It's day three of the Cheltenham Festival, with the Ryanair Chase and Stayers' Hurdle taking centre stage. Can Un De Sceaux get Mullins and Walsh off the mark and will Unowhatimeanharry, many people's banker of the week, prove his class in the Stayers'?
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Roger Federer is the 11/9 tennis betting underdog to win the Australian Open men’s singles final on Sunday despite Rafael Nadal admitting his exhausting five-set victory over Grigor Dimitrov will put him at a disadvantage.
Federer was also taken to five sets by Stan Wawrinka on Thursday but the Swiss will enjoy an extra 24 hours rest than Nadal who, for television reasons, played his semi-final on Friday.
At four hours and 56 minutes, Nadal's epic 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7/5) 6-7 (4/7) 6-4 victory over Dimitrov took almost two hours longer than Federer's. And across the fortnight, Nadal has been on court for a total of 18 hours and 59 minutes, the equivalent of two routine matches more than Federer's 13 hours and 41 minutes.
It means Nadal is likely to be the wearier contestant in Sunday's title showdown, which could prove significant given both finalists have only recently returned from injury, yet the Spaniard has been priced up as the 69/100 favourite.
Federer, 35, is playing his first official tournament since Wimbledon last year while Nadal, 30, ended last season in October to overcome a niggling wrist problem.
Nadal's one Australian Open triumph came in 2009, when he prevailed against Federer in five sets, having gone to a decider against Fernando Verdasco in the last four.
“That what I'm going to try,” Nadal said. “I am seven, eight years older but now is not the time to talk about that. (Now it) is time to be happy, very happy.”
The match is 41/100 to go to at least four sets and Nadal is 24/5 to triumph in a decider again, with Federer 23/4 for victory in five sets.
The world number nine will now play his greatest rival Federer in a grand slam final, their ninth together, and 35th career meeting.
Nadal is closing in on a 15th major title while Federer is hoping to extend his lead on the Spaniard to four by instead claiming his 18th.
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Roger Federer is 17/24 tennis betting to win his all-Swiss showdown with Stan Wawrinka at the Australian Open and take another step towards an 18th grand slam title.
The 35-year-old, whose last major triumph came at Wimbledon in 2012, cruised to a 6-1 7-5 6-2 victory against Mischa Zverev on Rod Laver Arena and will now face his compatriot for a place in Sunday's final.
Wawrinka certainly represents a formidable challenge as the US Open champion and arguably the most dangerous player left in the draw given he has won three grand slams in as many years.
The 31-year-old is the 11/4 second-favourite for the title – behind Federer at 2/1 – but has often struggled to find his best form against his friend and mentor, with whom he won the Davis Cup in 2014.
“He's a clutch player now,” Federer said of his next opponent. “At the US Open he proved it again, he's won a slam for the last three years. At Davis Cup, when it was important he was right there for me, for us, for Switzerland.
“For me to play against Stan I've got to stay aggressive, the more time I give him the better he is. He's the biggest hitter we have in the game right now.”
Wawrinka often grows into a tournament, vulnerable in the early rounds but, as Novak Djokovic found to his cost in Flushing Meadows, unstoppable when the finishing line is in sight.
He is 57/50 to win Thursday’s match and should be relatively fresh after seeing off France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6 (7/2) 6-4 6-3.
On the prospect of facing Federer, he said: “It's always something special. Most important is that I try as much as I can to focus on myself, that I step on the court to try to find a way how to win the match.”
In the women’s semi-final on Thursday, Venus Williams will also be hoping to post another triumph for the old guard when she faces Coco Vandeweghe.
Williams, at 36, is the oldest singles player in the women's draw but she rolled back the years to beat 24th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4 7-6 (7/3).
The victory puts Williams into the last four here for the first time in 14 years and continues a late resurgence for the American, who has now made the semis twice in her last three grand slams.
Vandeweghe beat seventh seed Garbine Muguruza and is the 3/4 favourite, with Williams available at 27/25.
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Emma Spencer looks at day two of the Cheltenham Festival, featuring the Queen Mother Champion Chase, for which Douvan is the red hot favourite.
There are also high class fields in the Neptune Novices' Hurdle and the RSA Chase, as well as the Cross Country Chase at 4.10pm.
Remember, if you bet on three or more Festival races in a day, we'll give a 100% profit boost token so you can bid to get DOUBLE WINNINGS on ANY race tomorrow!
Emma Spencer preview day one of the Cheltenham Festival, featuring the Champion Hurdle!
The second part of the chat between Emma Spencer and Joe Tizzard, who discusses the main chances of his trainer father Colin's bets chances at the Cheltenham Festival.
Rafael Nadal has been cut to 13/4 in tennis betting odds to win the Australian Open as he prepares to face Milos Raonic in the quarter-finals.
Nadal had not made it to the last eight of a major tournament since the French Open in 2015 but he continued his resurgence on Rod Laver Arena by beating Frenchman Gael Monfils 6-3 6-3 4-6 6-4 on Monday.
The world number nine looks rejuvenated in Melbourne and, with Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic out, he looks a genuine contender to secure a 15th grand slam triumph.
Nadal is the 17/25 favourite to win his quarter-final against Raonic, although he lost to the same opponent in Brisbane earlier this month.
The pair will now meet again after the big-serving Canadian beat Nadal’s fellow Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6 (8/6) 3-6 6-4 6-1.
Nadal ended last season in October to overcome a niggling wrist problem but, after proving his fitness in a five-set thriller with Alexander Zverev, he has now shown his form against the tricky Monfils.
“For me, it means a lot,” Nadal said. “To start the season playing quarter-finals in a grand slam again, especially on hard court after a couple of years without being in this round is great news. I'm very happy with an important victory against a very good opponent.”
Nadal's loss to Raonic in Brisbane was only his second in eight meetings but he is under no illusions about the scale of the challenge ahead.
“I need to be very focused with my serve and play aggressive,” Nadal said. “If I am not playing aggressive, then I am dead.”
Nadal is 100/30 to win in straight sets while Raonic is 7/6 to repeat his Brisbane triumph while 41/100 for the match to go to at least a fourth set looks a safe bet.
The bottom half of the draw's other quarter-final will pitch Belgium's David Goffin against Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.
Goffin beat Dominic Thiem 5-7 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 6-2 while Dimitrov knocked out Djokovic's conqueror Denis Istomin 2-6 7-6 (7/2) 6-2 6-1.
World number 15 Dimitrov has long been tipped for a big future in the game but has struggled to fulfil his potential. However, the 25-year-old's victory over Istomin earns him a first grand slam quarter-final since 2014 and he is the 5/9 favourite to extend his stay in the tournament with Goffin priced at 10/7.
Double or singles - bet on which ever takes your fancy at 888 Sport
The 888sport blog is here to offer betting and tipping advice on the biggest sports fixtures, events and competitions around the world.
Roger Federer is now the 3/1 tennis betting favourite to win the Australian Open for a fifth time.
The Swiss overcame Kei Nishikori in five sets, in a match lasting three hours and 24 minutes, to reach the quarter-finals in Melbourne.
He will now continue his pursuit of an 18th grand slam title against Mischa Zverev, the world number 50 who pulled off a shock win over top seed Andy Murray.
Federer is 1/12 to progress to the last four with Zverev 7/1 for another upset while there are odds of 32/25 for the match to have more than 3.5 sets.
The hard-fought victory over Nishikori came in what was only Federer’s fourth official match since returning from six months out with a knee injury.
Federer, 35, has warned his rivals he feels fit and ready to go the distance, saying: “I felt great in the fifth, I must say. Even deep into the fourth I thought 'Yeah, fifth, here we go, no problem for me. I'm feeling good about my chances'.
"I was playing positive tennis, I was playing offensive. My body was reacting. I was playing way better than the first couple of rounds where I put in a lot of mental energy to stay with my opponents, figure them out, how were they going to play, how were the conditions going to be - understanding the comeback really.
"I was able to focus point per point on my opponent, on the tactics. That didn't drain me much. I felt great in the fifth, which I'm very happy about."
This is the 49th grand slam in which Federer has reached the last eight while Zverev's quarter-final will be his first.Federer is 7/1 to prevail in a deciding set with Zverev 24/1 to do likewise and 7/2 to take the opening set.
Murray's loss, coming three days after Novak Djokovic's defeat to Denis Istomin, has thrown the draw wide open, with the likes of Federer, Milos Raonic, Rafael Nadal and Stan Wawrinka all primed to capitalise.
Wawrinka, the 2014 champion, faces Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter-finals after beating Italian Andreas Seppi in straight sets, all three going to a tie-break.
The fourth seed, 13/4 for more Melbourne glory, is 5/8 to get past the Frenchman, who is 32/25 to stay on course to reach a second Australian Open final after his feat in 2008 when going down to Djokovic.
The 888sport blog is here to offer betting and tipping advice on the biggest sports fixtures, events and competitions around the world.
888sport horse racing ambassador Emma Specner sat down with Joe Tizzard, son of leading trainer Colin Tizzard, to discuss the yard's leading Cheltenham Gold Cup contenders, Cue Card and Native River! Check out part two of the interview here!
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Emma Spencer previews the final day of Royal Ascot!
