Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 13th)

It was another day where a poor start saw the Tennis Picks drop to 0-3, but two late winners at least prevented it from being a really bad day in the office.

However, it was the first losing day at the Indian Wells Tournament and I am looking to bounce back on Monday as the Third Round continues in conditions that not being appreciated by all that take to the courts.

Daniil Medvedev has been complaining about how slow the courts are, especially considering this is supposed to be a hard court Masters event, and I do think it makes it difficult for those who want to punch through the court. Overhitting leads to mistakes in the air where the ball can fly off the racquet and it is not ideal for players who are used to performing on this surface in a certain way.

A first losing day has stung, but there is another long day coming up at Indian Wells and you can see my selections from the matches coming up below.

Marton Fucsovics - 2.5 games v Alex Molcan: There are eight Third Round matches from the ATP Tournament to be played on Monday, but the sole selection comes from a match featuring two of the more surprising players left in the draw.

Alex Molcan and Marton Fucsovics are both Ranked outside the top 50 of the World Rankings and both have needed an upset over a top 20 Ranked opponent to earn their place in the Third Round.

Credit to the pair of them for doing that, but over the last twelve months it has been a struggle for the two when playing top 100 Ranked opponents on the surface. Both have losing records in that time and Alex Molcan was just 2-10 in the matches until winning twice in that spot at Indian Wells, while Marton Fucsovics was 4-9 before two wins of his own.

That doesn't offer a lot of encouragement and the two players have very similar numbers behind serve in those matches with 60% of service points won and holds in 72% (Molcan) and 74% (Fucsovics) of service games played.

The difference looks to be in the return game with Fucsovics winning a number of percentage points more against the serve compared with Alex Molcan and I think that could where the edge will be in this big Third Round match that will give the winner a jump in Ranking points.

Marton Fucsovics has broken in 26% of return games played compared with Alex Molcan's 16% mark and I do think the former can create the majority of chances in this match.

Of course the lack of real confidence that either player has to be playing with on the hard courts could see things spiral, but I do like the Hungarian and his chances of winning and covering. As long as Marton Fucsovics returns as he can, I expect him to have the Break Point chances to win the match and he can find those breaks to secure a cover of this line.

MY PICKS: Marton Fucsovics - 2.5 Games @ 2.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Caroline Garcia - 2.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)

Karolina Muchova - 5.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)

Marketa Vondrousova - 2.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)

Indian Wells Update: 16-9, + 8.91 Units (51 Units Staked, + 17.47% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 12th)

After a 4-0 run to close the day on Friday, a perfect 3-0 Saturday has placed the Tennis Picks in a very strong position through the opening four days at Indian Wells.

I've not had the time to place down any thoughts on the matches on Sunday, but my selections and the updated totals from the week can be seen below.

MY PICKS: Karen Khachanov - 1.5 games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Jessica Pegula - 4.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Veronika Kudermetova - 1.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Coco Gauff - 3.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Barbora Krejcikova - 5.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Aryna Sabalenka - 5.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)

Indian Wells Update: 14-6, + 12.03 Units (41 Units Staked, + 29.34% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 11th)

The early start on Friday was pretty miserable for the Tennis Picks as we saw those selection go 0-2, although a retirement prevented falling into a 0-3 hole.

Thankfully the later Picks swept through with four straight winners and that means three winning days in a row and a very good start to the Indian Wells tournament.

On Saturday the Second Round continues in what should be warm and much drier conditions in Indian Wells as the remaining top Seeds get onto the court for the first time.

Andy Murray - 4.5 games v Radu Albot: Having a day of rest between matches will be important for Andy Murray and he has benefited from the withdrawal of a Seeded player in the Second Round. It means he will be facing a Lucky Loser in Radu Albot rather than Pablo Carreno Busta and this is important as Murray looks to rebuild his World Ranking with a much more winnable match in front of him.

We are still not seeing the consistency of old from Murray who dropped a set in the First Round, despite looking the stronger player, and he will want to try and make 'easier' work of this opponent.

Doing so won't be easy, but Radu Albot was beaten in the Qualifiers and his record is just 3-8 on the hard courts against top 100 Ranked opponents over the last twelve months. In fact he has lost eight of his last nine matches against top 100 Ranked opponents on this surface and Radu Albot does not have the best numbers in those matches either.

I mentioned in my thread a couple of days ago that Andy Murray has not always made life comfortable when playing those lower down the Rankings, although he does tend to wear them down and pull away in those matches.

He was pushed very hard by Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the opening set and the third set, but Andy Murray showed what he can do in the second set and I think his tennis is still going to be too strong for a pretty average Radu Albot.

This is a big enough spread, but I think Murray showed he can cover the line a couple of days ago and I think he can do that here.

MY PICKS: Andy Murray - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Tommy Paul - 3.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Taylor Fritz-Ben Shelton Over 22.5 Games @ 2.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Indian Wells Update: 11-6, + 6.39 Units (35 Units Staked, + 18.26% Yield)

Boxing Picks 2023- Tim Tszyu vs Tony Harrison (March 11th)

At the time of writing, it sounds like the back and forth between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk may end up with the two looking to Unify the Heavyweight Division in late April.

It looked like the fight was going to bite the dust, at least for now, but there looks to have been a break in the negotiations and we may yet see the biggest fight in the Division at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 29th April.

This is a huge fight and the winner will likely go down as the best Heavyweight of their generation with both Fury and Usyk unbeaten and looking like the strongest players in the weight class.

I just hope we get an official announcement early next week so we can really begin to look forward to a first Undisputed Heavyweight Champion since Lennox Lewis.

The injury to Callum Smith has robbed one of the cards set for this weekend of the main event, but there are some big fights to come as the 2023 Boxing season continues with a pace.

The biggest fight of the day comes from Australia where Tim Tszyu takes on former World Champion Tony Harrison in a really good looking bout. Winning this one will set the fighter on a path to face Jermell Charlo, who withdrew from an Undisputed bout against Tszyu with an injury, and I think the 154 Division is a fascinating one that will have plenty of interested eyes on this big fight.

This has been a slow start to the year for the Boxing Picks, but last weekend was a good one with a 2-1 record and a big winner in the Lewis Ritson-Ohara Davies fight in Newcastle.

Hopefully this is the weekend to turn things around completely and get back into a profitable position after the 2022 winning year.

Tim Tszyu vs Tony Harrison

The local time will be sometime in the afternoon on Sunday, but this big WBO Interim World Title fight has been scheduled to make sure it is shown in the United States at a time they have become accustomed to watching Boxing on a Saturday evening.

That isn't helpful to us over in the United Kingdom with the bout scheduled for the early hours of Sunday morning, but the Tim Tszyu vs Tony Harrison fight looks like one worth staying up for.

Both of these fighters will enter the ring with a lot of confidence in their ability- Tim Tszyu is still unbeaten and fighting in front of his own fans, while Tony Harrison is a former World Champion and the sole boxer to have beaten Jermell Charlo, albeit controversially.

He lost the rematch with Charlo and that was the third time Tony Harrison had not only lost a bout, but the third time he had been stopped in the second half of the contest. Once again he had been leading on one of the cards, as Harrison had been against Jarrett Hurd, and the question for the American is whether he can keep Tim Tszyu at bay.

We all know what Tszyu wants to do and I do think the early Rounds will be dominated by Tony Harrison who has the reach and the sound boxing skills to pick off the unbeaten opponent as he is coming in.

Winning a Decision in Sydney will not be easy, but I do think it will be a fight where Tony Harrison can build a lead.

However, keeping the younger, hungry Tim Tszyu from coming forward and beginning to lay down some big shots is going to be very difficult.

No one can dispute that this is a big step up for Tszyu as he looks to really come out of his father's shadow, but he has to believe he can break down Harrison who has shown that vulnerability late in fights as he slows down. At 32 years old, Tony Harrison might be at the back end of his career having had some tough fights in his career, while the win over Sergio Garcia was impressive, but against an opponent who doesn't have the same bullish power as Tim Tszyu will bring into the ring.

I did think Tony Harrison could take the game plan that Terrell Gausha brought into the fight with Tszyu and the former can do a little bit more all around.

However, the late thoughts ahead of this Interim World Title fight is that Tony Harrison could be bulled and broken down by Tim Tszyu through the second half of this one.

Tony Harrison has power that has to be respected and great boxing skills, but Tim Tszyu will bite down on the gum shield and he will be willing to come forward throughout this one. That pressure has worn down Harrison in previous defeats and I can't shake the fact that Tszyu will find a way to hurt him late and perhaps earn a controversial finish with an overenthusiastic referee calling it off prematurely.

Earning a Decision in Australia will be hard for Tony Harrison, but he has the skills- the biggest test for him in this one may be keeping himself out of trouble in the Championship Rounds.

There are a couple of other cards being broadcasted in the United Kingdom on Saturday night- one of those is from Liverpool on DAZN, the other from Paris on Sky Sports.

Callum Smith was supposed to headline in Liverpool, but an injury has forced him out and there is every chance that he goes directly into a World Title fight with Artur Beterbiev.

Instead Diego Pacheco has an opportunity to underline his status as one of the top prospects on the Matchroom roster when he takes on Jack Cullen.

Seventeen wins, fourteen by Stoppage has really gotten the fans excited about the Super Middleweight and none of the last four opponents have been able to last more than Five Rounds against Diego Pachecho.

For all of the heart and guts we have seen from Jack Cullen, he has lost three times and all by Stoppage.

The move up from Middleweight has not seen Cullen carry much power to this Division, while he was crushed by Kevin Lele Sadjo a couple of fights ago. This is an opportunity for Jack Cullen to make a big statement and turn his own career around, but Eddie Hearn has likely sensed he is the perfect opponent for a huge hitter like Diego Pacheco to show off all that is good about himself and that will lead to a relatively early night.

The Light Heavyweight Division is thriving both domestically and in the world, and British fighter Dan Azeez looks to continue his steady rise to join the likes of Anthony Yarde and Joshua Buatsi as a World level contender.

He is already highly Ranked in three of the four organisations, but Dan Azeez will arrive in Paris with the intention to add the European Light Heavyweight Title to the British and Commonwealth belts he already has in his possession.

At 33 years old you do want Dan Azeez to make the big steps forward and this is an important year in that regard, but this is a very tough Division as Yarde has already found out.

I do think Azeez will have too much for Thomas Faure, and the wearing style of the British fighter will see him break down the home hope.

This feels a considerable step up for Faure who has not fought for over a year and the pressure of Dan Azeez could see him win this fight before needing to get into the second half of the contest.

It has been ten months since Tony Yoka took a pretty big beating from Martin Bakole as he lost his unbeaten record in the professional ranks, but he is headlining this card in Paris against veteran Carlos Takam.

A once durable fighter, Takam has been Stopped in three of his last four losses, although he did become the first to go the distance with Arslanbek Makhmudov in a losing effort.

I do think there will be some demons to exorcise for Tony Yoka in this one, but I expect him to start going through the gears once the first couple of Rounds are over.

A few years ago you could have made a real case for Carlos Takam to spring the upset, but the veteran is a faded force these days and Yoka has the skills to get the referee to step in as he looks to get his pro career back on track.

MY PICKS: Tim Tszyu to Win Between 7-12 @ 3.75 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Diego Pacheco to Win Between 1-5 @ 1.80 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Dan Azeez to Win Between 1-6 @ 2.87 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Tony Yoka to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 2.87 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Boxing 2023: 5-8, - 2.34 Units (24 Units Staked, - 9.75% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 10th)

It was a bit of an up and down Thursday at Indian Wells for the Tennis Picks, but returning with a profit after a 4-3 day is welcomed.

That adds to the good start made on Wednesday and we now head into the Second Round with some of the biggest names on the Tour in action. It can be tough for those players with their opponents having at least one match in the conditions under their belt, but that cannot be used as an excuse in one of the biggest tournaments that will be played over the course of the 2023 season.

I have something to build upon after the conclusion of the First Round, but this is a long tournament and keeping focused and putting those winning days together is always the challenge we have to meet.

Stefanos Tsitsipas - 4.5 games v Jordan Thompson: It has been a while since World Number 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas has been out on court and remarks that he wants to be known for 'more than tennis' are a touch surprising.

Of course you want to use your platform to promote or back issues that are important to you, but without tennis Tsitsipas would not have the name to do what he wants to do. And the reality is his voice becomes more powerful if he continues operating at the top of the World Rankings, but this is by the by.

He is still performing at a good level on the Tour, but Stefanos Tsitsipas has only played two matches since losing in the Australian Open Final.

The question is 'has he lost focus on his tennis or has he not been feeling at his best on the court?'

We may get those answers at the next two Masters events before the move onto the clay courts, which should be a surface on which Stefanos Tsitsipas thrives and I do think he wins this Second Round match at Indian Wells.

Jordan Thompson has won a match already at the tournament and he won a Challenger event on the hard courts in Europe at the end of February, but the Australian has not really been able to find his feet when facing the better players on the Tour. His 4-9 record against top 100 Ranked opponents on the hard courts over the last twelve months is far from ideal when preparing to play a Masters 1000 event, while the numbers against top 50 Ranked opponents over that same time period when it comes to hard court matches have been tough to read.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has two strong wins over Jordan Thompson, including at Wimbledon last year, and there has been a massive difference in the way they have performed in those matches. The higher Ranked player has held 96% of his service games played compared with Jordan Thompson's 72% mark, while there is a 17% difference in terms of points won behind serve in favour of Tsitsipas.

This is a wide spread considering the lack of tennis that Stefanos Tsitsipas has played over the last month, but I think the match up is a decent one for him.

He has some underwhelming return numbers overall, but Stefanos Tsitsipas has been very strong when facing opponents Ranked outside the top 50 in hard court matches. Stefanos Tsitsipas has a 15-3 record in those matches and he would have covered this line in ten of those victories so I will look for him to do the same in this Second Round match.

MY PICKS: Stefanos Tsitsipas - 4.5 Games @ 1.83 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Botic Van De Zandschlup - 2.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Roberto Bautista Agut - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)

Frances Tiafoe - 2.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Petra Kvitova - 5.5 Games @ 1.90 Bet365 (2 Units)

Coco Gauff - 5.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Jessica Pegula - 3.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)

Indian Wells Update: 7-4, + 4.11 Units (21 Units Staked, + 19.57% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 9th)

I can't really complain about the start made from this tournament after the First Round got underway in Indian Wells on Wednesday.

Wins for two selections against the handicap, plus the upset from Jason Kubler, worked the Picks into a profitable start from the tournament, although I was disappointed to see Katie Swan fail to push her way into a third set in her eventual straight sets loss.

The British player led 5-3 and missed set points while serving before failing to capitalise at 5-4, 0-40 in the next game and eventually lost four games in a row to be dumped out of the event.

However, I have to be happy with the start even if the sweep of the selections was missed.

On Thursday there is a much busier schedule set as a large majority of the First Round matches are completed in both the ATP and WTA events being played on site. That does mean the biggest names of the sport, sans Novak Djokovic, are all going to get underway at the first Masters event of 2023 over the weekend and there are some big Ranking points up for grabs.

With one more hard court Masters event scheduled for the end of the month, we are fast approaching the clay court season in Europe as the build towards the French Open will begin in April. Hopefully we will see Rafael Nadal back and ready to defend his crown and Novak Djokovic will be set to play in all of the events in the lead up to the second Grand Slam of the season too.

For now the concentration of the majority of the Tour will be putting together two solid hard court tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami and my focus is on the Tennis at those events as well.

Thanasi Kokkinakis - 3.5 games v Brandon Holt: I actually considered Thanasi Kokkinakis as potentially the better of the two Australian players when he broke through onto the Tour with Nick Kyrgios, but injuries have been a major factor in his career.

He has looked healthier to open 2023 and has a title win at Challenger level, while reaching the Semi Final of an ATP 250 tournament ahead of the Australian Open. The Number 94 World Ranking is a reflection of the lack of tennis played, not Kokkinakis' ability, and winning a couple of Qualifiers makes him dangerous.

I am not surprised he is favoured to beat Wild Card Brandon Holt who is still struggling nearer the 200 World Ranking mark rather than the top 100. The young American is still learning his trade on the Tour and he has had a couple of solid runs at the last two Grand Slam events, but Holt has not been able to back up the performance at the Australian Open and has been beaten relatively early at all of his recent events.

This is a big step up for Brandon Holt considering only two of his recent losses have been against players Ranked inside the top 100 and he is just 2-6 in those matches on the hard courts over the last year.

He is going to need to rely on serving very well if he is going to earn the upset in the First Round, because I am not sure how much joy Brandon Holt will have against the Thanasi Kokkinakis serve. That builds pressure on Holt and he has held 77% of his service games against top 100 Ranked opponents over the last year, a number that will be challenged by Kokkinakis who has broken in almost 30% of his return games on the hard courts over the last twelve months when facing an opponent Ranked outside the top 100.

The Australian is 11-1 in those matches too and he would have covered this handicap mark in nine of the ten wins that did not end in a retirement. Brandon Holt will receive plenty of support from the crowd, but Thanasi Kokkinakis has the tennis to break down his opponent and he can move through to the Second Round with some solid Ranking points secured.

Andy Murray - 4.5 games v Tomas Martin Etcheverry: The first thing I want to say here is that this is a big spread for Andy Murray to cover considering where his tennis has been since returning full time to the Tour. There have been flashes of the old Murray, and that player would have been confident of covering this mark, but the new Andy Murray is prone to chucking in a poor run of games and so has to fight much harder to win his matches.

However, the lower Ranking has meant he has run into much tougher opponents early in tournaments and so has not been able to build into events as he has liked. Reaching the Final in Doha last month is a boost and Andy Murray is climbing back towards the top 50 with his goal of being Seeded at Grand Slam events going forward certainly achievable.

He has also not had the best record at Indian Wells, even at his best, where the ball flies and defending on this hard court is that much tougher than in other events around the world.

In saying all that, I do think Andy Murray can get the better of Tomas Martin Etcheverry who has been playing clay court tennis over the last month in the Golden Swing in South America. He did reach the Final of the last of those in Santiago and was rewarded with his career best World Ranking earlier this week, although the hard courts are still unfamiliar terrain to the Argentine.

Tomas Martin Etcheverry does hold a winning record on the hard courts in his career, but he is just 5-6 on the surface over the last twelve months and three of those wins have been against players Ranked outside the top 100. This is only the seventh ever match against a top 100 Ranked on the hard courts and I do think Andy Murray should be better prepared even if he had to withdraw from the big event in Dubai following his Doha exploits.

Andy Murray might only have a 14-12 record on the hard courts over the last year, but that becomes 9-2 when only looking at matches against players Ranked outside the top 50, which backs up the point about the early, tough draws he has been handed. In those eleven matches, Andy Murray has held 80% of his service games and broken in 27% of return games and these are numbers that suggest he holds a big edge over his younger opponent.

We have seen Etcheverry break in just shy of 16% of return games played against top 100 Ranked opponents on the hard courts over the last year and that is something to note, even from a small sample of matches. It feels like Tomas Martin Etcheverry will have to serve very big to have a chance in this one, although I am a touch concerned that Andy Murray has not had a very good time of covering a line like this one, even in the nine wins against players Ranked outside the top 50 on the surface over the last year.

However, I think the move from clay to the hard courts in Indian Wells works against Tomas Martin Etcheverry and I will take any odds against quotes for Murray to win and cover.

MY PICKS: Thanasi Kokkinakis - 3.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Andy Murray - 4.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Gregoire Barrere - 2.5 Games @ 1.85 Coral (2 Units)

Alexei Popyrin - 2.5 Games @ 1.91 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Danielle Collins - 5.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)

Marketa Vondrousova - 4.5 Games @ 2.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)

Laura Siegemund - 1.5 Games @ 1.90 Bet365 (2 Units)

Indian Wells Update: 3-1, + 2.85 Units (7 Units Staked, + 40.71% Yield)

Indian Wells Tennis Picks 2023 (March 8th)

Rule changes will soon be applied in the United States, but it seems strange that Novak Djokovic is still not going to be allowed into the country and so will have to miss the tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami this month.

The World Number 1 will be pleased if he can at least return to North America ahead of the US Open later in the year, but there will be some frustration with the policy that has received plenty of criticism from people with voices that can have a far reaching impact.

I understand the rules are the rules, but the United States could have applied an exemption for an athlete that has twice tested positive for Covid and who was not likely to pose a significant public health concern. Of course you can't just make exceptions for the sake of a sport, but this is a decision that will have frustrated many and both of these Masters events are going to be missing a big draw.

The events in Indian Wells and Miami remain big parts of the Tennis Tour and both the ATP and WTA Tours will be meeting up here in the last hard court events until the preparation for the US Open begins in the summer.

Novak Djokovic can begin working on his clay court tennis, but the players in North America will be looking to take advantage of the absence of the World Number 1.

Much like the WTA events, the ATP Masters tournaments look like they could be wide open affairs with a returning Carlos Alcaraz sitting on top of the draw in Indian Wells.

Daniil Medvedev might be the player to beat having won the big event in Dubai and backed up other tiles won in February, but I do think there are a number of players in the ATP event that will believe they can go all the way to a Masters success.

In the WTA draw, Iga Swiatek is still the top player on the Tour and is coming into the event having had a really productive time in the Middle East. However, I don't think the gap is as big as it was a year ago and there are some players arriving in confident mood which could help the Indian Wells tournament grab some of the sporting headlines in the United States during the March Madness time of the year.

It has been a largely quiet month for the Tennis Picks, but that has been mainly down to the simple reason  of me not having the time to make regular selections from the tournaments that have been played since the Australian Open.

I ended February with a very slight profit to back up the decent returns from the Australian Open, but I did not want to make picks on odd days when I knew I was unlikely to have the time to go through a tournament with selections being made with some level of consistency.

Some of that has been down to the intense football schedule which has taken up much of my personal time, but things should be a little more settled in March as I try and work a good path through the two Masters events that have regularly been a thorn in my side.

As I mentioned earlier this season, I feel I have made some adjustments with the way Picks are selected and I do think that has paid off through the first couple of months of the long season.

There will still be one or days through the month where I don't make Tennis Picks- that could be as much to do with not finding a selection that is worth backing as much as any other factor, but for the majority of the next two tournaments I am anticipating having selections, which will be on this site.

The WTA Tournament will begin on Wednesday with First Round action and the ATP Tournament gets underway on Thursday.

These next two events in Indian Wells and Miami may not last as long as the Grand Slams, but they are the longest Masters events on the Tour and so you have to have some patience in order to come away with a couple of positive returns.

Katie Swan - 1.5 games v Cristina Bucsa: Both of these players will be pretty happy with the level shown in Qualifying for the Indian Wells main draw after two wins each, and I think the draw for the First Round will certainly give Katie Swan and Cristina Bucsa a lot of belief.

This is a good chance to pick up some vital Ranking points and both are in decent form.

Katie Swan has yet to really hit the kind of heights some have expected from her, but she has shown she has a decent hard court level and her numbers over the last twelve months are solid. When you only consider matches against players outside of the top 50 in the World Rankings, Swan's 19-4 record really stands up strong, while the 4-2 record against top 100 Ranked opponents on this surface shows there is more to come from the British player.

She will need to prove that on the court against an improving Cristina Bucsa who reached her career best World Ranking mark at the end of January following a tremendous run at the Australian Open. Backing that up will be the test for the Spaniard, but winning two Qualifiers should only increase her confidence.

Over the last twelve months she has beaten those she has been expected to and Bucsa has a soli 18-6 record against players Ranked outside the top 100 on the hard courts.

Katie Swan has won their two previous meetings, but those came a long time ago and I am not sure they are relevant to the outcome of this First Round.

What could be more relevant is the fact that Swan has gotten a bit more out of the first serve so far this season on the hard courts and that could be a big difference in the conditions in Indian Wells where the ball can fly. A slight edge in the returning numbers over Cristina Bucsa could also prove to be decisive and in a close match I do just favour the lower Ranked player looking to move back towards the top 100.

I would not be surprised if a third set is needed to eventually separate the players, but it is the British Qualifier who I favour.

MY PICKS: Katie Swan - 1.5 Games @ 1.85 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Ugo Humbert - 2.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)

Jason Kubler @ 2.75 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Yibing Wu - 3.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)

Tennis 2023: + 13.94 Units (164 Units Staked, + 8.50% Yield)

February 2023: + 0.26 Units (18 Units Staked, + 1.44% Yield)

January 2023: + 13.68 Units (146 Units Staked, + 9.37% Yield)