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07/02/2010 - Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former champion Rafael Nadal straight- setted British hopeful Andy Murray, while Czech Tomas Berdych upended third- seeded Serbian star Novak Djokovic in Friday's semifinals at The Championships, Wimbledon.
The second-seeded Nadal will battle the 12th-seeded Berdych in the lucrative championship match here on Sunday, as Berdych will play in his first-ever major final.
In the most-anticipated match of the day, the world No. 1 Nadal handled the fourth-seeded Murray 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 on Centre Court, as Murray was trying to give Britain its first male finalist here in 72 years (Bunny Austin). Instead, Murray came up a semifinal loser here for a second straight year.
Nadal got the key service break he needed in the opening set to go up 5-4 against Murray, and then held his underrated serve to secure the stanza.
In the second set, things were tight enough to head into a crucial tiebreak, for Murray, who blew a set point, leading 6-5 in the extra session, when Nadal popped a backhand volley winner. The Spaniard would ultimately close out the tiebreak with an unreturnable forehand.
Murray opened the third set by breaking Nadal at love, but the Spaniard was unfazed, as he replied with a pair of breaks in the stanza to move on in straights.
Nadal prevailed in 2 hours, 22 minutes, as he broke Murray's serve three times, while the Brit settled for only one break in the setback. Murray struck six more winners (37-31), including 11 more aces (15-4), but Nadal was able to come out on top on the biggest points on Day 11.
The 24-year-old Nadal is now 8-3 lifetime against the 23-year-old Murray. The Spaniard beat the Brit in the quarterfinals here in 2008, the year Nadal went on to beat Roger Federer in their remarkable final to claim his lone Wimbledon championship.
The Dunblane, Scotland native Murray beat Nadal in their last meeting, the quarterfinals at this year's Australian Open.
Nadal is now 3-2 in their career Grand Slam matchups.
The high-flying seven-time major titlist Nadal has won 30 of his last 31 matches on tour, including a fifth French Open title four weeks ago. He lost to Federer in the 2006 and 2007 Wimbledon finales, titled here two years ago, and missed Wimbledon 2009 because of knee injuries.
Nadal is seeded second here despite holding the No. 1 ranking.
The two-time Grand Slam runner-up Murray appeared in his fourth career major semifinal (2-2). The 2010 Aussie Open runner-up to Federer was hoping to give the Brits their first male Wimbledon champion in 74 years (Fred Perry).
Nadal will now perform in his 10th Grand Slam final (7-2). He's 1-2 in his Wimbledon finals, all against Federer, and has won his last 13 matches at the All England Club.
The mighty Spaniard will appear in his 53rd career final, seeking a 41st title. He's 4-1 in his 2010 title tilts, with one major title and three ATP Masters championships.
Meanwhile, Berdych ousted the former Australian Open champion Djokovic 6-3, 7-6 (11-9), 6-3 on Centre Court. Djokovic was also a semifinal loser on the grass here three years ago.
The 6-foot-4 Berdych stunned the defending champion and six-time Wimbledon winner Federer in four sets here on Wednesday.
Berdych captured the first set rather easily on Day 11 before Djokovic fought back in the second. The Serbian star, however, was unable to get back into the match by taking the second-set tiebreak and smashed his racquet after dropping the crucial stanza.
The third set was all Berdych, who broke Djokovic to grab a 5-3 lead when Djokovic, who was back on his heels throughout the match, came up with an untimely double fault, his eighth of the day.
Berdych, who simply crushed the tennis ball all day on Friday, set-up his first match point with a huge forehand winner, and wound up converting on his second match point by launching an unreturnable serve after 2 hours, 18 minutes of tennis.
The talented Berdych fired 11 aces among his 34 winners and broke Djokovic's serve three times, compared to only one break for the Serbian loser.
Berdych, who has now won 14 of his last 15 matches, was a semifinal loser at the French Open four weeks ago. He's into his first major final, playing in his 27th Grand Slam event.
The 23-year-old Djokovic appeared in his eight career major semi (2-6). He was the Aussie Open champ in 2008 and reached the Wimbledon final four in 2007, but was forced to retire against Nadal due to a foot injury while trailing in the third set that day.
The 24-year-old Berdych will appear in his 11th career ATP-level final, seeking a sixth title. The world No. 13 was a runner-up to Andy Roddick at this year's Miami Masters event and hasn't titled since running the table at a tournament in Munich last season.
The last Czech player to reach the Wimbledon final was the great Ivan Lendl in 1987. The lone male Czech titlist here was Jan Kodes back in 1973.
Nadal and Berdych will meet for an 11th time, with the powerful Spaniard holding a 7-3 lead in their lifetime series. Nadal beat Berdych at Indian Wells earlier this season and has won six straight in the series. Nadal beat Berdych in the Wimbledon quarters in 2007.
<< Blues seal Benayoun signing
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea has announced the signing of Israel
international midfielder Yossi Benayoun from Premier League rivals Liverpool
for an undisclosed fee.
The 30-year-old joins the Blues on a three-year contract
<< Oilers waive Souray
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Oilers have placed defenseman
Sheldon Souray on waivers, according to multiple media reports, as the club
was apparently unable to trade him.
In April, Souray had stated his desire to be t
<< NL East: Injuries could force the Phillies to trade
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies' quest for a third straight
National League title has hit its share of bumps along the way.
Bumps and bruises that is.
Heading into play on Friday, the Phillies are third in the NL East and four
<< Former Alabama A&M football player killed
Bessemer, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Alabama A&M football player Maurice
Thomas was fatally shot inside a nightclub in his hometown early Friday
morning, The Birmingham News reported.
Police said Thomas, 23, and two other men were shot
North Dakota State getting Wisconsin transfer >>
Fargo, ND (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Wisconsin defensive end Tyler Westphal
announced he will transfer to North Dakota State, where he will have three
seasons of eligibility remaining.
The 6-foot-6, 240-pound Westphal told the Forum of Fargo
Panthers sign F Higgins >>
Sunrise, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Panthers signed free agent left
winger Chris Higgins to a one-year contract on Friday.
Higgins split last season with the New York Rangers and Calgary Flames after a
five-year stint with the M
Toronto's Marcum lands on DL >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays placed starter Shaun
Marcum on the 15-day disabled list Friday with inflammation in his throwing
elbow.
Marcum is scheduled to miss only one start with the All-Star break on t
Blackhawks ink D Scott >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks signed free agent
defenseman John Scott to a two-year contract on Friday.
Scott is a two-year veteran and over 71 games in the NHL, all with Minnesota,
he has one goal and two ass
MySportsbook.com Favors Fighting Irish to win College Football betting odds
According to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, on January 8, the Fighting Irish faithful may be toasting their 14th national title in Arizona – Notre Dame’s first national championship in close to 20 years.
Although MySportsbook.com has listed Notre Dame as the 5-1 favorite to win thecollege football College Football betting, fans in Columbus do not need to cancel their tickets to Glendale just yet. The Ohio State Buckeyes, listed right behind the Irish at 7-1, are also heavy favorites to win college football’s most coveted prize, while West Virginia, USC and the 2007 National Champion Texas Longhorns - all listed at 8-1 – are strong contenders as well.
MySportsbook.com has also posted gambling odds on the conference championships for the ACC, Big 12 and SEC. In the ACC – it could be anyone’s title, particularly for the two schools from the Sunshine State. Florida State and Miami, both listed at 2-1, are favored to win the ACC Championship Game odds, with the ‘Noles hoping to finish in the nation’s top 10 for the first time in five years, and the ‘Canes looking to avenge their 10-7 loss against FSU in last year’s ACC Championship betting.
Moving west to the Big 12, MySportsbook.com has betting lines listing Texas as 7-5 favorites to repeat as conference champions, even though the Longhorns lost their national championship-winning quarterback Vince Young to the NFL. In the south, the Auburn Tigers – led by Heisman-hopeful senior running back Kenny Irons – have been given the best odds to win the SEC Championship odds at 5-2.
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| Notre Dame Ohio State West Virginia Texas USC Florida California Auburn Oklahoma Iowa Louisville Florida State Michigan Miami (FL) LSU Penn State Virginia Tech Nebraska Tennessee Georgia Arizona State Oregon Clemson Texas A&M Texas Tech Alabama Arkansas Boston College Michigan State Maryland South Carolina Colorado Purdue Georgia Tech TCU UCLA Arizona Pittsburgh Iowa State Wisconsin North Carolina State Virginia North Carolina Fresno State Hawaii Northwestern BYU Oregon State UNLV Field (Any Other Team) |
5-1 7-1 8-1 8-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 18-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 25-1 40-1 40-1 50-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 70-1 70-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 150-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 250-1 250-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 400-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 1000-1 1000-1 40-1 |
| Miami (FL) Florida State Virginia Tech Clemson Georgia Tech Boston College Maryland Virginia North Carolina State North Carolina Wake Forest Duke |
2-1 2-1 3-1 7-1 15-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 500-1 |
| Texas Oklahoma Nebraska Texas Tech Colorado Iowa State Texas A&M Kansas State Missouri Kansas Baylor Oklahoma State |
7-5 9-5 9-2 12-1 14-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 35-1 100-1 100-1 |
| Auburn Florida LSU Georgia Tennessee Arkansas Alabama Mississippi South Carolina Mississippi State Kentucky Vanderbilt |
5-2 11-4 4-1 6-1 7-1 7-1 9-1 20-1 28-1 75-1 100-1 300-1 |
For complete NCAA football odds please visit Mysportsbook.com.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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