Federer gains quarterfinal berth, rematch with Soderling

Tennis Betting Lines

09/07/2010 - Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roger Federer continued to roll at the U.S. Open on Monday, this time scoring a straight-set victory over Austrian Jurgen Melzer to reach the quarterfinals.

The second-seeded Federer earned a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 win over the No. 13 seed Melzer. The super Swiss has not dropped a set at this fortnight and will next take on Swede Robin Soderling.

The fifth-seeded Soderling took down No. 21 seed Albert Montanes of Spain, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3. Although Federer is 12-1 lifetime against the reigning two-time French Open runner-up, Soderling beat the 16-time Grand Slam champion in the quarterfinals at this year's French Open. That snapped Federer's streak of 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinal appearances.

I'll be the second straight year the two have met at the U.S. Open. In 2009, Federer won in four tough sets in the quarterfinals.

"I'm looking forward obviously," Federer said. "He's always been a dangerous player. He's able to do it consistently at the highest level and looks like he's going to finish in the top-5 at the end of the year. This is obviously a tough draw for me."

The former world No. 1 Federer titled here from 2004-08 and was last year's runner-up to Argentine slugger Juan Martin del Potro. This year's Aussie Open champ earned his 26th successive Grand Slam quarterfinal.

After finishing off the second set with a powerful forehand, Federer gained a break midway through the third before beating Melzer for a second time this year. Their other match was in the round-of-16 at Wimbledon, also a three-set win for Federer.

Also on Monday, former runner-up Novak Djokovic handled American Mardy Fish, while Frenchman Gael Monfils also moved into the quarterfinals.

The third-seeded Djokovic drubbed a lethargic 19th-seeded Fish in surgeon-like 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 fashion at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Djokovic moved on in 1 hour, 50 minutes by piling up six service breaks against the typically-big-serving Fish.

Fish, who labored here on Labor Day, had won 18 of his previous 20 matches, including a pair of titles and a runner-up finish against Federer at an ATP Masters/U.S. Open Series tournament in Cincinnati.

"It's been a great summer, obviously, for many reasons," Fish said. "Sort of put myself back into a position where I feel like I belong, and I put in a ton of hard work."

The 23-year-old Djokovic will compete in his fourth straight U.S. Open quarterfinal. The steady Serb reached at least the semifinals in his previous three trips to New York, and has reached at least the quarters in 13 of his last 15 Grand Slam events overall.

"I played a great match today, Djokovic said. "Conditions were tough as well with a strong wind. I was using my serve in important moments extremely well and opening the court and kind of not giving him enough chances to come to the net and be aggressive."

Djokovic is a former Australian Open titlist and lost to Federer in the 2007 U.S. Open finale. He'll face an acrobatic Monfils in a quarterfinal here on Wednesday.

The enigmatic Monfils reached his third career, and first-ever U.S. Open, quarterfinal with a hard-fought and entertaining 6-4, 7-5, 7-5 victory over compatriot Richard Gasquet. The 17th-seeded Monfils advanced in 2 hours, 35 minutes by firing 14 aces and breaking Gasquet's serve five times in a match between two of the most talented players on the ATP World Tour.

Monfils is the first Frenchman in 10 years to reach the U.S. Open quarterfinals.

The fourth round concludes on Tuesday with top seed Rafael Nadal, the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion, continuing his quest for a first U.S. Open title by facing fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez. The last time Nadal lost before the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam was at the 2009 French Open.

Another battle of Spanish players has No. 8 Fernando Verdasco playing 10th seed David Ferrer. the other two matches will see 12th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny battling Spain's Tommy Robredo, and 20th-seeded American Sam Querrey battling 25th seed Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland.

Due to the matchups, Spain is guaranteed the first all-Spanish quarterfinal in the U.S. Open in the Open Era.

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2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

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