Djokovic, Murray, Hewitt move on in Melbourne
Tennis Betting Lines
01/19/2012 -
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last year's champion Novak Djokovic
and runner-up Andy Murray were among Thursday's second-round winners, as was
home favorite Lleyton Hewitt, who beat an injured Andy Roddick at the
Australian Open.
The world No. 1 Djokovic rolled past Colombia's Santiago Giraldo 6-3, 6-2,
6-1, as the super Serb had to overcome an early service break on Day 4.
"I maybe started a little too defensive because he was hitting the ball very
strong," Djokovic said. "But then after, it was the other way around."
The reigning Aussie Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open titlist has now won 34
of his last 36 Grand Slam matches and is seeking a third straight major title
and a third Aussie crown. A title here would put Djokovic in select company,
as only four players -- Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Rafael
Nadal -- have captured three straight Grand Slam championships.
Djokovic will meet big-serving Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in the third round on
Saturday at Melbourne Park.
The fourth-seeded Murray, meanwhile, defeated France's Edouard Roger-Vasselin
6-1, 6-4, 6-4 in just under two hours at Hisense Arena.
Murray, who appeared in the last two finals here, including a loss to Djokovic
a year ago, is playing his first major event with the legendary Ivan Lendl as
his coach.
"It's been good, he's obviously one of the greatest players ever," Murray
said. "He's got so much experience and he's a very funny guy. You wouldn't
probably expect it by the way he was on the court, similar to myself."
The three-time Grand Slam runner-up Murray will tangle with French left-hander
Michael Llodra in his next match.
In the most-anticipated match of the day, the unseeded former No. 1 Hewitt
topped a 15th-seeded former top-ranked Roddick 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, as the American
retired because of a right hamstring injury.
Roddick summoned the doctor and a trainer after the third set. He fell to the
court in the opening set, but played on despite being in obvious pain.
"It's a miserable, terrible thing being out there compromised like that,"
said Roddick, who is a four-time Aussie semifinalist.
"I wanted to see what I could do. You don't really have much time for clarity
in that situation. He's a tough guy to play -- he knew what was going on."
Hewitt said the injury situation was "a nightmare for both of us."
"Obviously he stretched something," Hewitt said. "It's not easy for the person
up the other end of the court. It's hard to concentrate when they're having
injury timeouts.
"Andy's a great competitor -- he's similar to me. He plays with his heart on
his sleeve, has that never-say-die attitude as well. It's never easy to play
injured or to pull out of a match. It's not a good feeling."
Hewitt and Roddick have now split 14 career matchups. Hewitt also beat his
fellow former U.S. Open champ in the 2005 Aussie semis.
The two-time major champion and '05 Aussie runner-up Hewitt will face rising
23rd-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic here on Saturday. Raonic, who titled in
India two weeks ago, downed Germany's Philipp Petzschner 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 on
Day 4 of this fortnight.
Fifth-seeded David Ferrer, meanwhile, struggled to get past American Ryan
Sweeting, who actually held a two-sets-to-one lead before the Spaniard righted
the ship en route to a 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 decision. Sweeting
recorded nine double faults and piled up 73 unforced errors in the setback.
Up next for Ferrer will be Argentine veteran Juan Ignacio Chela.
Also on Thursday, France's Jo-Wilfred Tsonga, the tournament's sixth seed,
defeated Ricardo Mello of Brazil 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 and ninth-seeded Serb Janko
Tipsarevic overcame Aussie James Duckworth 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
Tsonga will play Portuguese Frederico Gil, while Tipsarevic will face sweet-
swinging Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the round of 32 this weekend.
In some action involving a trio of French seeds, Julien Benneteau upset his
12th-seeded countryman Gilles Simon 7-5, 7-6 (10-8), 1-6, 3-6, 6-2, No. 14
Gael Monfils came back to beat capable Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci 2-6,
6-0, 6-4, 6-2, and a No. 17 Gasquet handled Kazakhstan's Andrey Golubev 6-4,
6-2, 3-0, as Golubev retired in the third set.
In other second-round action involving seeds, Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin
outlasted No. 19 Serb Viktor Troicki 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3; Japan's best,
No. 24 Kei Nishikori, snuck past Aussie Matthew Ebden 3-6, 1-6, 6-4,
6-1, 6-1; Gil grounded No. 26 Spaniard Marcel Granollers 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; a
No. 27 Chela eased past Spaniard Pablo Andujar 6-4, 6-4, 6-3; and Llodra
outlasted No. 32 Russian Alex Bogomolov Jr. 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 5-7, 6-4.
One other Thursday result saw Mahut defeat Japan's Tatsuma Ito 1-6, 7-6 (8-6),
6-2, 6-2.
The third round will get underway on Friday, including matches for a pair
of all-time greats -- the former world No. 1s Nadal and Federer. The second-
seeded Nadal will take on Slovak Lukas Lacko, while the third-seeded Federer
will meet massive-serving 6-foot-10 Croat Ivo Karlovic.
Nadal is the reigning French Open champion and owns 10 Grand Slam titles,
including an Aussie Open one in 2009 when he beat Federer here in the final.
Federer is a record 16-time men's major titlist, including four championships
in Melbourne.
Also on Day 5, seventh-seeded former Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych will
face 30th-seeded Kevin Anderson, 10th-seeded Nicolas Almagro will battle 21st-
seeded Swiss Stan Wawrinka and 11th-seeded former U.S. Open champ Juan Martin
del Potro will be opposed by Taipei's Yen-Hsun Lu.
Two other quality matchups will pit 13th-seeded 2011 Aussie Open
quarterfinalist Alexandr Dolgopolov against rising Aussie teen and 2011
Wimbledon quarterfinalist Bernard Tomic and 16th-seeded 6-foot-9 American
slugger John Isner versus 18th-seeded Feliciano Lopez.
<< Djokovic, Murray, Ferrer advance at Aussie Open
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last year's champ Novak Djokovic and
runner-up Andy Murray, as well as fifth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer, were
each winners on Thursday, advancing to the third round of the Australian Open.
Djokovic
<< Djokovic, Ferrer advance at Aussie Open
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last year's champ Novak Djokovic and
fifth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer were both winners on Thursday, advancing to
the third round of the Australian Open.
Djokovic, the tournament's top seed, rolled
<< SDSU escapes The Pit, snaps Lobos' win streak
Albuquerque, NM (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Xavier Thames netted a game-high 22 points,
leading 16th-ranked San Diego State to a 75-70 win over New Mexico on
Wednesday.
Jamaal Franklin finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Chase
<< UNLV dominates TCU
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Anthony Marshall scored a career-high 27 and
handed out nine assists, leading No. 14 UNLV to a 101-78 throttling of TCU on
Wednesday.
Chace Stanback added 21 points while Mike Moser had 16 and 15 reboun
<< Billups' late trey lifts Clippers over Mavs
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chauncey Billups hit his first "Big Shot"
for the Clippers, draining a go-ahead three-pointer with one second left in
regulation to give Los Angeles a 91-89 victory over the Mavericks, its first
over Da
No shortage of storylines for this Super Bowl >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sibling rivalries have always made for
great tales. Think Cain versus Abel. Romulus and Remus. Marcia and Jan.
So the prospect of brotherly warfare as the backdrop for Super Bowl XLVI should
bring some add
Kvitova, Sharapova, Serena reach 3rd round in Oz >>
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Petra Kvitova and
former Australian Open champions and former world No. 1s Maria Sharapova and
Serena Williams posted second-round wins Thursday at the Australian Open.
The Wimb
Colsaerts starts strong at Volvo Golf Champions >>
George, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nicolas Colsaerts fired a nine-under
64 on Thursday to take the opening-round lead of the Volvo Golf Champions
event.
He owns a four-stroke cushion after round one at the par-73 Links at Fancour
Rockets aim to move above .500 against reeling Hornets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Rockets will aim to climb above .500 for the
first time this season when they resume a three-game homestand by hosting the
struggling New Orleans Hornets.
The Rockets won the opener of the residency and their f
Surprising Jazz entertain Mavs in Salt Lake City >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Utah, perhaps the most surprising team in the Western
Conference, will aim to continue its stellar play at home against the reigning
NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.
After starting the season 0-2 the Jazz have rattled off ni
Pacific-10 Conference odds
Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State
It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do:
Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.
Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.
Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.
Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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