ATP Masters 1000 Montreal 1/16-Finals

Popyrin – Shelton: 08.08.2024 21:30 CEST
H2H: 0-1

Alexei Popyrin has won three of his last five matches. Last week in Paris, Popyrin lost in the 1/8-Finals of the Olympic Games against Zverev in straight tight sets. Here in Montreal, Alexei defeated Machac in straight sets. Popyrin lost his serve once at the beginning of the second set, but stepped up his level, and turned the set immediately around. The Australian is looking to go deep this week, to get back in the top 50 in the rankings.

Ben Shelton has won four of his last five matches. Last week in Washington, Ben finally found his form, and reached the semifinals when he lost against Cobolli in three sets. It was a solid preparation tournament for him to get ready for the second part of the season. Here in Montreal, Ben defeated Bublik in the first round as we predicted. So far this season, Shelton has won only one title, which was in Houston, on his least favorite surface. Other than that, Ben did not have any remarkable results. Last year in Toronto, Ben lost in the second round of the tournament against Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets.

Best Bet to Make

According to the bookies, Shelton is the favorite in this matchup. Both players showed solid tennis in their first round matches. Popyrin is a great server, so we believe that he will keep this match tight.

That being said, Popyrin covering the games handicap is a value bet.

Value bet/ the best odds: Alexei Popyrin +2.5 games handicap @1.80 @bet365

Cobolli – Rinderknech: 09.08.2024 01:00 CEST
H2H: 1-1

Flavio Cobolli has won four of his last five matches. Last week in Washington, Cobolli reached the final where he lost against Korda in three sets. It was the biggest result of the season for the young Italian, and a great tournament preparation for the upcoming American swing. Here in Montreal, Flavio defeated Auger-Aliassime in the first round as we predicted. Cobolli did not offer any breakpoints, and was overall a better player on the court.

Arthur Rinderknech has won four of his last five matches. Last week in Washington, Rinderknech lost against Rublev in the 1/8-Finals in two tight sets. Here in Montreal, Rinderknech fought through the qualifying tournament to get into the main-draw. In the first qualifying round, Rinderknech defeated Vukic in three tight sets. After that, in the final qualifying round, O´Connell retired at the beginning of the match against Arthur. In the first main-draw round, Rinderknech defeated Mannarino in three sets as we predicted.

Best Bet to Make

According to the bookies, Cobolli is the slight favorite in this matchup. Flavio had a great first round performance. His form has improved drastically in the last couple of weeks. On the other hand, Rinderknech struggled against the out-of-form Mannarino in the first round. We believe that Cobolli is currently a better hard court player than Rinderknech, so we expect him to win easily.

That being said, Cobolli winning is a value bet.

Value bet/ the best odds: Flavio Cobolli winning @1.62 @bet365

Main Photo Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports