Miami Tennis Day 5 Picks 2026 (Saturday 21st March)

It was a busy day at the Miami Open on Day 4 of the main draw tournament, but the weather has yet to play ball and a delay in the morning has meant the event is not quite back on track.

Most are forecasting an improvement in the conditions for the next few days and that should ensure this event is ready to be completed as planned at the end of next week.

Once again, any selections from Day 5 of the tournament will be added to this thread once the full markets are put together, but there are still some early options, which can be read below.

Mirra Andreeva - 5.5 games v Marie Bouzkova: There has been some teenage angst in some of the recent performances, but Mirra Andreeva was able to hold herself together after dropping the second set in her Second Round win. The box has asked for some calmness, but it has been a tough period for the World Number 10, despite the huge amount of wins and quality of performance she is still producing.

Emotions got the better of Mirra Andreeva at the end of her defeat at Indian Wells, but that has become far too common a sight on a tennis court in 2026.

At her best, the 18 year old is still someone who can beat the very best on the Tour, but Mirra Andreeva has found it tough to put it all together at the business end of events in 2026. The second serve has been a bit of an issue, but the first serve is steady and still an important weapon, while Andreeva has shown a bit more on the return.

The numbers have looked impressive when it comes to facing opponents Ranked outside of the top 20 on the hard courts in 2026 and Mirra Andreeva has regularly found herself getting the better of Marie Bouzkova, which has to help settle the higher Ranked player.

All three previous meetings on the Tour have been won by Mirra Andreeva in straight sets and she has been a very strong winner in the two hard court matches against this opponent.

Marie Bouzkova is very experienced on the Tour and is still Ranked inside a Seeded spot, while her Second Round win here will have just handed her a few more Ranking Points. The 6-8 record on the hard courts may not have gotten much attention, but Marie Bouzkova has picked enough wins to be pushing back towards a her career best World Ranking mark of Number 24 and an upset on Saturday could really help.

However, it should be noted that Bouzkova has built her early hard court record on beating those she would expect and she has lost her last four matches when facing someone Ranked higher than herself. Those have all been one-sided defeats to players Ranked Number 22 or higher and the Czech player has struggled to protect serve and offered little resistance on the return in those contests.

At the moment it can be tough to trust Mirra Andreeva with the youngster seemingly losing focus and belief pretty quickly, but she has not suffered too many upsets before the early loss in Indian Wells and she can come through this one with an impressive win.

Alexandra Eala - 1.5 games v Magda Linette: Being a left-handed player that once played in the Rafael Nadal Academy will always earn some attention, but Alexandra Eala is also the leading figure of Filipino tennis and that has meant big crowd support wherever she has played.

The 20 year old has used that effectively and is now at a career high World Number 29 in the Rankings, although Alexandra Eala is under some pressure to avoid a big drop.

The reason for that is the then-teenager reached the Semi Final in Miami twelve months ago and defending those is always going to be challenging for a player who had to beat three top ten Seeds to reach the final four. Alexandra Eala is Seeded here this year, which meant beginning in the Second Round, but she will have to string the wins together and may benefit from Iga Swiatek's upset loss.

Instead of the World Number 2, Alexandra Eala is facing Magda Linette in the Third Round and this is an opponent she has already beaten once on the hard courts in 2026.

That victory was earned in pretty routine fashion in Auckland in the build up to the Australian Open, but Eala will do well to remember that a veteran like Magda Linette will have taken plenty to work on out of that defeat.

There hasn't been much from the tennis played in 2026 to believe Linette was going to upset her compatriot in the Second Round and the real challenge for the World Number 50 is building on that victory, although like her opponent in this match, Magda Linette has a strong run to defend.

Twelve months ago she reached the Quarter Final in Miami and that means this is a big match for both players.

Magda Linette's hard court numbers have remained average, which has been the case for the last couple of seasons prior to 2026.

Credit has to be given to the veteran that she has not slipped massively when playing those Ranked higher than herself and that is down to the experience that she possesses. Magda Linette certainly can pose problems for her opponent, and she is the kind of steady force that will exploit any nerves or tension that Alexandra Eala may be feeling.

However, that win in Auckland will give Alexandra Eala that feeling of confidence that may just see her come through this Third Round match.

Alex Michelsen - 1.5 games v Cameron Norrie: These two players met twice last year on the hard courts and those matches were split one win each.

However, Alex Michelsen had clearly been the stronger player in both matches in Dallas and Delray Beach and was unfortunate to lose the first of those before beating Cameron Norrie the following week.

Both have produced similar levels on the hard courts in 2026 and there is likely to be little between them here.

A difference between the players is that Alex Michelsen has been slightly stronger behind the serve and Cameron Norrie has been a bit more effective returning.

Both played well in Indian Wells, but the head to head suggests the younger player deserves to be favourite and Alex Michelsen can do just enough to show that on the scoreboard.

Andrey Rublev - 2.5 games v Alejandro Tabilo: There is nothing wrong with Alejandro Tabilo on a hard court and his numbers are consistent, even if they are not spectacular.

The 28 year old is clearly more comfortable on the clay courts and has had mixed results on this surface in 2026, but he has been given plenty of respect from the layers in this Second Round match.

It has come as a surprise- yes, Andrey Rublev was beaten early in Indian Wells, but the World Number 16 has reached the Semi Final at three different hard court events this season.

Prior to the defeat in the Californian desert, Andrey Rublev had enjoyed the Middle East swing and he should still have some real confidence, even if he has not enjoyed playing in Miami in recent times.

The numbers have been pretty strong in 2026 and Rublev holds a hard court win over Alejandro Tabilo.

This should help him in getting back to winning ways in Miami and the Andrey Rublev serve, which is being held in 87% of games played, may just keep the pressure on his Chilean opponent.

Alejandro Tabilo is a lefty and his serve can be a big weapon on the hard courts, but Andrey Rublev looks a game or two light in the handicap market for this Second Round match and can be backed to cover.

MY PICKS: Mirra Andreeva - 5.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (1 Unit)

Alexandra Eala - 1.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Alex Michelsen - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 William Hill (1 Unit)

Andrey Rublev - 2.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Miami Update: 8-2, + 5.41 Units (10 Units Staked, + 54.10% Yield)

European Tour 3- Belgium Darts Open Day 1 Picks 2026 (Friday 20th March)

A remarkable night in Dublin ended with Luke Littler closing the gap on Jonny Clayton in the Premier League standings, but Gerwyn Price and Michael van Gerwen will both be wondering how they failed to beat the World Number 1.

Once again, it is a reminder that Littler feels like he is clear of the rest of the Tour and that the mental pressure of facing him is beginning to ramp up, much as it did in the past when players moved into position to beat the likes of Phil Taylor and van Gerwen.

Missing darts built up the sense of dread that the top player on the Tour would punish them and Luke Littler has done that enough in his relatively short time as a professional to have built that aura around him.

He will be playing at European Tour 3 this weekend and the Belgium Darts Open features the majority of the top names, although Price, Gian van Veen and Gary Anderson have withdrawn.

It is a big event for players looking to build up some confidence or build on the momentum that has been picked up ahead of the next set of Players Championship tournaments later in the month.

These European Tour events are the big titles to be won over the coming weeks and months until the World Cup of Darts is played on the same weekend as the Football World Cup begins. In that time there are plenty of Players Championship events to be played as well alongside the Premier League and it remains a busy time for the players and fans of the sport.

Last weekend was a difficult one for the Darts Picks at European Tour 2, but this is an opportunity to bounce back.

Day 1 features the entirety of the First Round being played across two Sessions, while the top Seeds join the party on Saturday with the Second Round split over two Sessions.

The selections from Night 7 at the Premier League at least got things moving back in a positive direction, but it is important to build on that in the Belgium Darts Open to keep things ticking over.

Ricky Evans to win & over 1.5 180s v Scott Williams: At his best, Scott Williams can be a very dangerous player, but the price has shortened on Ricky Evans to come through this good looking First Round match.

Both have been putting together inconsistent results over the last few weeks, but there has perhaps been one or two more flashes from Rapid Ricky.

He will need his scoring and Evans has always been a decent maximum hitter, but it is doubles that win matches and that cost him last weekend in the loss to Danny Noppert.

Scott Williams has lost four of his last five matches and has just been having his issues of late, but he did earn his spot in Belgium through the Qualifiers and beat some solid competition in his run.

So did Ricky Evans though and his numbers have been a little stronger to believe he can edge to the win with a couple of maximums thrown in too.

Dave Chisnall to win & over 1.5 180s v Thibault Tricole: The form over the last several months has been disappointing as far as Dave Chisnall is concerned, but he can find a way to get past an improving Thibault Tricole.

One of his wins to earn a Qualifying spot at the Belgium Darts Open was against Ricky Evans and he had a very strong run at Players Championship 6 when reaching the Semi Final.

That means Thibault Tricole has to be respected, but Dave Chisnall has beaten him once this season and usually enjoys taking part in these European Tour events.

There is a pressure on Chizzy to find some wins to avoid dropping too far in the World Rankings and having to eventually take part in the cutthroat business of Qualifying, but there is still some good darts being played.

Doing it for long enough, even in this short format, has been the problem for Dave Chisnall, but he may just have enough here to edge past a quality First Round opponent.

Scoring is going to be key and Chisnall can put together a couple of maximums during a match that should last at least nine Legs.

MY PICKS: Ricky Evans to Win & Over 1.5 180s @ 2.05 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Dave Chisnall to Win & Over 1.5 180s @ 2.15 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Darts 2026: 33-48, - 8.04 Units (78 Units Staked, - 10.31% Yield)

Miami Tennis Day 4 Picks 2026 (Friday 20th March)

The Miami tournament continues to play catch up after Day 2 was washed out, but the Second Round of the WTA event has begun and there should be plenty of matches scheduled from that Round on Friday.

Some of those matches will only be put together at the conclusion of Day 3 and so any further selections will be added to this thread.

The opening totals from the tournament will also be updated and added to this thread on Friday when all of the first four selections have been completed.

UPDATE: As expected, the Miami Masters event is trying to get back on track and that means all twenty-eight WTA Second Round matches that have yet to be completed are all scheduled to be played on Friday, which starts an hour earlier than usual on the outdoor courts.

There is also the conclusion of the ATP First Round and Second Round matches scheduled from that event and I have added selections from markets that were formed overnight.

The Miami totals have also been updated after the opening four Picks were completed late on Thursday evening.

Amanda Anisimova - 5.5 games v Ajla Tomljanovic: The peak of her career may be behind her, but that does not mean Ajla Tomljanovic is going to roll over for any opponent she faces on the Tour.

However, the gap is increasing between the Australian and the better players on the Tour and that will mean matches are taking away from her, even if she is giving her all on the court.

Ajla Tomljanovic has never been higher than World Number 32, but she is operating with a number 81 next to her name these days- after a slow start to the 2026 season, Tomljanovic has reached the Quarter Final in Austin and the Third Round in Indian Wells where she was able to upset a Seeded player in the Second Round.

That was the Number 30 Seed in Indian Wells, but in Miami she is facing not only a top ten Ranked opponent, but someone who has reached Grand Slam Finals at Wimbledon and the US Open last year and a player who is very comfortable on this surface.

Amanda Anisimova did reach the Fourth Round in Miami last year, but another good run here and moving past that stage would see her edge that much closer to the top four places in the World Ranking. The 24 year old has become an all-court player and credit has to be given to Anisimova for putting together stronger numbers on the clay courts and grass courts in 2025 compared with the hard courts, which suggests this is a player that is a threat at all four Grand Slams played.

The Fourth Round loss in Indian Wells will have been something of a disappointment, but Amanda Anisimova has been a Quarter Finalist at the Australian Open and Semi Finalist in Dubai and over the last twelve months she has been dominant when facing players outside the top 50 of the World Rankings on this surface.

The numbers have backed up the strong scoreboard wins and the American should have too much for veteran Ajla Tomljanovic- the latter has won the two Tour meetings, but one was back in 2017 and the other in 2021 and it was Tomljanovic who was Ranked higher on both occasions.

It is much different now and the Amanda Anisimova aggressive ball-striking should give her the edge in this match, while covering this big line is also well within her scope.

Belinda Bencic - 4.5 games v Zeynep Sonmez: Coming through the Qualifiers and reaching the Australian Open Third Round has raised the Zeynep Sonmez profile, although that has perhaps meant expectations have also not been easy to meet. The 23 year old received a lot of support through the Middle East swing soon after her run at Melbourne, but three opening defeats has just reminded people that Sonmez still has some developing to get through if she wants to move up the World Rankings.

At the moment Zeynep Sonmez is the World Number 83 and her career best mark was set in October at Number 69.

She reached the Quarter Final in Merida since the Middle East swing ended without any victories and Zeynep Sonmez has won First Round matches at both Indian Wells and here in Miami. However, the run ended in Indian Wells in the Second Round and it is going to take some effort for Sonmez to beat the World Number 12 in the Second Round at this tournament.

Belinda Bencic dropped more Ranking Points when losing in the Fourth Round at Indian Wells last week, but she has nothing to defend here in Miami and the Swiss star is going to want to push back into the top ten ahead of the clay court season. Number 4 is still the career high for Belinda Bencic, but she has returned to the Tour after becoming a mother and there remain real ambitions to win a Major title.

After winning all five matches at the United Cup in early January, it has been more of a struggle for Belinda Bencic who has won four of seven matches played since that opening tournament. She was in good shape in Indian Wells before losing to Jessica Pegula in a competitive match and that will bode well for Belinda Bencic who will be looking to put a confidence boosting run on the board ahead of the build up towards the French Open.

She has particularly thrived when facing those opponents she would be expected to beat, namely those who are Ranked lower than her when entering the court- over the last twelve months, Belinda Bencic is 19-3 in those matches and her numbers have backed that up with noticeable improvements on the serve and return.

Underestimating Zoynep Sonmez would be a mistake considering the Turkish player has a 3-4 record over the last twelve months on the hard courts when facing top 50 Ranked opponents. The underdog has won both matches against top 20 Ranked opponents in that time and with nothing to lose, Sonmez can become dangerous.

It should be noted that Zoynep Sonmez has come out of those two matches by just edging the very fine margins and that is hard to sustain.

A confident Belinda Bencic can be very tough to stop on the hard courts and it may be that the higher Ranked player can win a few more easy points behind the first serve that allows her to control this match. This will also mean Bencic can take a real swing on the return of serve and ultimately it may end up with the more experienced player coming through with a solid win on the scoreboard.

Clara Tauson - 3.5 games v Katie Boulter: Eighteen months ago, Katie Boulter was moving into her career best World Ranking mark of Number 23 and looking very capable of breaking into the top 20.

Injury and a loss of form prevented that happening and Boulter has struggled to get herself going again with her current World Ranking down at Number 67. A First Round win will help, but Katie Boulter has work to do if she is going to be in a position to be Seeded when Wimbledon comes around later this year.

She did not play badly on the clay courts last season so an opportunity will come up if Boulter can build up some confidence and momentum by earning an upset in the Second Round in Miami. These big WTA 1000 events makes it very difficult for any player to put together strong runs considering the quality of competition very early in the tournaments, but that is especially the case for those that begin in the First Round like the British player had to do.

Familiarising herself with the conditions has to be a positive, but a Second Round match against Clara Tauson is a tough prospect.

The 23 old is the World Number 16 and her hard court numbers have been pretty good this season, even if the results have not always backed that up. Consistency is a good thing for players like Clara Tauson who has a powerful serve on this surface, although there is room for improvement when it comes to the return.

Those improved numbers have been there over the last twelve months when Clara Tauson has faced opponents Ranked outside the top 50 and she came through a Second Round match in Indian Wells against such an opponent. However, the Dane will have been really disappointed to have lost a tight match against the World Number 92 in Talia Gibson and that is the kind of result that Katie Boulter must use as a form of encouragement about her own chances.

A career long problem for Katie Boulter has been facing the better players on the Tour on this surface- she has won just 32% of matches against top 50 Ranked opponents and that drops to 15% when only considering top 20 opponents.

Katie Boulter is 1-5 against top 20 Ranked opponents over the last twelve months in hard court matches and she would be 3-3 when it comes to covering this handicap mark. That is 2-3 when only considering the matches she has lost and the feeling is that Clara Tauson has a bit too much power behind her strokes, which will give her the edge in this contest.

The sole previous meeting ended in a routine win for Clara Tauson back in 2022, but that is largely irrelevant now- despite that, the higher Ranked player should still have a bit too much for Boulter and she can cover this handicap mark in this Second Round match in Miami.

Marton Fucsovics - 2.5 games v Christopher O'Connell: Another Qualifier looking to use some of the momentum and familiarity of the conditions in his favour is Christoper O'Connell, but he has once again been drawn to face Marton Fucsovics.

That did not go so well in Indian Wells as the Australian was beaten pretty handily, but some believe the courts in Miami will play a little faster and that should help.

However, it is the second one-sided loss suffered against the veteran over the last twelve months, albeit the first on a hard court, and Christoper O'Connell has been struggling for consistency to open 2026. That is underlined by his drop into World Number 130 and there has been some pressure on the O'Connell serve, which is not operating at the kind of standards he has set previously.

He struggled against Marton Fucsovics in Indian Wells and the latter ended up reaching the Third Round at that event in what has been a pretty inconsistent start to the season for him too.

Marton Fucsovics is 34 years old now, but he still has a decent game on the courts.

On the main Tour, Marton Fucsovics is 7-2 on the hard courts when facing those Ranked below him and that is over a twelve month sample.

Not only has he held 88% of his service games in that time, but Fucsovics has created constant pressure on the return with 32% of return games ending in a Break and that was shown in the Indian Wells win over this opponent.

If Christoper O'Connell serves well, this is a dangerous spread, but Marton Fucsovics has all of the tools he needs to overcome the mark and move into a Second Round match against the Number 7 Seed in the draw.

MY PICKS: Amanda Anisimova - 5.5 Games @ 2.00 William Hill (1 Unit)

Belinda Bencic - 4.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Clara Tauson - 3.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Marton Fucsovics - 2.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Elise Mertens - 5.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Victor (1 Unit)

Marta Kostyuk - 4.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Karen Khachanov - 3.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Miami Update: 3-1, + 2.35 Units (4 Units Staked, + 58.75% Yield)

Premier League Darts Night 7 Picks 2026 (Thursday 19th March)

Wessel Nijman has threatened to produce a top result together in a big tournament and it all came together for the Dutchman in Germany last week at European Tour 2.

You can't blame the media for focusing on the talented youngsters Luke Littler and Gian van Veen, but Wessel Nijman has room to grow and the hope is that he can kick on from that success last weekend.

If he can, perhaps Nijman will be a debutant in the Premier League next season.

He won't be playing this Thursday in Dublin when Night 7 of the Premier League begins and we are almost at the halfway mark of the tournament with the fight for the top four places heating up.

Another Night win was secured by Jonny Clayton last week and you have to believe that the Welshman is well on his way to locking up one of the top four places having opened up an 8 point lead over second placed Luke Littler. Both players skipped the tournament in Germany with Littler long making it clear he does not like playing in that country after issues with the crowd, while Clayton was dealing with a foot issue last Thursday and needed some rest, rather than travelling to the European Tour 2 event.

Luke Littler is facing Stephen Bunting on Night 7 and the latter will understand why the World Number 1 skipped the event last week after having his match ruined by whistling.

Luke Humphries also missed European Tour 2 and he has a rematch of the Night 6 Final when facing Jonny Clayton in the last of the Quarter Finals.

Just four points separate Luke Littler in 2nd place and Stephen Bunting in 7th and so there is still all to play for in the tournament, while Josh Rock will be hoping fans have travelled from Northern Ireland to Dublin to support his bid for a maiden Premier League win.

It was a torrid weekend for the Darts Picks, but there is an opportunity to bounce back over the next few days with Night 7 and Night 8 of the Premier League sandwiching the European Tour 3 event in Belgium. That event begins on Friday and is played through Sunday, but the concentration for now is on Night 7 of this tournament in Dublin where the top names face off again.

Gian van Veen has been a late withdrawal as he suffers from kidney stones and that is a major concern for the young player, but has perhaps been a factor in his recent downturn in form.

After his own recent struggles with his health, the two points without playing a match will be a boost for Michael van Gerwen who will have moved back into the top four before the start of play in Dublin on Night 7 of the Premier League.

Luke Littler to win & most 180s v Stephen Bunting: It has to be pretty funny to think that there have been some questions about Luke Littler's early motivations in the Premier League, yet he has cruised into second place in the standings.

That just reminds everyone of the supreme talent of the teenager and Littler continues to be the player to beat in every tournament he enters.

He didn't enter European Tour 2 last weekend and having a bit of time off may have done Luke Littler some good as he prepares to return to action in Dublin. The crowd are likely going to get on his back with Stephen Bunting likely to be a more popular figure, but that has rarely prevented Littler from playing however he feels like and he should have too much for this opponent.

Whistling from the crowds has become a far too common event at the darts over the last twelve months and Bunting was on the wrong side of that in Germany.

This should be played in a better atmosphere for the World Number 9, but Stephen Bunting has suffered four early exits in six Premier League Nights and he may not be able to match the heavy, consistent scoring power of Luke Littler in this race to six Legs.

Gerwyn Price to win & most 180s v Josh Rock: Both of these players were beaten pretty comfortably by Wessel Nijman at the European Tour 2 event last weekend, but Gerwyn Price's defeat was in the Final of that event in Germany.

Josh Rock will have taken confidence from another decent run outside of the Premier League, but he remains without a win in this tournament and the pressure continues to build.

He has admitted that he is perhaps overthinking on a Thursday evening with performances outside of the Premier League remaining steady, but that is always the challenge for debutants in this weekly tournament.

Over the course of the season, Josh Rock can match the maximum hitting of Gerwyn Price, but the numbers within this Premier League have been pretty different. In this tournament alone, the Welshman is hitting those big shots with a touch more regularity and that makes the price on him completing the double in this Quarter Final look pretty appealing.

Luke Humphries to win & most 180s v Jonny Clayton: Who would have thunk that Jonny Clayton would be the first to reach two Nightly wins in the Premier League and have a huge lead at the top of the table as we approach the midway point of the competition.

He was favourite to finish bottom of the standings when the tournament kicked off, but Clayton was telling anyone that was prepared to listen how much he enjoys the Premier League.

A former Winner, Jonny Clayton is the only player who has avoided a Quarter Final defeat so far.

That could change this week as we get a repeat of the Night 6 Final when Luke Humphries opposes Clayton and the World Number 2 has to be wondering when things are going to finally fully click for him.

Luke Humphries has some big wins this season, but he has faltered at key times in tournaments and that has prevented him from picking up more titles and especially more points in the Premier League. There has been nothing wrong with the averages and the scoring, but missing key doubles at big moments have proven to be costly, although you have to fully believe Humphries will win many more matches than he loses on current form.

He has lost twice to Jonny Clayton in the Premier League, which makes it three defeats in a row to this opponent and so there is a mental obstacle to overcome, but Luke Humphries will feel his doubling has been the reason he has fallen in both Premier League contests this season.

Even a slight improvement there could turn the tables and it should be noted that Luke Humphries has hit more maximums than Jonny Clayton in both Premier League matches against one another.

MY PICKS: Luke Littler to Win & Most 180s @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Gerwyn Price to Win & Most 180s @ 3.25 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Luke Humphries to Win & Most 180s @ 2.40 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Darts 2026: 31-47, - 9.24 Units (75 Units Staked, - 12.32% Yield)

Miami Tennis Day 3 Picks 2026 (Thursday 19th March)

Early reports indicated it was going to be a wet start to the Miami Masters, but a complete washout on Day 2 is a real disappointment for the fans.

It all adds up to an extremely busy Thursday when almost the entire First Round of the ATP tournament and the majority of the WTA event have to be completed- some of the Second Round matches that were due to be played on Thursday are scheduled to go out on the new Stadium court, but we are already in catch up mode at the tournament.

The two selections that were made from Day 2 will have to be played on Thursday and there are two more selections below that were originally in the batch of remaining First Round matches due to be played on Day 3.

A few Second Round selections had been identified from the WTA event being played here, but those will be out in the Day 4 thread- with the majority of those matches set to be scheduled for Friday being put together at the end of play on Thursday, further selections will be added to that thread on the day as we also try to keep up with a tournament that would have appreciated having some tennis on Day 2 instead of the complete wipeout of a day.

Marin Cilic - 2.5 games v Alexei Popyrin: He will be turning 38 years old later this year, but Marin Cilic still feels he has enough in the tank to compete at a level that will make him feel satisfied. Early results have been pretty solid in 2026, including reaching a Semi Final in Dallas, but Marin Cilic suffered opening defeats in Delray Beach and Indian Wells.

Instead of taking in a Challenger event last week, Marin Cilic will have headed over to Miami and begun preparation for the next Masters event on the calendar.

The faster surfaces remain his favourite domain and Marin Cilic may be targeting a strong run that can help him move closer to the Seeding positions for the next two Grand Slams on the clay courts and grass courts. You would definitely like his chances of having an impact at Wimbledon, but Marin Cilic is pretty competent on all surfaces and he is rightly set as the favourite for this First Round match.

Alexei Popyrin entered the top 20 of the World Rankings in August 2025 to reach a new career high mark, but his form since then has been disappointing.

Now the Australian will be entering the Miami Masters as the World Number 47 and it is really concerning to see Alexei Popyrin holding a 9-23 record on the hard courts since the beginning of the 2025 season. He is at 2-8 for the 2026 season and that is largely down the pressure that Popyrin has faced on the return with less than 30% of returning points won in those ten matches.

The serve will always be a potentially dangerous weapon, but Alexei Popyrin has not been able to play the big points effectively with the pressure that has been put on him by his own struggles.

Marin Cilic can put pressure on with his own strong serve, while the veteran has also been the much more effective return player in the opening months of the season.

The 2-1 head to head in favour of the Croatian will also help mentally and that includes a very strong win in Miami, albeit back in 2022.

The last meeting came thirteen months ago on the hard courts of Dubai, and Marin Cilic rallied in that one for another victory over Alexei Popyrin and he may have the higher confidence level to come through this First Round match.

Alex Michelsen - 3.5 games v Mattia Bellucci: Any time someone comes through the Qualifiers, they have to be respected and that is certainly the case for Mattia Bellucci who also reached the Final of a Challenger event in between these two big Masters events played in North America.

That run will have given him confidence, although it should also be noted it would have been in a field where players are not quite of the level that he is going to be facing in the main draw.

However, this is a winnable match for the lefty and Mattia Bellucci will have some confidence behind him after a difficult opening to the 2026 season- he will surely be looking forward to the run on the clay courts coming up, but Bellucci has shown he can be competitive on the hard courts.

Over the last twelve months he has tended to struggle against the higher Ranked opponents faced though and that is the situation for the Italian in the Miami First Round.

Alex Michelsen has had some mixed results, but a strong run in Indian Wells will have done him the world of good and he can use the home crowd to push through this opening match.

At 21 years old, Michelsen will know there is room for improvement, but he has a serve that can be effective and his return numbers have been much better when facing those Ranked below him. That is evident over the last twelve months and Alex Michelsen is expected to get the better of Mattia Bellucci having beaten him on the Washington hard courts a little over eighteen months ago.

MY PICKS: Marin Cilic - 2.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Victor (1 Unit)

Alex Michelsen - 3.5 Games @ 2.25 William Hill (1 Unit)

Miami Tennis Day 2 Picks 2026 (Wednesday 18th March)

The Indian Wells Masters tournament was a great one for Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner, but it was not a very good tournament at all as far as the Tennis Picks go.

Thing started poorly and the selections just did not rally as hoped, which was summed up by Sabalenka failing to serve out the Final, then miss five Break Points to have another shot at doing that, and only then to battle through the Tie-Breaker to take the title.

She won't care with the World Number 1 happy to get one over on Elena Rybakina and both players will join the rest of the Tour in Miami where the WTA event begins a day before the ATP.

Those two players will enter the tournament later in the week in the Second Round, but it is a tough switch with the courts in Miami historically playing quite differently to those in Indian Wells. The conditions are a lot different too and there are expected to be a fair few rain delays throughout the Masters event played here over the remainder of the month.

Aryna Sabalenka won the WTA title and it was a big week for Jannik Sinner who won the ATP title and picked up his first trophy in 2026 in what has been a difficult year so far.

Well difficult in terms of his own expectation levels and Jannik Sinner will be feeling much better about his overall game after winning the big title, while he can spend the next two months chasing Carlos Alcaraz in the World Rankings with nothing to defend until the French Open.

Like the top WTA players, Sinner and other Seeded ATP participants in Miami will join the tournament in the Second Round and this has the makings of another intriguing week on the Tour as the hard court portion of the season takes a break at the end of the event here.

Soon all of the attention will be on the clay court events in the build up to the French Open and that will mean another adjustment is needed to the criteria in narrowing down a shortlist.

After the last tournament, Miami is an important one to try and bounce back and pick up some momentum to take into the red dirt part of the season.

Ethan Quinn v Hubert Hurkacz: There was nothing wrong with the way Hubert Hurkacz played at the United Cup in the build up to the Australian Open and he won four of the five matches played in that tournament.

He carried that form through to an opening win at the first Grand Slam of the season, but things have gotten away from the World Number 75 and he has since suffered six straight defeats on the hard courts.

The serve always gives Hubert Hurkacz a chance to make things competitive on the scoreboard, but in this run of defeats, he has won one of the fourteen sets played. Hubert Hurkacz even decided to leave Indian Wells following another opening defeat and take part in a Challenger event to build up some confidence, but he was beaten by the World Number 94 and has taken another body blow.

His opponent in the First Round in Miami will receive plenty of support from the stands, but Ethan Quinn had also suffered three defeats in a row at Dallas, Delray Beach and in his first match at Indian Wells and so also decided to take in a Challenger event.

However, this time Ethan Quinn went on to win the title in Phoenix and there are a couple of solid wins on the resume in that run to the trophy that will have only added to the confidence of the 22 year old.

Prior to that Challenger event, Ethan Quinn had been struggling for form as well, but he will take confidence from the fact that he was able to beat Hubert Hurkacz in Melbourne in January.

The first two sets were very competitive in that Second Round match at the Australian Open and Ethan Quinn had to save a lot of Break Points, but he will be encouraged by the success he had against the Hubert Hurkacz serve. Winning 38% of return points will give the young American belief he has the tennis to secure another upset over the former top ten Ranked opponent and especially with the way things have been going for both players in recent weeks.

Ethan Quinn will have to just lift his serving numbers slightly to make sure he offers little encouragement to his opponent and he will also have to likely come through at least one Tie-Breaker.

None of that is going to be easy, but Hubert Hurkacz has not been playing well enough to be favoured when noting he has lost four of his last six hard court matches to opponents Ranked lower than himself when the match has been played. The Pole will serve effectively, as is always the case, but it is the younger player who can came through a tough match.

Denis Shapovalov - 2.5 games v Botic Van De Zandschlup: At 26 years old, there is still time for Denis Shapovalov to reach the kind of level that many felt he would after some very strong early successes in his career.

By January 2022, Denis Shapovalov had reached the Quarter Final in three of the four Grand Slams played with the exception being the French Open, but he has only reached the second week of a Major once in the next fifteen appearances in Slam tournaments.

Suffice to say that this is a big disappointment and Shapovalov is the World Number 38 having reached a career best of World Number 10 back in 2020.

There have been some signs that he may be returning to something like his best after a Semi Final run in Dallas and winning two matches in Indian Wells before losing to eventual Champion Jannik Sinner in the Third Round. Over the last twelve months, the Canadian has shown something different in his return games, although that has had a negative impact on his service numbers on the hard courts.

Despite that, it should be noted that Denis Shapovalov has a 16-8 record on the hard courts when facing a lower Ranked opponent over the last twelve months and that is the situation for him in the First Round in Miami.

Botic Van De Zandschlup reached the Third Round at the Australian Open and the Quarter Final in Rotterdam, but there has been too many losses around those runs.

On his day, Van De Zandschlup has a serve that can be very dangerous, but his return game has been limited and the three losses in a row cannot have done very much for his confidence as he slips down the World Rankings.

When these players last met in the 2024 US Open, it was Botic Van De Zandschlup who won as the higher Ranked player with Denis Shapovalov sitting outside of the top 100. Earlier that season, Shapovalov had beaten the same opponent at the Indian Wells Masters and the feeling is that on current form the Canadian can be backed to get the better of this opponent.

Dismissing Botic Van De Zandschlup's chances would be a mistake, but Denis Shapovalov may just do enough at critical moments in this match to edge past the Dutchman into the Second Round.

The slightly superior returning can make that difference in this match and that is how it feels like it will play out.

MY PICKS: Ethan Quinn @ 2.10 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Denis Shapovalov - 2.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Season 2026: 74-62, + 9.27 Units (202 Units Staked, + 4.59% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Day 12 Picks 2026 (Sunday 15th March)

It did prove to be a difficult tournament to turn around after the two ATP Semi Finals were split 1-1, but that does not mean we move past the last day of the Indian Wells Masters.

The two Finals are both scheduled to be played on the day and both look like they could be very enjoyable for the neutrals tuning in.

A repeat of the Women's Australian Open Final and a Men's Final featuring two of the very best hard court players in the world can only be a positive and my thoughts can be read below.

Aryna Sabalenka - 1.5 games v Elena Rybakina: A repeat of the Australian Open Final will be played in the Indian Wells Final and both Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina have put together strong runs here.

Out of the two players, Aryna Sabalenka has been producing the higher level of tennis, but she has also struggled to get the better of this opponent.

In the last nine hard court matches between the pair, it is Elena Rybakina who has won seven times including in Melbourne in January. They met three times on the hard courts in 2025 and Rybakina won two of those, while the sole meeting in Indian Wells was also won in the Final by the World Number 3 in 2023.

All of that will give her a lot of confidence, but Aryna Sabalenka will feel she was very unfortunate to lose the Australian Open Final and the performances so far in the Indian Wells conditions will give her confidence in turning that form around. She has found it very difficult to read the Rybakina serve, but it was the World Number 1 who had more Break Points in the defeat in Melbourne and that is another reason Sabalenka can believe she has the game to get the better of this rival.

Aryna Sabalenka has been the much stronger server so far this week and she can certainly contain much of the threat from the World Number 3, although there is always that mental pressure to deal with.

That comes from the fact she has lost so many recent matches against Elena Rybakina, but the latter has not been nearly as impressive as the top Seed. That is not to say that Elena Rybakina has played poorly, but the wins have been in more competitive matches, even if that can sometimes be a help rather than a hindrance.

Both players should produce some good tennis in this Final, but the narrow edge is rightly with Aryna Sabalenka and she may just pick up a big title that gives her momentum to carry into the clay court season after a stop in Miami later this month.

Jannik Sinner - 4.5 games v Daniil Medvedev: The win over Carlos Alcaraz will have given Daniil Medvedev a huge amount of confidence and has also maintained what has been a really strong run of form being produced by the World Number 11.

He now takes aim at winning back to back titles and arguably the biggest one anyone can win outside of the Grand Slams when competing for the Indian Wells trophy.

Daniil Medvedev served really well in the Semi Final win and he is going to have to do the same if he is going to put together a rare tournament in which a player beats the top two players in the world in back to back matches.

Beating Carlos Alcaraz means Daniil Medvedev is more than capable of winning this Final, but there will be a lot of respect for the way Jannik Sinner is playing and the World Number 2 produced a dominant win over Alexander Zverev in the Semi Final.

No one is going to be surprised to read that Jannik Sinner has been serving well, but it is the aggressive performance on the return that has proved to be the key to the Italian reaching his first Final of the 2026 season. This week Sinner has broken in almost 40% of return games played and dealing with the very solid Alexander Zverev serve will mean he is not intimidated by what Daniil Medvedev can produce.

Jannik Sinner began his career by losing the first six matches against Daniil Medvedev, but he has now won eight of the last nine matches, including the last three in a row.

Eight wins in a row have been produced on the hard courts and Jannik Sinner would have covered what looks like a big line in the last four hard court matches played in a best of three set format.

During this eight match winning run on the hard courts, Jannik Sinner has held 90% of his service games compared with Daniil Medvedev's 75% mark and that is a significant difference.

Respect has to be given to Daniil Medvedev for the current level being produced, but it is still a little short of the standard being set by Jannik Sinner and the latter can win the Indian Wells title with a solid looking success on the scoreboard.

MY PICKS: Aryna Sabalenka - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 William Hill (1 Unit)

Jannik Sinner - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 William Hill (1 Unit)

Indian Wells Update: 12-14, - 3.98 Units (26 Units Staked, - 15.31% Yield)