Tennis Picks 2026 (Tuesday 3rd February)

The start of the men's Final at the Australian Open would have certainly gotten fans to sit up and take notice and just for a brief moment it felt like Novak Djokovic was going to be on his way to creating history by winning a twenty-fifth Grand Slam title.

Credit has to be given to Carlos Alcaraz for not panicking after seeing almost everything go wrong in the first set and he very quickly took control of the Final.

This time even the multiple Break Points saved by Novak Djokovic were not enough to fend off the pressure created by the World Number 1.

On the day I did write on 'X' that the 4-4 game where Novak Djokovic had a Break Point in the fourth set could have perhaps been the key point and the former World Number 1 mentioned the same moment in the post-match presser. After saving a bunch of Break Points, Djokovic finally found a chance on the Alcaraz serve and breaking there may just have changed the momentum that had built up within the match.

Unlike Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz fought off that pressurised moment and eventually found another chance within the set to avoid having to dig in further.

With seven Grand Slam titles secured, Carlos Alcaraz is going to threaten the numbers that the Big Three created, although there are always going to be new faces ready to enter the Tour and create their own pathway on the Tour.

Right now it feels like the era of the 'Big Two', and Carlos Alcaraz looks to have moved a step ahead of Jannik Sinner- his record in his Grand Slam Finals is incredibly impressive already and the Spaniard is likely going to be set as the favourite at the next two Slams and possibly in New York City too.

We should see some of those big names back in action sooner than later with the Tour moving onto the big Middle East events this month and also having the first of the ATP 500 events being played.

The WTA Tour goes a step further with those same events in the Middle East down as 1000 events and with some of the top names on the entry lists at the time of writing.

Australian Open Champion Elena Rybakina had been on the list to play in Abu Dhabi this week, but it will surprise absolutely nobody that she has decided to skip the week after the brilliant tournament put together in Melbourne.

Four tournaments are being played this week, including the WTA 500 event in Abu Dhabi, but most of the biggest names are resting and recovering.

As the month progresses, more of those top players will be back in action ahead of the two Masters events coming up in March.

The Australian Open was a successful start to the year for the Tennis Picks, but it is a very long year and can only be considered a solid opening foundation laid.

Emma Navarro - 2.5 games v Hailey Baptiste: Two 24 year old American players meet in Abu Dhabi and neither made much of an impact at the Australian Open, which means there is some pressure to perform during this Middle East swing.

The last several months have been disappointing for Emma Navarro who had entered the top ten in the World Rankings, but is no edging out of the top 20.

She was beaten very early in Melbourne, but Navarro has won all three previous Tour matches against Hailey Baptiste and the latter has not really competed with the top 50 on the hard courts over the last twelve months.

In that time Hailey Baptiste has a 3-7 record in those matches and two of those wins were in Miami.

At her best Baptiste can be dangerous with a powerful game, but Emma Navarro has found a way to just neutralise her threat at key moments and that may be the same again in Abu Dhabi.

Anastasia Potapova - 5.5 games v Lucia Bronzetti: Reaching the Third Round at the Australian Open and given Aryna Sabalenka all she can handle will have given Anastasia Potapova a confidence boost.

However, she is the defending Champion in Cluj and that means there is some pressure to try and defend the World Ranking points with her live Ranking slipping back outside the top 80.

She can put everything into this week with the next tournament set to be Dubai when Anatasia Potapova is going to have to win some Qualifying matches to join the main draw. That is an additional pressure to deal with, but you have to expect Potapova to continue to get the better of this opponent.

All five previous meetings on the Tour have been won by Anastasia Potapova and that includes coming from a set down to beat Lucia Bronzetti in the Final here twelve months ago.

It has been a difficult few months for the Italian player who has dropped out of the top 100 of the World Rankings as the losses have piled up. Lucia Bronzetti was beaten in the final Round of Qualifying at the Australian Open and her serve is the more vulnerable of the two players in this First Round match in Cluj.

Asking Anastasia Potapova to cover this spread is never going to be straightforward, but she should have the Break Point opportunities to edge past the number.

Elena Gabriela Ruse - 4.5 games v Rebeka Masarova: The home favourite is playing an opponent who has failed to come through Qualifying at a couple of events Down Under and who is playing in the main draw for the first time this season.

Rebeka Masarova has dropped out of the top 100 of the World Rankings and she had a mixed year on the hard courts.

The first serve is more of a weapon than some may think, but there is a big drop off when the second serve is needed and Rebeka Masarova has struggled to get her teeth into return games. Last year she did upset Donna Vekic on the surface, but Elena Gabriela Ruse can use the home crowd to get on top of this match.

A strong run would see Elena Gabriela Ruse getting back up towards the top 50 in the World Rankings and this is another player who can get on top of points when the first serve is going in.

The higher Ranked player has had the stronger returning numbers over the last twelve months, while Elena Gabriela Ruse did beat Rebeka Masarova in the Semi Final here in Cluj three years ago.

On that day Elena Gabriela Ruse had the edge on the return of serve and although her overall record here is not the strongest, she was a Finalist in 2023 and the Romanian may have enough to get past this number set for the spread.

MY PICKS: Emma Navarro - 2.5 Games @ 1.66 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Anastasia Potapova - 5.5 Games @ 2.00 William Hill (1 Unit)

Elena Gabriela Ruse - 4.5 Games @ 1.91 William Hill (1 Unit)

Season 2026: 37-23, + 16.30 Units (126 Units Staked, + 12.94% Yield)

Winmau World Masters Darts Day 4 Picks 2026 (Sunday 1st February)

Five of the eight players left standing at the World Masters will be playing in the Premier League next week, but there is no doubt that James Wade and Danny Noppert are playing with something to prove.

The latter has beaten a Premier League participant and both Noppert and Wade can feel pretty hard done by after being overlooked by the PDC.

Danny Noppert is outwardly showing less irritation about missing out on one of the tournaments that will get plenty of eyes on the product, but James Ward has been very critical with the decision making process that saw him left out.

Winning the Masters would be the absolute best way to show they belong and both players have tough Quarter Final matches to negotiate.

You still have to see Luke Littler has the favourite, but it is Luke Humphries who hit the Nine Darter and the defending Champion looks very confident.

The two Lukes continue to make most of the headlines, but the other six players beginning Sunday's play will all be very confident in their own chances of securing the opening World Ranking title.

Double- Gerwyn Price & Luke Humpries to win: Quarter Final matches will be played in the Day Session at the World Masters and all four look more competitive than the oddsmakers think.

It definitely feels like Luke Littler and Gian van Veen are very short against dangerous opponents in Josh Rock and James Wade.

Gerwyn Price and Luke Humphries are slightly bigger priced favourites, but they may do enough to get past Chris Dobey and Danny Noppert respectively.

Over the last couple of Rounds, Humphries has played with a point to prove with back to back averages of above 100, while also hitting the Nine Darter.

There is no doubting that Noppert can give Luke Humphries something to think about and has the scoring to keep up with the former World Champion, but it is Humphries who has tended to find a way through.

You do also have to respect how well Chris Dobey has played in the tournament so far, but Gerwyn Price has been operating at a high level for months and showed plenty of will and desire to beat his mate Jonny Clayton in the Second Round.

This one could go all the way, but Price may just have the consistency to come through the pressurised moments.

MY PICKS: Gerwyn Price & Luke Humpries to Win @ 2.20 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

World Masters Update: 4-6, - 0.41 Units (10 Units Staked, - 4.10% Yield)

Australian Open Tennis Day 15 Pick 2026- Men's Final (Sunday 1st February)

After two quite unbelievable Semi Final matches, the men's Final on the last Sunday in Melbourne could really signify the passing of the torch between generations.

Novak Djokovic will want to just underline his status as the best player of all time, but Carlos Alcaraz has plenty on the line himself and the youngest player to win the career Grand Slam would certainly place his name in the history books already.

Some may feel it could end up being an important Grand Slam title at the end of the respective careers with Alcaraz looking more than capable of getting close to the current mark set by Novak Djokovic.

It should be a fitting occasion to conclude the first Grand Slam of the 2026 season and one that every Tennis fan should be looking forward to.

The women's Final on Saturday did provide the drama that had largely been missing from that tournament as Elena Rybakina came through in three sets.

It looked like the match was going to get away from the Kazakhstan player in the final set, but a five game winning run turned things in Rybakina's favour and she has moved back into the top three of the World Rankings.

A healthy Elena Rybakina could be a threat at two of the next three Grand Slams, although still has something to prove on the clay courts.

Wimbledon has to be a big target and she can certainly close towards the top of the World Rankings if she can maintain the form of the last six months.

Some words about Aryna Sabalenka- the World Number 1 is a huge personality and remains one of the most consistent players who is always there or thereabouts at the biggest tournaments.

Reaching four of the last five Grand Slam Finals is nothing to be sneered at, even if Sabalenka has come up short in three of those.

You have to expect Aryna Sabalenka to be challenging for the biggest titles throughout 2026 and she has shown plenty of mental resilience to bounce back from plenty of other setbacks to be concerned about how she will respond to this Australian Open Final defeat.

Carlos Alcaraz - 1.5 sets v Novak Djokovic: Depending on your personal belief system, you may describe events on Friday as being 'destiny', 'fate' or perhaps even think some sort of 'divine intervention'.

That is certainly the case for the second Semi Final which was won by Novak Djokovic and the desire to win a twenty-fifth Grand Slam title is now just one match away.

It has been a miraculous few days for the 38 year old and that cannot be denied, no matter what else you believe.

A walkover in the Fourth Round is not so unique- in a long Grand Slam tournament, things like that happen, but the last couple of matches have been very unique.

Trailing 2-0 in the Quarter Final, Novak Djokovic admitted that his time in Melbourne looked to be coming to an end for another year.

Instead, Djokovic was given a reprieve as his fortune was Lorenzo Musetti's misfortune with an injury forcing the Italian to withdraw early in the third set when looking more than on course to beat the ten time Australian Open Champion.

Novak Djokovic admitted the better player had lost on the day, and there may be a similar feeling after he somehow managed to rally and beat the World Number 2 in a five set epic on Friday. The numbers back up that this may have been the most unexpected Semi Final win in a Grand Slam event going back to 1991 when some of the leading number-crunchers have been keeping vigorous records.

The former World Number 1 had 8 Break Points compared with the 18 that Jannik Sinner created, but Djokovic won the majority of the biggest points and recovered from 15/40 positions twice and 0/40 in the final set. He took his one and only Break Point created and the legendary Serb won a match in which his opponent won 12 more points over the course of the epic last four contest.

Suffice to say it is very difficult to overcome those kinds of numbers over and over again, while Novak Djokovic just spent over four hours on the court at 38 years old. Recovery is going to be the big challenge, but it certainly helps that his opponent in this Final has just played the longest Semi Final in Australian Open history.

Carlos Alcaraz is looking to become the youngest player to complete the career Grand Slam, but he had to dig seriously deep to beat Alexander Zverev having cramped up towards the end of the third set. At that stage the World Number 1 looked to be cruising through, but the body began to let him down and that allowed Alexander Zverev to win the next two sets in Tie-Breakers and then take a break lead in the decider.

All credit has to be given to the Spaniard for turning that set around and fighting his way through to the Final, although he has since indicated that he was not receiving a Medical Time Out for cramping issues, but because he felt something else in his muscle. That MTO infuriated Alexander Zverev, because you are not allowed to have a trainer come and work on cramps unless between changeovers and even then it can only be used three times.

Ultimately Zverev has tried to move past any controversy and it is Carlos Alcaraz who will be playing in the Australian Open Final for the first time.

Like his older opponent, Carlos Alcaraz will have to show tremendous recovery after spending almost five and a half hours on the court on Friday. Credit has to be given to the top Seed for the way he managed his serve in that win over Alexander Zverev and it is going to need to be a key shot for him to earn the victory over Novak Djokovic.

Carlos Alcaraz is plenty experienced, even at this young age, but this is easily his best run at the Australian Open and that means he is breaking new ground.

Of course that is far from the case for Novak Djokovic who has won this title ten times in his career and he has NEVER been beaten in the Australian Open Final. This has to give the Serb so much confidence, while he will note that he upset Carlos Alcaraz on this court twelve months ago in a four set win.

Prior to the US Open Semi Final in September, Novak Djokovic had not been beaten on a hard court by Carlos Alcaraz and that is another factor that has to give the veteran belief that this is his moment to win a twenty-fifth Grand Slam title and move clear of all.

The four hard court matches played between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic have narrowly favoured the latter, but the win in New York City has to give the Spaniard so much confidence.

He only faced a single Break Point that day and Alcaraz had his chances in the Quarter Final defeat to Novak Djokovic twelve months ago.

Carlos Alcaraz will believe that his serve has improved markedly since that loss to Novak Djokovic in Melbourne when he was only winning 58% of points played behind the serve. That number improved to 70% in New York City and the returning numbers were similar in both matches, which suggests Carlos Alcaraz deserves the edge that has been given to him.

Over the last twelve months, Carlos Alcaraz has been the superior hard court player, while he has definitely been the more impressive within this tournament.

Novak Djokovic has shown he can play clutch tennis at the biggest moments, while the aggressive style surprised Jannik Sinner and may also give Alcaraz something to think about.

Factoring in the ability to recover from epic five setters on Friday is much more difficult- you would think Carlos Alcaraz being younger and playing earlier on the day will give him the edge, but dismissing the motivation that is fuelling Novak Djokovic and having that see him leave everything on the court would be dangerous.

The hard court performances against Carlos Alcaraz and the confidence of playing in these conditions and on this court makes Novak Djokovic a threat too.

Perhaps he is playing with some destiny and that Sunday is all about Novak Djokovic moving past Margaret Court's twenty-four Grand Slams just across from a tennis court names after the Australian.

Winning the title and leaving the sport would just be a fitting end to what has been a wonderful career, but the numbers suggest Carlos Alcaraz will have a little too much for Novak Djokovic. His variety is going to be important, as it was in the US Open Semi Final win, and a cold heart can only pick the World Number 1 to complete his career Grand Slam by breaking the heart of one of the absolute greatest to ever pick up a racquet.

It would really not offend if this Pick is wrong and Novak Djokovic can turn back the clock one more time, but he is going to have to come through some really sticky moments again and this time he may just come up short.

That win in New York City should make Carlos Alcaraz know what he needs to do in this Australian Open Final and he may just have too much over three or four sets.

MY PICK: Carlos Alcaraz - 1.5 Sets @ 1.61 Bet Fred (2 Units)

Australian Open Update: 37-23, + 15.08 Units (124 Units Staked, + 12.16% Yield)

Winmau World Masters Darts Day 3 Picks 2026 (Saturday 31st January)

If Mike de Dekker had aimed his dart a quarter of an inch to the right, Luke Littler would have been dumped out of the World Masters and the rest of the draw would have really felt a big opportunity had opened up to win the opening Ranking tournament of the 2026 season.

There is an intimidation factor around the World Number 1 for many, while you always feel the longer formats are so much tougher to get the better of Luke Littler.

Most of the big names have made it through to the Second Round and that means there will be plenty of players who will have the belief that they can win the title over the next couple of days. Of course Luke Littler will remain a big favourite until he is out of the event, but we are now moving into the best of seven Set format, although the best of three Legs to win a set means there are chances for upsets with a five or ten minute barrage.

The Second Round is going to be split over two Sessions before the Quarter Final matches are played on Sunday afternoon.

From there, the Semi Final and Final will be scheduled for the Sunday evening as the first Ranking title is handed out and the top eight names will then begin Premier League action next Thursday.

Double- Chris Dobey & Gary Anderson to win: The opening two Second Round matches should see both favourites through after strong performances in the First Round.

Chris Dobey played really well to beat Jermaine Wattimena and averaged just shy of 100.

He is not playing in the Premier League this season, which may not be a bad thing for Dobey, and he should have too much for Damon Heta.

The Australian ended the last calendar year in poor form and did not look himself at the World Championships last month. Getting the better of Michael van Gerwen will give Heta a lot of confidence, but the former did not have his best match and Damo is going to have be a lot better to move into the Quarter Final.

Doubling Chris Dobey with Gary Anderson is the call, even if the latter may still be seething about influencers as he was after his First Round win.

The performance on the oche was nothing to be angry about and Anderson had the better of James Wade when they met on the Tour last season.

You never want to dismiss someone who can dig in like Wade and the First Round performance from a player looking to prove the PDC wrong for leaving him out of the Premier League was very good. Again, James Wade will be under more pressure from the scoring power that Gary Anderson can put together and the former two-time World Champion can edge through.

Gerwyn Price to Win & Over 3.5 180s: Jonny Clayton is the Welsh Number 1 and the Runner Up from twelve months ago at the World Masters, but Gerwyn Price has gotten the better of his mate on the Tour over the last twelve months.

Both produced some very strong darts in the opening Round and there will be no doubt that another strong performance will be needed to move into the Sunday Quarter Final.

Eight straight wins have been produced by Gerwyn Price in this rivalry and he threw four maximums in his First Round win.

Both can be true again in this good looking Second Round match.

Danny Noppert to Win & Over 3.5 180s: He 'only' needed three maximums during the win over Daryl Gurney in the First Round, but Danny Noppert is going to have to win at least a couple more Legs in this and can move that total up to at least four.

He will need them to fend off Stephen Bunting for a second year in a row at the World Masters having beaten him 4-3 in the Quarter Finals twelve months ago.

That was a high quality match and both will be happy enough with the First Round wins on Friday.

Out of the two players, Danny Noppert will perhaps be feeling slightly better with his level and he has been the more consistent player, which can make the difference.

The heavy scoring that can be produced by Stephen Bunting makes him dangerous, but it is the Dutchman who has gotten the better of the recent TV meetings and he can do that again.

Luke Littler to Win & Over 5.5 180s: The power scoring of Ross Smith has to be respected and that has allowed him to push Luke Littler in previous meetings, while the First Round win and the manner he produced it will have given Smith a boost.

He was unexpectedly beaten very early at the World Championships, but Ross Smith is still inside the top 20 of the World Rankings and will be looking for a fast start to 2026.

Of course this is a huge challenge for anyone and Luke Littler was still hitting plenty of maximums even as he looked to be heading out of the tournament on Friday.

There is never really much doubt in his ability to pound the treble 20 and Littler should be able to get up to at least six in this match, which should have at least 10-12 Legs played.

He will need to find those big scores to keep the pressure on a heavy scorer in Ross Smith and Luke Littler should be able to come through in six sets.

MY PICKS: Chris Dobey & Gary Anderson to Win @ 2.25 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Gerwyn Price to Win & Over 3.5 180s @ 2.25 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Danny Noppert to Win & Over 3.5 180s @ 2.50 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Luke Littler to Win & Over 5.5 180s @ 1.95 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

World Masters Update: 2-4, - 0.61 Units (6 Units Staked, - 10.17% Yield)

Boxing Picks 2026- Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson (Saturday 31st January)

More and more news is beginning to be released to the public about upcoming fight cards- this past week Zuffa Boxing placed another couple of events on the schedule, while Tyson Fury announced his long-expected comeback for April, although it was a surprise to hear the broadcast deal is with Netflix rather than DAZN.

This feels like another moment where the power of the Saudi influence in Boxing is moving away from supporting that site, which now has a number of Promoters as exclusive to DAZN, and instead focusing on supporting the new kids on the block.

It is common knowledge that Zuffa Boxing is being led by Dana White and TKO, but also that Turki Alalshikh has aligned with them as a minority owner of the new League. If the money is no longer interested in propping up DAZN or the Promoters that have previously been well backed by Alalshikh, you do have to wonder what the future holds.

In saying all that, none of the rival Promoters were too afraid of Zuffa 01- it was a pretty poor card, but the atmosphere and the look of the event was way below the expectations of Boxing fans, no matter what those paid to lead the broadcasting were saying. The criticism has been shared across the board between organisers, those who set up the venue and the commentators with Max Kellerman having to absorb plenty of shots about 'shilling' for his new employers, but this whole product look has not been lost on Dana White who said things will get better.

Something does not sit right with the moves being made by Zuffa Boxing, and there are plenty of articles out there laying out why not, but they look like they are here to stay right now and the other Promoters should just be a little cautious with plays being made behind the scenes.

Andy Cruz came up short in his World Title bid last week, but that means we have a new player in Raymond Muratalla who is likely going to move up in weight class with a signature win on the resume.

Big improvements will be needed from Callum Walsh, who did just enough for a second fight in a row and who failed to push the tempo against a veteran that had been Stopped before.

Despite Kellerman's proclamations, most real fans would have seen the performance for what it was and Walsh will do well to become the 'face' of this League unless really taking the next steps in his development.

There are a number of big cards lined up on the last weekend of January, although the main event of the Boxxer card had to be abandoned last week when Adam Azim suffered a late hand injury- this is a setback considering the lack of activity in recent months and his return will have to be pushed back into April or May, which is far from ideal.

Hopefully Boxxer are going to release a few more dates for upcoming main events, and we should be getting more news from Queensberry and Matchroom about April and May dates shortly.

And just before this thread was set to be posted, it was announced late on Friday night that we do have the Deontay Wilder vs Derek Chisora is now official, which looks a decent contest for both at their respective stages of their careers.

Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson

There are plenty of World Champions and big Boxing names heading out to the ring this weekend, but make no mistake, all eyes are on the main event at Madison Square Garden.

A few years ago there was a real excitement that the likes of Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia and Teofimo Lopez would make this a special era.

They were described as the 'Four Kings', much like the 1980s led by Sugar Ray Leonard, but it has been a disappointing period all things considered.

All four of those names have been in and around the World Title picture, but we have not had the multiple fights and rematches that were promised.

Out of the four names, Teofimo Lopez is perhaps the one that will feel most disappointed- that is not to say that he has not put together a solid career with some big wins on the resume, but he is the only that has not fought any of the other three names mentioned.

Things change on Saturday.

Shakur Stevenson was not amongst those names mentioned, but that is also because he started his professional career at a much lower weight class.

For a long time Stevenson has been spoken about as the best Boxer in America, although criticism of his style is that he has been so good that he has often coasted through fights.

He remains unbeaten and Shakur Stevenson is moving up another weight Division in order to really announce himself as the heir apparent to Terence Crawford and Floyd Mayweather Jr, while also becoming a top pick in the pound for pound debate.

Layers have a lot of respect for the skills- Stevenson does hit with more authority than his record suggests and is arguably the best defensive Boxer in the world too- and he is has been set as a significant favourite.

The overriding feeling is that Stevenson will showcase those skills and ultimately be able to bamboozle Teofimo Lopez, but there is a nagging doubt.

Teofimo Lopez has thrived when people don't believe in him and his best wins have been as an underdog.

That makes him dangerous, even if everything is pointing to a Shakur Stevenson win and that makes the fight 'must watch' even in the early hours of the morning in the United Kingdom.

You'd have to agree with the oddsmakers with Shakur Stevenson favourite and most likely to win on the cards, but this is a fight to simply sit back and watch as two stars look to elevate themselves even further.

It is a loaded undercard for the big event in New York City and there are a couple of other World Titles at stake outside of the main event.

Keyshawn Davis returns after embarrassingly missing weight the last time he was due out, but he has moved into the loaded Light-Welterweight Division and is expected to find a way past Jamaine Ortiz, who has been in with Vasyl Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez and only been beaten on the cards.

Bruce Carrington has been upgraded to full Champion in the Featherweight Division and he should be able to get the better of veteran Carlos Castro- a late Stoppage cannot be ruled out, but the likelihood is that the American will find a way on the cards.

He may not be on the best spot on the card, but Jarrell Miller is back in action this weekend and once again is going to be pushing to get his career back on track- he has not fought in eighteen months and Miller was in line to face Fabio Wardley last year before the latter went on to win the WBO World Title.

Big Baby can match his nickname-sharing Jared Anderson in Stopping Kingsley Ibeh- it should be a fun Heavyweight fight, but Miller can wear down an opponent who has not really stepped up his level since that loss to Anderson.

An event that was supposed to be headlined by Adam Azim will go on in London on Saturday and one of the bouts that has been pushed up the card features a new signing made by Boxxer.

Light Heavyweight Gradus Kraus will be looking to impress and he should have the power to blitz past 32 year old Boris Crighton.

The latter was Stopped in Three Rounds last time out back in September and he may struggle to deal with the power of the young Dutchman.

There will be plenty of eyes on that card in London thanks to Boxxer's deal with the BBC meaning it is available to most households, but British fans will be much more interested in the event in Newcastle, which is going to have a World Title main event.

Josh Kelly is the home Challenger, but is facing Bakhram Murtazaliev who believes he has been avoided and that has contributed to a significant absence from the ring.

The IBF Light Middleweight World Champion was last seen crushing Tim Tszyu in Three Rounds back in October 2024 and had Stopped Jack Culcay in the previous fight to pick up the vacant Title.

He will come forward all day so the pressure is on Josh Kelly to be able to keep this fighter from overwhelming him.

No one will deny the obvious talent that Josh Kelly has, but there have long been questions about the stamina and whether he can maintain any punch resistance as the gas tank empties.

Everyone will remember what David Avanesyan was able to do to Josh Kelly and the Champion is likely going to accept losing some of the early Rounds as long as he able to get close enough to start putting a dent into the home favourite.

In all likelihood, that impact will really become apparent in the second half of this World Title fight against an opponent who showed plenty of signs of fatigue in his narrow win over Ismael Davis.

Josh Kelly has only had One Round since that win over Davis in September 2024 so can hardly point to having significant less ring rust to shift compared with the World Champion and he is going to have to be perfect for thirty-six minutes. We all saw how quickly things unravelled in the loss to Avanesyan and Bakhram Murtazaliev can force another Stoppage to retain his Belt.

The undercard should feature wins for Josh Padley and Elif Nur Turhan but the prices are pretty short on the likely outcomes of a Decision for the former and another Stoppage for the latter.

There are going to be plenty of eyes on the Kelly-Murtazaliev main event with some reports indicating Jaron Ennis could be next for the winner after negotiations with Vergil Ortiz Jr have seemingly stalled for now.

However, Ennis will not be the only one looking on.

In Puerto Rico, Xander Zayas and Abass Baraou will be Unifying their WBO and WBA Light Middleweight Titles and the winning fighter may be looking to move another step towards Undisputed by taking on the winner of that bout in Newcastle.

The home fighter is the favourite, but Baraou will give Xander Zayas plenty to think about and the expectation before the bout is that the younger, unbeaten fighter can come through on the cards after a fun battle.

There is a potential for Giovani Santillan to be the next opponent for the winner of the main event as he looks for a third win in a row since losing to Brian Norman Jr in a Welterweight World Title fight.

Giovani Santillan has won twice in a row since then, and is now moving up into the Light Middleweight Division against Courtney Pennington who has a 17-11-3 record.

Only four of those defeats have been in Stoppages and that will be the target for Santillan to grow some interest in him being the next contender to whoever holds two World Titles after the main event at the end of the night.

MY PICKS: Jarrell Miller to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 1.91 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Gradus Kraus to Win Between 1-4 @ 1.80 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Bakhram Murtazaliev to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 1.72 William Hill (2 Units)

Boxing 2026: 1-5, - 4.26 Units (10 Units Staked, - 42.60% Yield)

Australian Open Tennis Day 14 Pick- Women's Final 2026 (Saturday 31st January)

Don't misunderstand, I had been just as disappointed as most with the lack of drama at the opening Grand Slam of the season.

But then it was the turn of the men in the Semi Finals.

And boy, did Friday provide us everything that us fans were demanding and more.

Carlos Alcaraz came through in the longest Australian Open Semi Final on record with the match going three minutes shy of five and a half hours.

You'd have to worry about his fitness ahead of the Final, but the second Semi Final went well over four hours before Novak Djokovic found his way into yet another Grand Slam Final.

I will have more thoughts on that in the Day 15 thread as the Australian Open comes to a conclusion, but first we have what could be a 'blink and you miss it' Women's Final.

Two big hitters are not going to hang around in service games and it should be a decent contest between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina as two players who will occupy the top three places in the World Rankings on Monday morning meet in the Melbourne showpiece on Saturday evening.

Elena Rybakina v Aryna Sabalenka: On the pure numbers, you have to consider Aryna Sabalenka not only the World Number 1, but the top player on the hard courts on the WTA Tour.

This is the fourth year in a row that she will be competing in the Australian Open Final and Aryna Sabalenka has also reached the US Open in each of the last three seasons. Four Grand Slams have been won on the surface- twice in a row at both of Melbourne and New York City- but Aryna Sabalenka was denied a third straight success here twelve months ago when upset by Madison Keys.

You would also consider Elena Rybakina's game to work very well on the hard courts and so it is a surprise that she is playing in her first Grand Slam Final on the surface since the 2023 Australian Open.

In fact, you can go even further and state that it is a surprise that she has not reached another Grand Slam Final since that defeat in Melbourne, but Elena Rybakina has been in good form for several months now and there will be plenty of confidence and experience that she can call upon for this Final.

Both players have been in exceptional form at the Australian Open- neither has dropped a set and both Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina have been particularly effective at protecting the second serve. It is Rybakina who has a narrow advantage on the first serve percentage of points won, but the World Number 1 has been the slightly superior return player.

However, that return game is going to be tested by this Elena Rybakina serve, even in the Night Session when the cooler conditions can make the ball all the heavier to try and hit through the court. That has not prevented the World Number 5 from still having a big impact with her serve and that could be a key to the outcome of this match.

Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina will know that they are going to win plenty of points when the first serve lands and both will want to get on the front foot. That could also mean playing with more aggression on the return of serve whenever a second serve is seen and this has been the one match up that has proven to be pretty challenging for the top Seed.

In 2023, Aryna Sabalenka came from a set behind to beat Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open Final and that meant the Belarusian had won the opening four matches between the players on the Tour and all in three set matches.

She most definitely had the mental edge at that stage, but two months later Elena Rybakina beat Sabalenka for the first time in the Indian Wells Final.

That result has sparked a positive run for the lower Ranked player and the last ten between these two players have ended in six Elena Rybakina wins.

It also includes a run of six wins in the last eight hard court matches, including Elena Rybakina winning two of three last year- both of those wins were on some of the faster hard courts at Cincinnati and then indoors in Riyadh, while Aryna Sabalenka beat this opponent in Wuhan in between those defeats.

Of course the win in the Australian Open Final is one that will give Aryna Sabalenka a lot of confidence, but in the eight matches on the hard courts since then, the World Number 1 has struggled to match the serving qualities of Elena Rybakina. The returning percentage of points won is 10% lower against Rybakina compared with Aryna Sabalenka's average and that is a big difference that keeps the top Seed under real pressure.

Her first serve has not been as punishing in those matches against Elena Rybakina either and the power that the latter can generate means she can stick with Aryna Sabalenka and give as good as she gets.

You have to respect the qualities of Sabalenka in winning multiple Grand Slam Finals and the consistency she has had at all Majors to reach the business end of tournaments over and over again.

Elena Rybakina has struggled for the momentum within Grand Slam tournaments that is needed to go as deep as she would have expected, but that has not been the case in Melbourne and she looks like she can upset the odds.

Twelve months ago, Aryna Sabalenka opened the season by winning the title in Brisbane and then reached the Final in Melbourne.

She has done the same in 2026, but Madison Keys managed to find a way to get the better of Aryna Sabalenka in 2025 and the feeling is that Elena Rybakina's game matches up well enough to help the 26 year old win a second Grand Slam title.

MY PICK: Elena Rybakina @ 2.50 Bet365 (2 Units)

Australian Open Update: 36-23, + 12.08 Units (122 Units Staked, + 9.90% Yield)

Winmau World Masters Darts Day 2 Picks 2026 (Friday 30th January)

Day 1 proved to be pretty difficult for the Darts selections, but that was partly down to a slight bit of misfortune.

I mean it is virtually impossible for someone to throw only five scores of 140 or more and four of those were the maximum, but that is what happened with Ryan Joyce to prevent the Double from coming in.

Jermaine Wattimena was not at the races, while Michael van Gerwen also looked out of sorts as he missed the maximum count by a single score.

Not to worry, it is a long season and you have to go through these peaks and troughs and Day 2 is an opportunity to bounce back.

The First Round looks competitive and the short format in the opening Round means it is very dangerous for all of the players with the matches capable of running away from someone very quickly.

Double- Danny Noppert-Daryl Gurner over 4.5 180s & Luke Littler most 180s: Both of the higher Seeded players are amongst the biggest maximum hitters on the Tour and are favoured to move through to the Second Round.

Danny Noppert was disappointing in his performances at the invitational tournaments earlier this month, and Daryl Gurney is more than capable of upsetting him having beaten him twice last year.

The Northern Irishman has perhaps struggled to reach his consistent best level for a while, but he is more than capable of contributing to this maximum hitting total.

And with likely four sets needed, which means at least eight Legs, you do have to feel that both can put enough big scores together to surpass this number.

Luke Littler is Luke Littler and has had plenty of success against Mike de Dekker over the last couple of years- he has tended to win the maximum count in those matches too and can follow suit as he moves through to the Second Round.

Jeffrey de Graaf v Stephen Bunting: Anyone who has been following the Tour ove the last month should be well aware of the standard that Jeffrey de Graaf has been producing.

He Qualified impressively, which will give him confidence, and the World Number 51 is putting some very good averages on the board.

Two years ago Stephen Bunting won the Masters, but that was in the old format and he has not been playing at a consistent level over the last three months.

In the two invitational events earlier this month, Bunting was able to beat those he should, but failed to make it beyond the Quarter Final with both events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia ending in defeats to Michael van Gerwen.

He averaged just 81 in the second of those losses, while Jeffrey de Graaf beat Stephen Bunting in a Players Championship Final in the sole meeting in 2025. That ended 8-7 in favour of the underdog, but this is likely to be close and de Graaf is being underestimated.

Both Josh Rock & Connor Scutt over 2.5 180s and 1+ 100 checkout: These two players had a drama filled match at the Grand Slam which was narrowly won by Josh Rock and the Northern Irishman won two floor matches against Connor Scutt too in 2025.

Those two floor events were of very high quality and Scutt has come through the Qualifiers here with real confidence.

His maximum hitting was on point in the last three Rounds of Qualifying and Connor Scutt is a confident player.

Josh Rock will be making his Premier League debut next week, but this is the first competitive action since a disappointing ending to the World Championship. Last year was a big one for him all the same and he is still one of the top maximum hitters on the Tour.

This match could go pretty long with the capabilities of both and finishing off a ton plus checkout is likely going to provide some of the turning points- both are capable and there should be one between them.

MY PICKS: Danny Noppert-Daryl Gurney Over 4.5 180s & Luke Littler Most 180s @ 2.69 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Jeffrey de Graaf @ 3.25 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Josh Rock & Connor Scutt Over 2.5 180s Each and 1+ 100 Checkouts @ 2.70 Bet365 (1 Unit)

World Masters Update: 0-3, - 3 Units (3 Units Staked, - 100% Yield)