Australian Open Tennis - Latest Betting

There’s nothing like Andy Murray demolishing a string of lesser opponents to get the British public backing their number one to the hilt to go all the way and claim his first Grand Slam.  The 23-year-old is now widely regarded as a mere 4/1 shot with most bookies and the best price of 23/5 with Betfair suggests that the smartest time for a patriotic punt may have been a week ago. Yes, the man from Dunblane has been in particularly fine fettle - his latest result a 6-3 6-1 6-1 masterclass in Round 4 - but the toughest challenges await.

The bookies have now decided that world number one Rafa Nadal is very much the man to beat. A week ago as the tournament got under way, they couldn’t pick between the Spaniard and number two Federer. Heading into the Last 8 encounters Nadal can’t be picked up for better than 6/4 with Boyle Sports. However, the shift has really been with Swiss legend Federer. As Murray and Nadal’s odds have shortened the 4-time Aussie Open Champion has been cast out to 23/10 with Sportingbet

So what’s happened? Federer has simply had to work a little harder to make his progress to the latter stages. He was dragged through five sets as early as Round 2 and his latest performance was also seen as somewhat ragged. He dropped another set to underdog Tommy Robredo but the 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-2 scoreline only seems poor compared to the ruthless efforts of his major rivals. For those who fancy a bet on the 16-time Grand Slam winner, now appears to be the time for a little value. He seems to save his best for the big occasions and whatever happens he will only have to beat one of Nadal and Murray who are set to clash in the semi-finals.

Third seed Novak Djokovic remains on course for a potential semi-final clash with Federer. The 2008 Aussie Open champion is another one making serene progress after a commanding 6-3 6-4 6-0 fourth round victory. At 7/1 with Bet365 the Serb may be another one worth a look.