup meeting in February. The odds for her to match it a hat trick tomorrow are both good and of value.

Pick: Alisa Kleybanova

Mardy Fish v Benjamin Becker

I am expecting the organisers to push this one back to Tuesday following Mardy Fish’s Atlanta victory on Sunday. A tiring three set match saw the American pick up his fifth career singles title in an exciting contest. While Benjamin Becker has never lived up to his potential, his price is very attractive for this first round match given the fatigue Fish will be suffering from. This is a great opportunity for Becker to pick up a victory and his odds are worthy of a bet.

Pick: Benjamin Becker

Xavier Malisse v Dudi Sela

Xavier Malisse has found a second wind in his career this summer. A comfortable straight set victory over Illya Marchenko last week saw him reach the quarter final of the Atlanta Tennis Championships, losing to Andy Roddick despite taking the first set. The Belgian hasn’t been too reliable over the years, nor consistent. But he’s currently finding a way to beat the lower ranked opposition. Dudi Sela falls into that category. The Israeli was thrashed in his first game on hard court in Atlanta and didn’t cause any surprises during the hard court season at the start of the year either. Unlikely to do so on Monday, making Xavier Malisse a safe bet.

Pick: Xavier Malisse

Tomas Berdych has pulled off two shocks to make a surprise appearance in this years final, while Rafael Nadal is looking to retain the Wimbledon crown he won 2 years ago after missing his defence last year through injury.

Tomas Berdych has served very well throughout this competition, so there’s no reason to think the same won’t happen tomorrow. One thing Tomas Berdych has been renowned for during his career is choking on the big stage. A four set victory and a straight set victory over Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic respectively say otherwise. However there were signs of that in his second set over Djokovic, blowing a lead in the set and later in the tie break before scraping through. Rafael Nadal won’t be so kind to the Czech Republic player making his Grand Slam final debut.

Route to final:
1 Andrey Golubev 7-6, 6-2, 6-2
2 Benjamin Becker 7-5, 6-3, 6-4
3 Denis Istomin 6-7, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4
4 Daniel Brands 4-6, 7-6, 7-5, 6-3
QF Roger Federer 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4
SF Novak Djokovic 6-3, 7-6, 6-3

Rafael Nadal has got better as the tournament has progressed, dropping two sets in both round two and three. He turned it on after losing the first set to Robin Soderling in the quarter final before a relatively comfortable 3-0 victory over Andy Murray in Friday’s semi final. He’s been here before, he’s won it before. Nine previous Grand Slam finals and only two losses. Tomas Berdych will need to be at the top of his game throughout to stand a chance tomorrow. The difference between these two, and the difference between Rafael Nadal and most of his opponents is that he knows how to win the big points. He keeps cool on the big points.

Route to final:
1 Kei Nishikori 6-2, 6-4, 6-4
2 Robin Haase 5-7, 6-2, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3
3 Philipp Petzschner 6-4, 4-6, 6-7, 6-2, 6-3
4 Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-2, 6-2
QF Robin Soderling 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-1
SF Andy Murray 6-4, 7-6, 6-4

It may not be a straightforward match for Rafael Nadal tomorrow, but expect him to win the match on the crucial points. Tomas Berdych deserves to be on centre court tomorrow, but his chances are slim coming up against Rafael Nadal in a Grand Slam final.

Pick: Rafael Nadal

There’s a wide gap in experience between Serena Williams and Vera Zvonareva for tomorrow’s final. Serena Williams will be participating in her 16th Grand Slam final, Vera Zvonareva her first. With a few shocks over the past fortnight, number 1 seed and favourite Serena Williams has kept her nerve and avoided being on the wrong end of an upset herself. Her fourth Wimbledon title awaits.

Yet to drop a set, Serena Williams had a few tests from Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova in the opening set before taking them on a tie break on the way to comfortable second set victories. She’s had that look in her eye like she means business since the start to the tournament and that has been obvious on the court. Opening set bagels in her first three matches. Hitting winners on a regular basis, Williams hasn’t made too many mistakes on her route to the final. I expect the same of her tomorrow. The occasion won’t get to her tomorrow and she is capable of overpowering Vera Zvonareva.

Route to final:
1 Michelle Larcher de Brito 6-0, 6-4
2 Anna Chakvetadze 6-0, 6-1
3 Dominika Cibulkova 6-0, 7-5
4 Maria Sharapova 7-6, 6-4
QF Li Na 7-5, 6-3
SF Petra Kvitova 7-6, 6-2

Over the past fortnight, Vera Zvonareva has delivered what has been expected of her for many years by reaching her first Grand Slam final. While she won’t be collecting the winning trophy tomorrow, her performance to date has been great. Upsets over Jelena Jankovic and Kim Clijsters, she didn’t lose her calm after dropping the opening set to Tsvetana Pironkova in her semi final. An accurate player with her shots, she would need an impressive service game, few mistakes and some errors from Serena Williams to pick up two sets tomorrow. I cannot see the Russian prevailing from this.

Route to final:
1 Nuria Llagostera Vives 6-4, 6-1
2 Andrea Hlavackova 6-1, 6-4
3 Yanina Wickmayer 6-4, 6-2
4 Jelena Jankovic 6-1, 3-0 retired
QF Kim Clijsters 3-6, 6-4, 6-2
SF Tszvetana Pironkova 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

The odds suggest it will be an easy victory for Serena Williams today and they haven’t given us much value. I expect Vera Zvonareva to keep the first set close, but if she loses it, Serena Williams will be on top to breeze the second set and lift her thirteenth singles Grand Slam crown.

Pick: Serena Williams