Tennis Picks 2026 (Saturday 18th April)

The tournaments being played around Europe are all coming to a conclusion this weekend and the attention will soon turn to the Madrid 1000 event for both the ATP and WTA Tours.

The top of the ATP event has lost both Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic with both players citing injury- the withdrawal of Alcaraz is more worrying considering he pulled out of the event in Barcelona before playing his Second Round match and the defending French Open Champion will be desperate to get some more clay court tennis under the legs at the Rome Masters in early May.

We know that Novak Djokovic is all about peaking for the Grand Slams, but his fans will also like to see him take part in a clay court event before the French Open gets underway at the end of next month.

The WTA event in Madrid is intact at the time of writing, but things can change quickly on the Tour as most begin to think about the second Grand Slam of the season.

Alexander Zverev - 4.5 games v Fabio Cobolli: At the end of March, Fabio Cobolli set a new career high World Ranking mark at Number 13 and he can move even higher than that if he is able to win the ATP Munich title on Sunday.

The performances at this event have been pretty strong, but the Italian has benefited from a draw in which he has not faced anyone Ranked higher than World Number 40.

You can only beat what is placed in front of you and so credit has to be given to Fabio Cobolli for the manner in which the wins have been produced. This is a clay court event, but it says something when you think Cobolli has only been broken twice in three matches, although he will be the first to admit that his serve will be tested considerably more by the World Number 3 compared with the opponents that have been seen off in this tournament.

Alexander Zverev showed his qualities in coming from behind to beat Francisco Cerundolo in the Quarter Final and he is very comfortable playing in front of the home fans. After dropping the first set 7-5, Alexander Zverev lost just two more games against a very solid clay courter, and he looks to have his eye in on the return of serve.

There is a pretty small sample of clay court results at this stage of the season, especially for these two players who have both begun the red dirt experience since the Tour moved back to Europe.

The numbers are pretty similar, but it cannot be ignored that Alexander Zverev has been facing considerably stronger opponents than the younger player across the net. It means Fabio Cobolli probably has another level to find if he is going to compete in this Semi Final and Alexander Zverev should be comfortable with the match up.

He has won both previous matches against Fabio Cobolli and Alexander Zverev has won all five sets played against one another.

They met at the French Open last year and Alexander Zverev was a very comfortable winner in that Third Round meeting- the higher Ranked player proved to have a real edge when it comes to the service numbers and that could play out again in a tournament that Alexander Zverev has really enjoyed.

In a best of three set format, this is a big spread, but Alexander Zverev has been playing with the intensity and qualities to find a way to break down the Fabio Cobolli game and ultimately make relatively comfortable passage into yet another Munich Final.

MY PICKS: Alexander Zverev - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Weekly Update: 4-1, + 2.34 Units (5 Units Staked, + 46.80% Yield)

European Tour 5- European Darts Grand Prix Day 1 Picks 2026 (Friday 17th April)

The European Tour heads back to Germany across this weekend where the European Darts Grand Prix will be played.

Some of the top Premier League contenders are preparing to join the party in the Second Round, but the top two Ranked players in the world are both missing. Once again this will feel like it opens the door for others, although there are plenty in the kind of form to believe they would be able to knock off Luke Humphries while he continues to find a way to lose matches he should win.

The First Round at this European Tour event is going to be played across two Sessions on Friday before the entire Second Round is concluded on Saturday.

In all likelihood, the winner of this tournament is expected to be starting on Saturday, but don't tell that to players like Wessel Nijman, Niels Zonneveld and Kevin Doets who have been putting together strong form in the lead up to European Tour 5.

Kevin Doets - 2.5 legs v Jurgen van der Velde: The aforementioned Kevin Doets should have too much for Jurgen van der Velde in the First Round in Germany and back up the Players Championship win over this opponent.

He had two solid outings at those Players Championship events held earlier this week and Kevin Doets also reached the Semi Final of European Tour 4 having produced some quality darts.

All of the momentum is with him and that makes Doets dangerous going into this weekend, but he has to make sure he is switched on against his fellow Dutchman.

Jurgen van der Velde is outside of the top 100 in the World Rankings and has struggled for consistency over the last couple of months.

Some of his averages have been really sub-standard and Kevin Doets should be able to overpower him.

Andrew Gilding - 1.5 legs v Paul Krohne: You don't always know what you're going to get out of Andrew Gilding, but he reached the Third Round at the last European Tour event played and has also had a run into the Players Championship Semi Final earlier this week.

That should mean Goldfinger is pretty confident with the darts being thrown, although overlooking Paul Krohne would be a mistake.

Strong doubling helped Krohne upset Cameron Menzies in the last European Tour event and he gave Josh Rock a scare, but he is not as experienced as Gilding and that could be important.

Recent improvements in the form certainly makes Andrew Gilding the right favourite and he may have just enough to push through to the Second Round without needing a deciding Leg.

Dirk van Duijvenbode & Kim Huybrechts both over 2.5 180s: This is one of the last matches heading out in the Evening Session and it could be a cracker.

Germany may be hosting, but there should be plenty of noise being made for a Dutchman and a Belgian in this First Round shoot out.

Kim Huybrechts has certainly been showing signs of getting back into the form that pushed him into the upper echelons of the World Rankings and he had four wins in Players Championship settings earlier this week. He reached the Third Round at the last European Tour event and may have felt he could have won that match against Jonny Clayton, but the confidence will have improved and Huybrechts has been peppering the treble.

That is always the case for Dirk van Duijvenbode who is looking to bounce back having lost three matches in a row.

Maximum hitting is rarely the issue, but the World Number 27 could be a vulnerable favourite in this one.

When they met earlier in the year at the Players Championship, nine Legs were played and Dirk van Duijvenbode came through with the victory. Notably both crashed in a lot of maximums in that match and Kim Huybrechts perhaps deserves the nod as the underdog if he can compete in the scoring department as he has been in recent outngs.

Daryl Gurney to win & over 1.5 180s v Oskar Lukasiak: He is still up at World Number 23, but Daryl Gurney has been struggling for consistency and that always makes him a tough player to read.

This First Round match is very winnable, especially against an opponent who has lost every Players Championship match played this year and both at the World Masters.

Only at the UK Open did Oskar Lukasiak find a winning feeling, but there is no doubt he is struggling and that should see the Northern Irishman bull his way through to the Second Round.

In the Players Championship 10 tournament on Tuesday, Daryl Gurney had nine maximums in two matches played and he can produce at least two on his way past his Swedish opponent in the penultimate match of the Evening Session.

MY PICKS: Kevin Doets - 2.5 Legs @ 2.00 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Andrew Gilding - 1.5 Legs @ 2.00 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Dirk van Duijvenbode-Kim Huybrechts Over 2.5 180s Each @ 2.20 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Daryl Gurney to Win & Over 1.5 180s @ 2.05 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Darts 2026: 48-71, - 14.08 Units (116 Units Staked, - 12.14% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Friday 17th April)

The Quarter Final matches at the four big events being played this week have all been scheduled for action on Friday, but there are only two selections from the matches available.

After a 3-0 start to the week, the hope is that these two selections can continue the positive start to the clay court season.

One of those comes from  the ATP 500 tournament being played in Barcelona and the other from the WTA 500 tournament in Stuttgart.

Some of the top contenders for the French Open title can lay down an early marker at these 500 events, although there are still bigger events to be played in Madrid and Rome at the 1000 level.

However, as mentioned earlier this week, the Masters event in Madrid tends to have a very different feel to the other events during this European clay court run and may be one to keep a watching brief before the Rome event and the last run up into the second Grand Slam of the season.

Rafael Jodar - 3.5 games v Cameron Norrie: It was never going to be easy being the next player to break through in British Tennis during the Andy Murray era, but Cameron Norrie has put together a strong career. He continues to be a brilliant competitor every time he steps onto the court and there is something to be said about that.

At his peak, Cameron Norrie reached World Number 8, while he reached the second week at all of the Grand Slam events with his best effort being a Semi Final run at Wimbledon in 2022. This is an all-court player who reached the French Open Fourth Round for the first time just last year and Cameron Norrie has battled through a couple of Rounds to reach the Quarter Final here in Barcelona this week.

Later this year, Cameron Norrie is turning 31 and there was a feeling several months ago that his best tennis was now behind him.

No one will suggest this is a flashy player, but Norrie will grind every time he steps on the court and his numbers are pretty similar across the surfaces.

Cameron Norrie serves well enough on the clay courts and will get himself into the return rallies to remain dangerous, and the veteran is sure to have learned plenty out of the one-sided defeat suffered to Rafael Jodar on the hard courts of Acapulco in February.

On that day, the young Spaniard won 82% of his service points played and broke the Cameron Norrie serve three times and Rafael Jodar has continued his 2026 form on the clay courts with two solid wins at this event.

That comes after winning a title in Bucharest at an ATP 250 level and Jodar has looked comfortable at this 500 level, although he will respect the fact that he is facing the highest Ranked opponent on this surface so far this season.

Rafael Jodar was not at his very best in the Second Round, but he continues to serve really effectively and that is allowing him to build real pressure on the return. Those numbers on that side of the court are really impressive and it feels like the 19 year old is going to have enough to get past Cameron Norrie.

It should be closer than the meeting in Acapulco now that Norrie has had a proper look at the opponent, but Rafael Jodar is on track to really move up the World Rankings and this is a surface that should favour him to enough of an extent to earn the win and the over of the spread set.

Coco Gauff - 3.5 games v Karolina Muchova: The French Open Final was played in some incredibly difficult conditions, but credit has to be given to Coco Gauff for holding it together for longer than Aryna Sabalenka to win that Grand Slam in 2025.

She has long been very comfortable on the clay courts and Coco Gauff would have been confident of winning the French Open after recent experiences on the surface. Last year, Gauff put together another impressive year on the clay, although the one poor tournament was right here in Stuttgart.

A comfortable win in the Second Round will have given Coco Gauff early momentum and she is going to be happy with the match up in this Quarter Final.

Karolina Muchova is a former French Open Finalist, but she has not played too much clay court tennis over the last couple of years.

That takes away nothing from the ability Muchova has shown to play on all courts, but she has lost all six Tour meetings against Coco Gauff and this has proven to be a difficult opponent to work out.

Karolina Muchova has put together two solid wins in Stuttgart, but she has simply not been able to impose her serve on Coco Gauff in those previous six matches. That is going to be even tougher to achieve on the clay courts, while the World Number 3 has to be credited for getting more out of the first serve on this surface.

This could become an awkward spread where the line currently stands.

However, Coco Gauff's comfort on the clay courts gives her every chance of maintaining the advantage over Karolina Muchova with another win over this opponent.

MY PICKS: Rafael Jodar - 3.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Coco Gauff - 3.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Weekly Update: 3-0, + 2.54 Units (3 Units Staked, + 84.67% Yield)

Premier League Darts Night 11 Picks 2026 (Thursday 16th April)

Just six weeks remain in the Premier League Darts before we enter the Play Offs at the end of May and the pressure is building on those hoping to take part.

Night 10 was a week of upsets and a third Nightly win for Jonny Clayton should be enough for the current Premier League leader to feel pretty confident he will be one of the final four standing.

Luke Littler and Gerwyn Price both failed to add to the points already achieved, but at 21 and 19 points respectively, they probably need to avoid Quarter Final defeats in half of the next six weeks and that should be enough to progress to the Semi Final. They are due to face off on Night 10 in Rotterdam, but there will be no sense of panic as far as the player losing a second consecutive Quarter Final is concerned.

It was a strong week in Brighton for Michael van Gerwen, although he will be disappointed he was not able to close out the Nightly win having moved into a dominant position in the Final against Clayton. Three more points keeps him in 4th place though and van Gerwen is now 4 points clear of Gian van Veen in 5th place which means the pressure is certainly building on those hoping to chase a Play Off spot.

One of those now beginning to look like he is in a desperate position is the defending Champion.

Luke Humphries has not played poorly, but he has lost far too many matches he should have won and 11 points means he has a lot of work to do over the next few weeks- it has been a really poor campaign in terms of results with only one Final reached and Humphries having been beaten in his opening match in half of the Nights played, including on each of the last three weeks.

While not quite in 'must win' mode, Luke Humphries has to dig in being on the tougher half of the draw on Night 11 nad facing Luke Littler in the Quarter Final on Night 12.

If Luke Humphries still has some hope of pushing into the top four, the same can be said for Stephen Bunting who also has 11 points on the board, but he HAS to win his Quarter Final on the weaker side of the draw in Rotterdam, even if Bunting is set to face an improving Josh Rock.

Another European Tour event will be taking place in Germany this weekend, but some of those in the Premier League were involved in Players Championship tournaments earlier this week.

Challenges of getting to these European Tour events have been frustrating for some of the British and Irish players making their way onto the continent, but that should be less problematic from Rotterdam.

The two Lukes are not attending, but a good field is getting together at the European Darts Grand Prix ahead of this weekend's action.

Before that, the latest Premier League Night will have to be played and completed.

Luke Littler to win & most 180s v Gerwyn Price: After the criticism that was hurled his way following a controversial conclusion to his defeat against Gian van Veen, Luke Littler did not look at all interested in his Quarter Final defeat to Stephen Bunting last week.

He is a young man and mistakes will be made, but the PR team that should be supporting Littler has let him down and he is likely to receive an 'interesting' response in Rotterdam on Night 11.

There are times when the crowd can dictate the Luke Littler mood, but he should be focused on this Quarter Final as he looks to maintain the current edge over Gerwyn Price.

The Welshman has been playing like the second best player in the world through 2026, but he has been a little under the weather earlier this week and that could be an issue in this match. Even at full health, Gerwyn Price has found a way to come up a little short when facing Luke Littler and all four Premier League defeats have been in competitive matches.

It is the Night 7 Final defeat that will particularly sting as Gerwyn Price failed to convert a 5-0 lead in a race to six Legs, but he will be happy with his overall form in 2026.

However, if Price is not yet fully recovered, he could come up a touch short again and Luke Littler's power scoring has seen him complete this Match Double in all four Premier League wins over The Ice Man.

Luke Humphries to win & most 180s v Gian van Veen: Dropping down to 7th place in the Premier League standings has put Luke Humphries under immense pressure to find a string of positive results over the next month.

Three Quarter Final losses in a row will have dented some of the confidence, while Luke Humphries had a couple of mixed days in Players Championship action earlier this week.

This looks a seriously tough test for the World Number 2, at least from a mental point of view, with Night 11 of the Premier League being played in Rotterdam.

Both Dutch players taking part in the Premier League will receive huge support and it is Gian van Veen going out first for this Quarter Final.

Four matches between the players in 2026 have been split with two wins apiece, while they are 1-1 in the Premier League.

However, there is a lot on the line in this Quarter Final with the two points so important to the chances of one of these players to start getting closer to the top four positions.

Gian van Veen did get to the Final of a Premier League Night a couple of weeks ago, but his overall recent form has not been the best and that has to give Luke Humphries a huge amount of encouragement. The World Number 2 remains the bigger maximum hitter and he will need to find some early rhythm in this one to make sure he earns enough opportunities at the doubles to find a way into the Semi Final.

The home fans may not be best pleased by the result in this Quarter Final, but they may have more to celebrate soon afterwards.

Michael van Gerwen to win & both players over 1.5 180s v Jonny Clayton: He may still be wondering how he was beaten in the Night 10 Final, but the three points earned has put Michael van Gerwen in a strong position in the standings.

More work has yet to be done if the Dutchman is going to return to the Play Offs, but he can snap this losing run against Jonny Clayton.

Credit has to be given to the new Premier League leader for a third Nightly win and the battling display from Jonny Clayton to recover from 2-5 behind to win the Final can only give him further confidence. There has been little wrong with the level of performance produced so far in 2026 and Clayton continues to hit plenty of maximums and show strong doubling when it really matters.

Ending a run of early losses will have been a boost for Clayton, but Michael van Gerwen can use the home crowd to continue picking off the points.

Jonny Clayton put a few wins together across a couple of Players Championship tournaments earlier in the week, but Michael van Gerwen will have been preparing for Rotterdam and can edge past the League leader in what should be another quality Quarter Final.

Josh Rock most 180s v Stephen Bunting: Winning Premier League matches three weeks in a row means Josh Rock has closed on 7th placed Luke Humphries, but he has not been able to string the wins together in each of those Nights.

He has long known that he likely needs to win at least three Premier League Nights if he is going to have any hope of making the final four, but the positive for Josh Rock is that fans are seeing the kind of level he can produce.

The averages are improving, but most notable is the maximum hitting which had deserted Rock earlier this season.

He goes into this Quarter Final as the favourite to progress, but Stephen Bunting will haveb something to say about that having put together a better overall Premier League record compared with last year. There is still a real hope for Bunting fans that their man can reach the Semi Final at the end of May, but he is another who just needs to find some consistency and especially having landed in the 'weaker' half of the draw on Night 11.

Stephen Bunting may win, but Josh Rock's recent maximum hitting has been very improving all of the time- despite playing fewer matches than this opponent, Josh Rock has been peppering the treble 20 bed and now has just one fewer maximum than Stephen Bunting.

All of the pressure is on Bunting and that may allow Josh Rock to continue to show the fans what he is all about and why he was selected for the Premier League in the first place.

MY PICKS: Luke Littler to Win & Most 180s @ 2.60 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Luke Humphries to Win & Most 180s @ 2.75 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Michael van Gerwen to Win & Both Players Over 1.5 180s @ 2.87 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Josh Rock Most Maximums @ 2.10 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Darts 2026: 47-68, - 12.83 Units (112 Units Staked, - 11.46% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Thursday 16th April)

There may have been plenty of matches scheduled on Wednesday, but enough doubt around the majority of them meant a single selection was made.

Rafael Jodar came through some tough moments to earn his straight sets win over Camilo Ugo Carabelli for the second time in this clay court season and Carlos Alcaraz withdrawing from the Barcelona tournament means all eyes will be on the other young Spaniard who is now beginning to make headlines.

He will have to wait until Friday before the Quarter Final matches begin, but Thursday is all about completing the Second Round matches across the various tournaments being played this week.

Once again a number of matches have come close to being selected, but ultimately have not quite convinced enough and that means going with two selections from the ATP Munich event.

Francisco Cerundolo - 3.5 games v Botic van de Zandschlup: The move into the clay court season means there is limited samples of how players are performing, but some are more comfortable on the red dirt compared with others.

The World Number 19 Francisco Cerundolo is one of the more comfortable clay courters and tends to take in the South American Golden Swing in between the Australian Open and the big hard court events in North America in March. That was the case again in 2026 and Cerundolo does win plenty of matches on the clay, which is a solid reason behind his overall World Ranking mark.

A title has been won on the surface earlier this year, but Francisco Cerundolo suffered a relatively early loss in the opening tournament played on the European clay courts.

A comfortable win in the First Round against a Lucky Loser has taken Francisco Cerundolo through to this Round and he is the right favourite in this match.

You have to have respect for the early clay court form shown by Botic van de Zandschlup who reached the Semi Final in Budapest and who has another win under his belt here in Munich. However, it should also be noted that the 30 year old has yet to face anyone Ranked higher than World Number 60 on the surface and his numbers in recent years suggest the current level is unlikely to be sustained through the two big Masters events coming up before the French Open.

This is a player that has been pretty reliant on his serve, but that cannot be the case on the clay courts and that is where Francisco Cerundolo should have the edge.

He has won the two previous meetings between the players and both on the hard courts in 2025.

Francisco Cerundolo did not drop a set in either of those two matches and his confidence on the red dirt should make sure he is in a position to move into the Quarter Final behind another strong win against this opponent.

Alexander Zverev - 4.5 games v Gabriel Diallo: The most consistent Grand Slam success produced by Alexander Zverev has been at the French Open and he was leading Carlos Alcaraz in the Final of that Slam two years ago before eventually being beaten in five sets.

There is no doubt that Alexander Zverev will be heading to Paris as one of the favourites, although at the same time most would have Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner significantly shorter prices in the outright markets.

Yet another defeat to the new World Number 1 at the Monte Carlo Masters underlines the challenges that face Alexander Zverev when it comes to finally winning a Grand Slam. The feeling remains that the window has closed barring unexpected defeats for the top two players in the world, but Zverev cannot think like that and the Semi Final run in Monte Carlo is a reminder of his qualities.

Alexander Zverev is expected to have too much for Gabriel Diallo in this Second Round contest in Munich, especially as the World Number 37 has had limited success on the surface.

He took advantage of a Lucky Loser spot to enter the main draw at the Madrid Masters in 2025 and Gabriel Diallo reached the Quarter Final at that ATP 1000 event. However, Diallo will have to accept that he was given a pretty kind draw and the Canadian was just 3-5 on the clay court outside of that run in Madrid.

Opening defeats in Bucharest and Monte Carlo will have done little for the confidence and Gabriel Diallo beat a Qualifier Ranked outside the top 200 in the First Round here in Munich.

Suffice to say that this Second Round match is a significant step upwards and Gabriel Diallo was well beaten by Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open back in January. That was a First Round match played on a surface that would suit Diallo more than the clay courts here in Munich and it may be a tough ask to stick with the top Seed in this ATP 500 tournament.

MY PICKS: Francisco Cerundolo - 3.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Alexander Zverev - 4.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Weekly Update: 1-0, + 0.91 Units (1 Unit Staked, + 91% Yield)

Tennis Picks 2026 (Wednesday 15th April)

The clay court season has gotten underway earlier this month, but a decision was made to skip making any Tennis Picks at the Monte Carlo Masters.

There are plenty of big events to be completed before we get to the French Open at the end of the month and there are three 500 level events this week in Barcelona, Munich and Stuttgart with some big names on both the ATP and WTA Tour in action.

It should be remembered that there are still plenty of clay court specialists out there and those have to be respected, while some top names are much more comfortable on the faster surfaces rather than the red dirt.

We have already seen another meltdown from Daniil Medvedev last week in Monte Carlo, while some of the top American names are skipping some of this part of the season knowing they are much more dangerous when it comes to the hard or grass courts. Others that are playing become vulnerable to the upsets that the layers may not always price up as they should and so there is a lot of consideration given to a number of factors that can change the selection.

Taking note of the kind of clay court tournaments coming up is also important- the Madrid Masters plays very different to the other clay events and the French Open and tends to throw up many more upsets than most events at this time of the season. Conditions tend to see the ball fly that much quicker through the air and the surface so that may be another event which needs to be watched, rather than having multiple selections made, but that is something to consider when the tournament comes around next week.

A decent start to the season took a knock in March with the Indian Wells and Miami Masters both getting the better of the selections.

Overall we have to be happy with where the numbers currently stand, but building momentum towards the French Open is important and that is the focus over the next six weeks until the second Grand Slam of the season gets underway.

Rafael Jodar - 4.5 games v Camilo Ugo Carabelli: After the retirement of Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz has become the poster boy for Spanish Tennis, but there is another Rafael making his way up the World Rankings.

19 year old Rafael Jodar may not have made the early waves of Alcaraz, but he is operating at a career best World Number 55 after winning the title in Marrakech earlier this month. A Wild Card has been handed to him to take his place in this ATP 500 event in Barcelona and the same can be expected at the ATP 1000 event in Madrid and Rafael Jodar could make significant leaps in the World Rankings right through the French Open.

He has played well on the hard courts as well as the more natural clay and that makes this teenager someone to keep an eye on.

Veteran Jaume Munar was dismissed in the First Round very comfortably and Rafael Jodar is a pretty significant favourite in this match up against Camilo Ugo Carabelli.

The 26 year old Argentinian is the World Number 43 and like many of his compatriots, Camilo Ugo Carabelli is very comfortable on the red dirt. Earlier this season he won a Challenger event in Argentina and later reached the Quarter Final at the ATP 250 tournament held in Buenos Aires.

Early losses in Rio de Janeiro and Santiago will have been a disappointment during the South American Golden Swing, but Camilo Ugo Carabeli reached the Semi Final in Marrakech to boost confidence.

That run was ended by Rafael Jodar as they prepare to meet for a second time on the clay this month, and the real test for Camilo Ugo Carabelli is whether he can find a way to get his teeth into the Jodar serve. It was a problem in Marrakech with Ugo Carabelli creating just 2 Break Points in a straight sets defeat as he struggled to make an impact on either the first or second serve return.

While only a small sample, Rafael Jodar's serving in his six clay courts matches in 2026 has been really impressive and he has backed that up by keeping the pressure on opponents with his return.

If Camilo Ugo Carabelli can get his first serve rhythm going, he can be dangerous and put some pressure on the younger player. However, the second serve can be a real weakness and Ugo Carabelli was broken four times when these players met in Morocco.

Winning just three games again is unlikely, but Camilo Ugo Carabelli may struggle to still cover this spread set for the Second Round match in Barcelona.

MY PICKS: Rafael Jodar - 4.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Season 2026: 93-80, + 9.20 Units (238 Units Staked, + 3.87% Yield)

Boxing Picks 2026- Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov (Saturday 11th April)

The run of Boxing nights featuring the top names in the Heavyweight Division began last week at the O2 Arena in London when a really poor refereeing display overshadowed the Deontay Wilder-Derek Chisora main event.

Another poor judging day in the United Kingdom will not have gone down very well with the fans and it is certainly something that promoters will have noted when thinking about bringing the fighters to this part of the Boxing world.

It hurts local talent on the 'B' side of the card as Gully Powar found out, but he raised his profile and is going to get another big opportunity to become British Champion and then progress to the world level.

A rematch has been ordered, which is the least that Powar deserved, but he should have been given the right decision by judges who continue to make poor decisions in the UK.

The main event of the night saw Deontay Wilder perhaps set up a bout against Anthony Joshua- he looked better than he has, but Wilder still looks a long way past his best and so the next fight may have to be against one of the big names in the Division before retirement beckons.

It should be the last time we see Derek Chisora in the ring, but you just never know with Del Boy.

Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov

Almost sixteen months have passed since Tyson Fury was beaten for a second time by Oleksandr Usyk and soon announced his retirement from the sport.

Like the 'boy who cried wolf', no one believed this latest retirement would last much longer than previous ones announced by Fury.

He is back and still in denial about the results of the two fights with Usyk and so a third attempt at becoming Undisputed is the ambition- Tyson Fury believes he won both previous bouts, but it felt like he was a close loser in the first one and a much more comfortable second best in the rematch.

None of that really matters now and Tyson Fury is making a return with some big money fights still on the table.

With Usyk showing little appetite for a third fight, Fury's team are focused on a long-awaited contest against Anthony Joshua, which will still garner plenty of attention in the UK at the very least. Some have suggested that the teams are already speaking about a match up in Dublin, which would be something of a surprise, but before all of that, Tyson Fury has to make sure he looks good on Saturday.

That is not going to be easy for someone who has been out on the ring for the time that Fury has, nor when you consider his last three outings.

However, this is a big step down from Oleksandr Usyk and Fury looked completely out of shape when narrowly edging past Francis Ngannou in what should have been a very straight-forward exhibition style win.

Arslanbek Makhmudov had a big reputation until being battered into submission by Agit Kabayel and was also beaten by Guido Vianello eight months later.

He has not been acting nearly as menacingly as he had been before those defeats and wins over Ricardo Brown and Dave Allen are not the kind of results that suggest Makhmudov is ready for this kind of opponent.

As with any layoff, Tyson Fury may need some time to really get going in this one, but he is not the elusive puncher of old times and instead is likely going to plant his feet and unload.

There is no doubt that Arslanbek Makhmudov is there to be hit and Tyson Fury may be able to roll through the gears in the second half of this contest once the ring rust is shaken off a little bit. The opponent is one that has been broken down before and Fury is capable of doing the same here on his return with a late Stoppage perhaps the outcome to remind fans of his qualities and capabilities in the ring.

The chief support on the card is featuring Conor Benn as his new promoters drag Regis Prograis up to the 150 pound limit for this Ten Rounder.

It will be a real surprise if there are any rehydration clauses attached to this bout and so Benn is going to be a lot bigger in the ring.

The name value of Prograis is not as high as it once was, while rumours around his fitness ahead of this bout had swirled and suggested he was going to withdraw. Even Eddie Hearn has suggested Regis Prograis was not fit enough to fight, but the American has downplayed all of those reports.

Back to back defeats to Devin Haney and Jack Catterall suggested Regis Prograis' best days at the top were over, but he has been given this opportunity.

Unfortunately it feels like he has been brought over to be Stopped for the first time and Conor Benn may be able to get this one done before halfway, even if The Destroyer is still vastly overrated.

Two Heavyweight contests also feature on the undercard with fighters looking to either take the step up towards world level, or avoid falling too far from those levels.

In a crossroads bout, two fighters who have defeats to Fabio Wardley on the resume meet- Justis Huni has not fought since his loss to Wardley in June last year, while Frazer Clarke recovered from the wipeout defeat to the WBO World Champion in October 2024 by winning one fight before losing to Jeamie TKV.

Frazer Clarke looked completely lost in that defeat to TKV, especially in the latter stages when he was fortunate to avoid being Stopped.

The Australian opponent in this one has quick hands and had Fabio Wardley in all sorts of trouble before the latter found a special punch, but Justis Huni will feel he belongs at that level considering how far Wardley has progressed.

His speed can just wear down Frazer Clarke here and Justis Huni may be more ready to finish the fight when the opportunity comes up to just get himself moving back towards the very biggest names in the Division.

The aforementioned Jeamie TKV takes on Richard Riakporhe with the British Heavyweight Title on the line.

This is a closer contest than the layers feel, but Riakporhe may just have enough to edge past the Champion.

Jeamie TKV is tough, resilient and will come to fight, but The Midnight Train should have a bit too much quality in the exchanges in his third bout at Heavyweight. He is going to have to use some of the athleticism to avoid getting caught up in clinches and have the Champion wearing him down, but if Richard Riakporhe can do that, he may have the necessary quality and accuracy to force a Stoppage.

Earlier in the day, there is a card taking place in Japan involving a couple of veterans taking on home fighters.

Pedro Guevara has only been Stopped once in a fifty fight career, but the 36 year old Mexican is only a couple of fights removed since that blowout defeat to Bam Rodriguez.

Losing to a pound for pound superstar is one thing, but Pedro Guevara is taking on 3-0 Tomoya Tsuboi in this contest.

The 30 year old is on a fast track and he Stopped another veteran, Carlos Cuadras, in Eight Rounds back in November. That was only the second time that Cuadras had been Stopped in his long career and Tomoya Tsuboi may be able to ratchet up enough pressure to do the same to Pedro Guevara.

In the main event, Juan Francisco Estrada is looking for a second win in a row since his own loss to Bam Rodriguez, although the former World Champion put up a much sterner performance than Guevara managed.

He has been inactive in recent years, which is not ideal for the 35 year old, but Estrada is expected to have too much for Tenshin Nasukawa who was beaten for the first time in November.

Juan Francisco Estrada is still highly Ranked in the Bantamweight Division and he can set up a bout with Takuma Inoue by matching the Japanese fighter and also beating Nasukawa on the cards.

MY PICKS: Tyson Fury to Win Between 7-12 @ 3.00 Coral (1 Unit)

Conor Benn to Win Between 1-5 @ 2.20 William Hill (2 Units)

Justis Huni to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 1.83 Bet Fred (2 Units)

Richard Riakporhe to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 2.00 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Tomoya Tsuboi to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 2.30 William Hill (1 Unit)

Juan Francisco Estrada to Win @ 1.83 Bet Fred (1 Unit)

Boxing 2026: 11-23, - 9.72 Units (51 Units Staked, - 19.06% Yield)