Australian Open Women's Betting: Back in-form Watson to advance

Can Watson now kick-on in the Grand Slams?

There were shocks and upsets galore on the opening day of the tournament and Abelson Info look at whether or not there are more on the way on Tuesday...

World number two Maria Sharapova restored some order to end a manic Monday which saw a number of top names fall out of contention.
Gone are the likes of Ana Ivanovic, Angelique Kerber, Lucie Safarova and Sabine Lisicki as Day Two promises to produce its fair of share of surprises too.

Serena Williams will be hoping to avoid such problems in her opening encounter against Alison Van Uytvanck, while Petra Kvitova and Sam Stosur will be confident of joining her in the second round against inferior opposition.

However, there are a handful of matches to look out for, not least starting with British hopeful Heather Watson. Watson picked up her second WTA title last week in Hobart and she should be full of confidence given her good form. She's now up to a career-high ranking of world number 38 and the Australian Open will be the perfect tournament to prove that she can perform on the biggest of stages.

It won't be easy given that first-round opponent Tsvetana Pironkova is also in good form after her semi-final run in Sydney, but Watson should have an edge about her play now which makes her dangerous.

The pair have split their four meetings with Watson winning their most recent back at Eastbourne last year, and with their three previous clashes being decided after three sets, the set betting market is also worth further study.

Elsewhere, last year's finalist Dominika Cibulkova will get her tournament underway hoping to recreate the magic of 2014. The Slovakian ace does face a tricky opponent first up though, as she narrowly leads Kirsten Flipkens 3-2 in their head-to-head record.

However, given her special bond with this venue, back her to come through unscathed as when she has beaten her Belgian rival previously it has been in straight sets and she will be eager to get off to a strong start.

The same can be said of world number Twelve Flavia Pennetta, as the veteran hasn't looked back since undergoing wrist surgery back in 2012.

The 32-year-old has been flying over the past two years reaching the latter stages of Grand Slams regularly, but she has a real problem ahead of her in the form of compatriot Camila Giorgi.

The young Italian has been making noise on the tour for some time now and she is up to world number 33 as a result of her solid play. She seemingly has the edge over her countrywoman as she leads their head-to-record 2-1 and there is a real chance that Pennetta's year might not start the way she would have hoped.

Recommended Bets:
Back Watson to beat Pironkova @ 1.9720/21
Back Cibulkova to beat Flipkens 2-0 @ 1.824/5
Back Giorgi to beat Pennetta @ 2.3611/8

Australian Wallet

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