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 WIMBLEDON 2009 FEATURES
Picture Venus and Serena can square off in the final again.

SISTER ACT SEQUEL BECKONS

By Andy Schooler

Sky Bet's Odds Compare All Prices

BETTING BOX
FIXED ODDS
4pts on Serena Williams v Venus Williams in the name-the-finalists market at 4/1 (Stan James). Both have great records in SW19, while their opposition looks weak.
1pt Caroline Wozniacki to win first quarter at 4/1 (Sky Bet). In good form on the surface. A better bet than those seeded higher.
1pt Amelie Mauresmo to win first quarter at 10/1 (Sky Bet). An excellent grasscourt player, the former champion looks overpriced.

It's often said that stats don't lie and punters will do well to take that saying into account when it comes to their Wimbledon ladies' singles betting.

The Williams sisters' record at the All England Club is simply tremendous and with few of their WTA Tour peers at home on grass, it's easy to see another family affair come finals day 2009 given Venus and Serena were kept apart in Friday's draw.

Yet that outcome remains a 4/1 chance with Stan James and that's a price we like the look of.

Sadly it's not as good as the 15/8 about the trophy remaining the family we got last year - 12 months on that's an odds-on shot - but the 4/1 still seems good value, certainly when you consider a Federer-Murray final in the men's draw is as short as 6/5.

Look at the statistics.

Since the turn of the Millennium, defending champion Venus has reached seven finals in nine visits, winning no less than five times.

That makes Serena's record of four finals in eight visits, lifting the trophy twice, look shabby. Of course, it isn't.

Once again neither player shone on the European clay, but then again they never do. Only one of the pair's 17 Grand Slam singles titles has come at Roland Garros so those in the know were hardly surprised to see them fail again this time around.

The word 'fail' is actually a bit harsh. There have actually been claycourt signs that the pair are coming into good form as Wimbledon approaches.

Serena put a poor clay campaign to one side once the 'real' stuff began in Paris and she went on to reach the quarter-finals, only losing 7-5 in the third set to eventual champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. Hardly a poor show.

While, Venus struggled more at Roland Garros, losing in round three, she had been to the semis in Rome a few weeks before and pushed Dinara Safina, the best player on clay for most of this season, to a final set.

During the claycourt season both players also showed their incredible fighting spirit - which other female player would you want fighting your corner if your life - or betting coupon for that matter - depended on it?

The pair are often criticised for a supposed lack of commitment, but any such comments relate to the tour as a whole; if they turn up at a Grand Slam they always take it seriously.

Having made a case for the Williamses, it's also worth pointing out just what a mess the rest of the WTA Tour stars are in at the moment.

This is perhaps best summed up by Ana Ivanovic. Top seed here last year, she's the 13th seed this time around after an awful loss of from.

Now the current world number one is Dinara Safina. Like one of her recent predecessors, Jelena Jankovic, she is a player yet to win a Grand Slam title and has now folded feebly in three major finals, including the recent French Open on her favoured clay.

She's already spoken of her dislike for the grass so don't go anywhere near the Russian at single-figure quotes.

The likes of Ivanovic, Jankovic and new French Open champion Kuznetsova have all taken to the grass like ducks to ice rather than water this past week and it's hard to see any of them making a title bid in SW19.

Grasscourt nous is in such short supply that Maria Sharapova, a player who has played just three tournaments since a nine-month injury lay-off and shoulder surgery, is rated the Williamses' biggest threat.

To be fair, it's probably a good assessment. Of course, she did win here in 2004 but the Russian has yet to return to the final and to reach the last eight in Paris after such a long time away was a good achievement.

However, defeat to Na Li in the tune-up event at Edgbaston hardly inspires confidence, while concerns remain that he serve is not the weapon it once was due to those shoulder problems.

So who else is capable of living with the Williams sisters?

We offer up two names as possible dark horses - teenager Caroline Wozniacki and veteran Amelie Mauresmo.

Dane Wozniacki is just 18 and has been touted as a star of the future for a while. Given the state of the game at present, now could be her time.

She hits the ball hard from the baseline and at time of writing she's just reached the final Eastbourne - a tournament she also performed well at 12 months ago.

One worry would be the second serve, certainly too weak to trouble the Williamses at present, but don't be surprised to see her go a long way.

Unfortunately for us she's in the same quarter of the draw as the aforementioned Mauresmo, who won the title here during her golden year of 2006.

Whereas most of the tour isn't sure what to do on the grasscourts, Mauresmo is an exception to that rule - her come-forward game is made for grass with her volleying among the best around.

Admittedly her form is nothing like it was when she sat atop the rankings three years ago, but there have been glimmers of her best this season.

She won the indoor event in Paris - on another surface suited to her attacking game - and more recently made the last four in Madrid.

And for those who believe in fairytale endings, note that Mauresmo turns 30 on finals weekend.

Given our Williams final recommendation, backing these two each-way isn't a great way to go.

Instead we'll turn to the quarter markets where the pair can be backed at 4/1 and 10/1 respectively.

The aforementioned Safina ("I don't understand grass. It makes me so angry") and Kuznetsova - winner of just three games in her first-round match at Eastbourne this week - are in the same section, but they should not be feared here.

The value lies with Wozniacki and Mauresmo, so head to Sky Bet to bag those quotes while you still can.

  • One offer worth noting is that Stan James will refund all losing bets on the outright market if either Dinara Safina or Svetlana Kuznetsova reaches the final.

  • The action gets under way at 1200 BST on Monday and is being televised live in the UK on the BBC.

  • Preview posted at 1830BST on 19/06/2009; updated at 1315BST on 20/06/2009

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