What is a tennis betting strategy for? Strategies explain how to bet, provide a unified approach to betting, save time and nerves. In this article, we'll tell you about five popular tennis betting strategies and describe their features, weaknesses and strengths. We will explain everything with examples.
Corridors betting strategy in tennis
The "Corridors" strategy was originally used for basketball games, but over time it has been adapted for other sports, including tennis. "Corridors" are the placement of bets with different values within the same market. With a favourable outcome of the match, two of your bets win at once: the result falls within your 'corridor'. These variations are easiest to find in the "over/under" and "handicap" markets. Here's how this tennis betting system works.
A corridor in tennis is two bets, for example on Over 7.5 and on Under 9.5 games in a set. With a total of 8 or 9 games (6-2 and 6-3) both bets win. If the set ends differently, the winning bet will partly cover the loss of the second bet.
Example of "Corridors" strategy
For a simple example, let's take the match between Hugo Grenier and Vasek Pospisil. One bookmaker is offering odds of 1.23 for Over 8.5 in the first set. The other bookmaker will set the odds of 2.32 for Under 9.5 in the first set. Betting on both outcomes would be a classic "corridor".
Suppose a customer bets a total of 100 conventional units on both outcomes (65.35 at odds of 1.23 and 34.65 at odds of 2.32). One bet is sure to win. In this case, the bettor will lose 19% of the betting money. But if the client hits a corridor in the first set (exactly nine games), the profit would be 60.7%.
A similar strategy works for handicaps. To apply corridors for betting on the handicap is more effective for Grand Slam (men's) and Davis Cup tournaments. In these tournaments men play best-of-five sets. In this case the potential corridor is much wider and it is easier to find good odds.
In a match between a clear favourite and an underdog, bookmakers may have different interpretations of the level of advantage. Thus, one bookmaker will set the handicap 9.5 for a convincing win, while the other will set the handicap 6.5. Betting on both handicap 1 (+9.5) and handicap 2 (-6.5) gives the bettor a 3-game guarantee.
It is important to keep a balance between the size of the odds and the range of the "corridors" and to take into consideration the type of corridor:
The corridor betting strategy does not belong to the aggressive betting methods. It does not provide a significant increase in winnings. But even in case of failure the losses will not be very big. In the example above, the bettor loses 19% if one bet loses. At the same time the bettor gets 60.7% if they get into the corridor. Thus, one winning bet in our example compensates for three losing bets.
Strategy for betting on a favourite with a safety net
In this strategy, the bettor covers several of the most likely outcomes. It combines bets on a tennis player winning 2-0 in a two-set game and Over games. In order for the second bet to win, three sets must usually be played, e.g. Over 25.
Example based on a specific match
In Jan-Lennard Struff's match against Dušan Lajović at ATP Sofia (September 28, 2022), the odds are 1.45 for Struff to win. The odds show Struff's chances of winning are high, with odds of 2.20 offered for a 2-0 exact set score in his favour.
To work out your betting amount, use the calculator, which is easy to find on the internet. Enter both the odds and the bet amount. The calculator will divide the bet amount into portions so that you will get the same winnings from each outcome. In our example with a total of 100 conventional units, you have to bet 51.11 on Struff winning 2-0 in sets (at odds of 2.20) and bet 48.89 on Over 25 (at odds of 2.30). If one of these bets wins, you will get 112.44 in winnings and 12.44 in profit.
When does this strategy pay off?
But both bets can lose. You will get nothing with these outcomes:
To avoid these two outcomes (defeat of the favourite and not enough games), you have to be careful in the choice of matches. But that's what every strategy requires.
Note that by betting on combinations and systems of multiple selections, you pay a margin for each. In our example, there is a small profit by default. Every extra percentage of the bookmaker's margin will reduce it. That is why it is important to pick markets for such combinations from bookmakers who offer great odds on tennis.
Correct score tennis betting strategy
A betting strategy on the exact score in tennis is most effective when betting on huge favourites. This is one way to increase the final odds.
For instance, the odds of 1.19 have been offered on world No.2 Casper Ruud beating Nicolas Harry (ATP No. 111). Ruud has been playing better tennis lately and has had a decent record over the last few months. He will probably not just win, but do so confidently in two sets. The odds are 1.62 on the exact score of 2-0 in Ruud's favour.
When choosing a betting strategy on the correct score in tennis, take into account the following points:
Example of correct score strategy for in-play betting
Correct score betting can be used as an In Play tennis betting strategy. Here is a popular example. A favourite unexpectedly lost the first set in a best-of-five-set match, but started to show his usual level of tennis towards the end of the set. In such a case, there is a great opportunity to "catch" great odds by betting on the exact score of 3-1.
There is also the opposite approach, when the favourite has already won one or two sets, but in subsequent games has given points to his opponent. In that case, it is also a good idea to consider betting on the exact score of 3-1.
Deuce (40:40) tennis strategy
A tennis match consists of several sets, and sets consist of 6-12 games (sometimes also a tiebreak). To win a game, a tennis player must reach a score of 40 and then take another point. If both players reach the 40 mark, the game goes into an advantage format. This is the kind of situation that forms the basis of the "40:40" tennis live betting strategy.
The bookmakers offer two options for betting on each individual game:
The odds for these options are different: according to statistics, only a third of games reach this score, so the odds on "Yes" are much higher.
Deuce (40:40) tennis strategy
Example of deuce (40:40) tennis betting strategy
There are two different "40:40" strategies, depending on which option you choose. Both are better for in-play betting, while watching the match.
Strategy No. 1: "Betting on 40:40: Yes". With this option, bettors place a bet that the score will be 40:40 in the game. To increase your own chances of winning, focus on the choice of match and timing of your bet. General guidelines are as follows:
Watch the match carefully. If one of the players looks confident on serve, and the other is having problems, it makes sense to bet "40:40: yes" only in those games, when the second player serves.
Strategy No.2: "Betting 40:40: No". The statistics prove that this approach is less risky, as the 40:40 score does not happen in 70% of games. However, even here, simply betting on any match and relying on statistics is not a good idea. You have to carefully analyse the markets and choose a match.
The criteria is the same, only we are looking for the opposite situation:
Over Betting strategy
Here we take a look at the Over games strategy for the final of an ATP tournament.
Why the finals? The answer is obvious - the huge motivation of both athletes, the desire to earn ranking points, to write their name in history and win prize money. It is in the finals that each tennis player will give their all.
It is important that there is no clear favourite in the game. The odds for the stronger player should be 1.40 or greater.
Example of Over 22.5 tennis betting strategy
Let's take a look at the results of the finals of the ATP tournaments in the period from June to October 2022. We have selected only those matches that fit the main criterion - the odds on the favourite were greater than 1.40:
Tournament | Match | Odds | Final score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Boss Open | Andy Murray — Matteo Berrettini | W1 — 1.90 W2 — 1.90 O22.5 — 1.50 | 1:2 (4:6, 7:5, 3:6) | Win |
Mallorca Championships | Stefanos Tsitsipas — Roberto Bautista-Agut | W1 — 2.20 W2 — 1.66 O22.5 — 1.72 | 1:2 (4:6, 6:3, 6:7) | Win |
Rothesay International | Maxime Cressy — Taylor Fritz | W1 — 2.50 W2 — 1.53 O22.5 — 1.48 | 1:2 (2:6, 7:6, 6:7) | Win |
Infosys Hall of Fame Open | Alexander Bublik — Maxime Cressy | W1 — 1.73 W2 — 2.22 O22.5 — 1.61 | 1:2 (6:2, 3:6, 6:7) | Win |
EFG Swiss Open Gstaad | Casper Ruud — Matteo Berrettini | W1 — 1.82 W2 — 2.00 O22.5 — 1.81 | 2:1 (4:6, 7:6, 6:2) | Win |
Atlanta Open | Alex De Minaur — Jenson Brooksby | W1 — 2.15 W2 — 1.72 O22.5 — 1.91 | 2:0 (6:3, 6:3) | Loss |
Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag | Carlos Alcaraz — Jannik Sinner | W1 — 1.65 W2 — 2.28 O22.5 — 1.84 | 1:2 (7:6, 1:6, 1:6) | Win |
National Bank Open Presented by Rogers | Hubert Hurkacz — Pablo Carreno-Busta | W1 — 1.57 W2 — 2.37 O22.5 — 1.91 | 1:2 (6:3, 3:6, 3:6) | Win |
Western & Southern Open | Stefanos Tsitsipas — Borna Coric | W1 — 1.57 W2 — 2.37 O22.5 — 1.86 | 0:2 (6:7, 2:6) | Loss |
Winston-Salem Open | Laslo Djere — Adrian Mannarino | W1 — 2.75 W2 — 1.44 O22.5 — 2.06 | 0:2 (6:7, 4:6) | Loss |
San Diego Open | Marcos Giron — Brandon Nakashima | W1 — 2.75 W2 — 1.44 O22.5 — 1.88 | 0:2 (4:6, 4:6) | Loss |
Sofia Open | Holger Rune — Marc-Andrea Huesler | W1 — 1.50 W2 — 2.62 O22.5 — 1.86 | 0:2 (4:6, 6:7) | Win |
The result is that eight bets out of twelve won.
This betting system is very straightforward, and match selection is easy. The disadvantage is also obvious: the small number of matches to choose from. We also analysed this strategy for the semi-finals, but there the dispersion was large and the benefit was questionable.
