BNP Paribas Masters R16 - Berdych goes for broke vs. Davydenko

Paris, France – The 2008 season has gone the way of previous seasons for Tomas Berdych: high hopes dashed by a consistent aspiration to fall short of expectations. Tomas Berdych is one of the sports notorious enigmas – an uber talented yet unpredictable force. He is that good that he could shake things up in Paris but it is far from a sure thing when he is concerned. A tendency to implode mentally makes him a bit of a risk in the sports betting market.

However, next up for Tomas Berdych, who moved into the last 16 when he upset 12th seed Stanislas Wawrinka in straight sets 6-3, 7-5, is a player he has never beaten in seven tries! Will the eighth encounter – the proverbial Chinese lucky number – be the charm for the Czech?

Tennis Betting Line: Tomas Berdych vs. Nikolay Davyenko

Match Time: 05:00 AM Eastern Time Thursday October 30, 2008

Head-to-head Analysis: Davydenko owns Berdych. In seven meetings the Russian has had his number. Most recently, they played in Davis Cup action. Berdych put on a valiant fight, but the epic five set match never concluded as Berdych suffered an ankle injury, forcing him to retire 6-3, 2-6, 6-7(5), 6-3, 1-2 RET.

Tennis Betting Analysis

Berdych: Berdych started the season well enough with a R16 push in Melbourne and a decent showing at the ATP Masters Miami when he reached the semis – but too many inconsistent performances and subpar results saw him fall out of the top 10 and then the top 20. The ankle injury of course did not help him either. In fact, his summer was a complete write off.

Now, in the fall swing, Berdych has a chance to turnaround his year. He won the title in Tokyo so that boded well for him. However, immediately following his title victory, he fell in the R32 at the Mutua Madrilena Masters Madrid, defeated by David Nalbandian 2-6, 7-6(5), 1-6. In Basel, he faced more disappointment when he was served in the opening round by Simone Bolelli 4-6, 5-7.

Davydenko: The latter half of his season has been nothing short of a disaster. Average play and uninspired outings have not made for an ideal fall season for the Russian. His opening bid was tough as he defeated Ivan Ljubicic in tight sets 7-6(5), 7-5. Nevertheless, he did win so it has to count for something.

Tennis Betting Verdict: Davydenko’s skint performance makes him an unsure play. Frankly, I didn’t expect him to make it into the third round and he almost didn’t. Ljubicic really challenged him and that coming from a player who is mired in an even worse funk than he is, well that is just unacceptable. Davydenko is not looking good and his form is questionable. Berdych has a real chance of notching his first victory against Davydenko.

Tennis Free Picks: Berdych in straight sets

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