Australian Open: Week Two Preview
The second week of the Australian Open in Melbourne features the start of the quarter-finals and we have picked out three matches across the men's and women's competitions.
The fourth round takes place on Monday in Australia with the likes of Cameron Norrie and Carlos Alcaraz involved but some players are already preparing for the last eight.
In action on Tuesday are the likes of Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka, who are looking to book their spot in the semi-finals, and here is a pick of the bets for the week ahead in the Australian Open.
Tip 1 - Jannik Sinner to win 3-0 v Andrey Rublev @ 31/20
Jannik Sinner has been earmarked as a dark horse at this year's Australian Open and he did not disappoint in the first week of the Grand Slam.
Sinner has won each of his opening four matches in Melbourne without dropping a set, taking down 26th seed Sebastian Baez and 15th seed Karen Khachanov in the last two rounds.
Things will go up a gear for the Italian on Tuesday when he clashes with fifth seed Andrey Rublev but he should still run out a comfortable winner.
Sinner has won four of his six previous meetings with Rublev, prevailing in two of their three matches on the hard courts.
And Rublev could be struggling with fatigue heading into this contest, having been pushed to five sets, including two tiebreaks, by Alex De Minaur last time out.
Tip 2 - Over 3.5 sets in Novak Djokovic v Taylor Fritz @ 10/11
Novak Djokovic remains the one to beat in the men's Australian Open this year and he can ease into the Australian Open semi-finals at the expense of Taylor Fritz.
Djokovic lost only three games in his 3-0 hammering of Adrian Mannarino last time out in the fourth round and he shows no signs of waning Down Under.
Fritz is seeded 12th and saw off Stefanos Tsitsipas last time out, though, and Djokovic may not have things all his own way.
The super Serbian dropped sets against Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin earlier in the Grand Slam and with that in mind, punters should consider a bet on over 3.5 sets in this quarter-final tussle.
That allows for a 3-1 win to Djokovic but also a potential five-set thriller if Fritz can take things up a gear.
Tip 3 - Under 18.5 games in Barbora Krejcikova v Aryna Sabalenka @ 7/5
Iga Swiatek, the women's top seed at the Australian Open, has crashed out and that could open the door for Aryna Sabalenka to make her mark in Melbourne once again.
Sabalenka is the women's defending champion at the Australian Open and she looks like a woman on a mission this month.
Sabalenka has won all four of her matches in the Grand Slam in straight sets, having recorded her first double-bagel of the year against Lesia Tsurenko in the third round.
Overall, Sabalenka has dropped a mere 11 games in Melbourne and her match with Krejcikova is worth backing to feature under 18.5 games on Tuesday.
Tip 4 - Coco Gauff -5.5 games v Marta Kostyuk @ 7/10
Coco Gauff made her Grand Slam breakthrough at the US Open last year, handling the weight of expectation brilliantly to take the title at Flushing Meadows.
But that has cranked up the pressure on the 19-year-old American heading into the Australian Open, as she looks to do the hard-court double.
It has been a case of so far, so good for Gauff in Melbourne, though, with the teenager having won all four of her matches 2-0.
The tournament's fourth seed has beaten Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Caroline Dolehide, Alycia Parks and Magdalena Frech Down Under and, although none of those players were seeded, neither is her next opponent Marta Kostyuk.
Gauff warmed up for the Australian Open this month by winning the ASB Classic, recovering from a set down to beat Elina Svitolina in the final, and she should be comfortable against her Ukrainian counterpart.
Kostyuk was a 6-2 6-1 winner over Maria Timofeeva last time out but dropped sets in each of her three matches beforehand at the Australian Open and Gauff is worth selecting at -5.5 games on the match handicap.
