Trading Talk - French Open
One of the greatest ever rivalries in sport has been given a boost after Roger Federer beat Rafael Nadal in the Madrid Open, and tennis spread bettors have been given a bit more to think about in the run up to the French Open. Most, including Sporting Index's traders, will have been surprised by Rafa's defeat, although buyers of his outright index spread for Roland Garros will not feel too worried. This was the fifth clay loss suffered by Rafa in 155 matches, and only his fifth since 2005. Buyers of Federer's outright index for the tournament will of course be impressed by his victory and the confidence that he will take to France as a result.
Since 2004, Nadal, the irrepressible, has not lost a single match in Roland Garros. He beat Roger Federer in three of the previous finals. http://sintrabodyboard.com/avoid-the-7-biggest-mistakes-new-craps-players-make/ Spread betting is not allowed in Madrid if the result in Madrid does not favor the top two world players. If that happens, punters might look elsewhere. Spread betting interest in Andy Murray, who recently rose to the number three spot in the rankings, will be high. Sellers of his spread will however remind us of his surprise quarter-final defeat in Madrid and a disappointing third-round exit at Roland Garros last year.
The beauty of spread betting means punters do not have to call an outright result, but can bet on a number of aspects of a given match including total game supremacy. If you look at the Rafa era, 2005 onwards, three of the four finals were won by Rafa in four sets. Last year's win was achieved in straight sets. This period has an average of 34.25 finals. However, spread sellers will be encouraged last year's one-sided match. Federer won only four games and Rafa was awarded his fourth title in just 22 games. Buyers or sellers of the games supremacy spread for the men's final will note that Nadal's supremacy over Fed in 2008 was an emphatic 14 games. He won just 6 more games than Federer in the 2007 final and only three more in 2006.
It is refreshing to see that Justine Henin, who won the French Open ladies' competition for the naughties in France, can be considered seriously for the title of 2009. Last year's runner-up Dinara Safina has since climbed to the top of the WTA rankings, and buyers of her outright index spread will hope she can go one better this year. Buyers of the Williams sisters' spread will be encouraged that both have had a strong year, but spread sellers will note that neither has appeared in the final at Roland Garros since they faced each other seven years ago. Spread bettors who are interested in game supremacy should know that the average supremacy of the women's final in the past five years has been 7.4. The highest spread make up in that period was a substantial 10 games when Mary Pierce, crowd favourite, was defeated by Henin in 2005.