posted April 1, 2008 at 20:09 in Tennis Free Picks

Miami, Florida – In the bottom half of the draw, the only Serbian – of the infamous trio of Serb tennis stars to take tennis by storm in 2007: Djokovic, Ivanovic and Jankovic – still alive at the Sony Ericsson Open is the latter, World No.4 Jelena Jankovic, after both her counterparts tasted early defeat in Miami. Jankovic confirmed her place in the final eight women at the prestigious Tier I event in Miami with a victory Jie Zheng of China in the R16. Next up for the Jankovic is Elena Dementieva of Russia, who is enjoying resurgence in her game this season. BetUS is taking action on all the matchups at the Sony Ericsson Open, so to get you started speculating on tennis, here is a breakdown of this anticipated quarterfinal billing.

Tennis Betting Line: Elena Dementieva -125 Jelena Jankovic -115

Match Time: 11:00 AM Eastern Time, Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Tennis Prediction: It is hard not to notice that in spite of weighing in at No.3 in the WTA rankings, Jankovic is slightly disadvantaged on the money line at -115. Dementieva, who sits just beyond the Top 10, in 11th place, gets the odds makers nod for the win.

Adding to the puzzle of this money line is also the fact that Jelena Jankovic owns a 3-2 lifetime record over Dementieva, with the last two meetings – both of which were quarterfinal matchups – going the way of the Serbian starlet by the same score 6-2, 6-1 – in Rome (2007) and at the US Open (2006).

Jankovic improved 18-6 for the season with her victory over Zheng in the R16. Her season is highlighted by solid runs in all six of her tournaments contested; having gone no less than a quarterfinal appearance in each and three saw her reach the semifinals – Australian Open, Dubai and Indian Wells.

In contrast, Dementieva improved to 13-3 for the season after defeating Sabine Lisicki in the R16, but she already owns one crown for the season. Dementieva won the title in Dubai, defeating Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final, but the match was a bit of a scrappy affair between the compatriots.

Dementieva is appearing in her fifth tournament this year; she missed the Tier I event in Indian Wells last week. Competing in back-to-back major events can take its toll on players; therefore, owing to her absence from the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, a well-rested Dementieva at -125 odds may have a slight edge. However, in reaching the quarterfinal, Dementieva has yet to face a seeded player. En route to the final eight, she topped Kateryna Bondarenko, Dominika Cibulkova and Sabine Lisicki – the seeded players slotted in her section of the draw all fell in the second round. In Jankovic, Dementieva faces her stiffest contest of the tournament thus far.

Jankovic on the other hand arrived in Miami after posting a semifinal run in Indian Wells (l. Ana Ivanovic). As last season’s Tour- leader in match-wins with 72 (next highest was Henin at 63) Jankovic is one of the fittest players on the women’s tour and despite contesting two big tournaments back-to-back, she is a player who has a proven track-record of success in winning matches on big occasions under extreme circumstances. At the slightly disadvantaged price tag of -115, I like her chances against the Russian in this match. True, Dementieva is enjoying a great start to her career, but Jankovic’s lack of a title thus far in the season is no reason to discount her in this matchup against Dementieva.

Tennis Free Picks: Jankovic in straight sets

Nila Amerova is a freelance sports writer and regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room.