Djokovic begins Basel Campaign against Beck

Basel, Switzerland – Serbian Novak Djokovic is preparing to make his first appearance since finishing in the Shanghai Masters semis, wherein he lost to eventual champion Nikolay Davydenko. Djokovic enters the Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel tournament as the second seed and he will kick off his bid for the title against Andreas Beck of Germany.

It will be the first career encounter between Djokovic and Beck when they go head-to-head in the first round. Djokovic, the world No.3, has been enjoying solid form since falling to Philipp

Kohlschreiber in the R32 at the French Open, making it to the quarters or better of each and every tournament he has entered.

Beck is up to a career-high ranking of world No. 33 after starting the season outside of the top 100. However, his best results this season have come almost exclusively on clay.

Tennis Betting Line: Andreas Beck +800 Novak Djokovic -2000

Match Time: 05:00 a.m. Eastern Time
Tuesday November 3, 2009

Tennis Betting Verdict: Novak Djokovic enters this matchup as the prohibitive favourite, tipped at virtually untouchable odds, -2000 on the money line. Beck, on the other hand, enters as a significant underdog, listed at a discouraging price of +800 on the money line.

There is no doubt that the approach to this matchup is to bet on the favourite. Djokovic is an impressive 66-18 on the season with three titles; most recently, he won the title in Beijing. Since the French Open, Djokovic has gone 27-6 in tournament play, which includes one title and two runner-up finishes – Halle and Cincinnati as well as finishing in the quarters at Wimbledon and semis at the US Open.

While the approach to bet on the favourite, Djokovic, is sound, the rewards are punitive, promising pennies for the dollar. Tennis bettors might consider turning to the underdog, searching for any signs in his game that might give credence to his underdog odds. Given he favours clay and he is taking on the world’s best hardcourter on an indoor hard court tournament, the answer should be obvious. There is none.

Tennis Free Picks: Djokovic in straight sets