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Here's everything you need to know about Australian Open Picks on Sunday, Jan. 14 — our expert prediction and betting picks for today, including Duckworth vs. Van Assche and Murray vs. Etcheverry.
The Australian Open rolls on as we hit Sunday night here in the United States, and after a relatively short slate on opening night in Melbourne we should be afforded a whole hist of exciting matches to make money off of. To start things off, I'm backing a formidable up-and-coming Frenchman and fading one of the legends of the game.
Let's get into how to bet Duckworth vs. Van Assche and Murray vs. Etcheverry. Here are my Australian Open picks today.
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Australian Open Picks Today
James Duckworth (+120) vs Luca Van Assche (-145)
8:15 p.m. ET
We know who James Duckworth is at this point in his career. The 31-year old Aussie has had a few decent runs at the ATP level throughout what's been a tough, injury-riddled career, but for the most part he's firmly been a Challenger-level talent.
Duckworth did what he always does at the end of last season, which is ripping through competitors outside of the world's top 100 to build some momentum towards the end of last season, and he's seemingly picked up right where he left off in 2024 with four wins in five matches.
It should be said, though, that those victories lacked in quality. Two came in Brisbane qualifying against middling players, then in the main draw one came against an extremely out-of-form JJ Wolf and one against Yannick Hanfmann, who out-played him throughout and had two match points in the penultimate game of the match before choking away the victory.
In tennis, it's imperative whose form is fool's gold, and I think Duckworth is a prime example. He's every bit as good as you'd expect the World No. 96 to be, making far too many errors from the back of the court and relying on his serve to get him out of trouble.
His opponent here is a physically unimposing 19-year old kid from France by the name of Luca Van Assche, but one with tremendous ability. What he lacks in the power department he makes up in spades with his all-world defensive ability, and it will propel him to great heights in the game of tennis. It's a stylistic nightmare for Duckworth, who's had the tendency to leak errors in big moments, and with plenty of top-50 scalps already, Van Assche should come into this one thinking he is the far superior player.
It's never fun fading an Aussie at this event, but I'll comfort you with two facts. One is that Australian crowds have historically gravitated to more of the exciting Aussies — there aren't too many James Duckworth loyalists out there — and the other is that this match will be played on outside court at the same time that some top names draws like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexei Popyrin will be in action. I don't foresee some sort of magical performance forthcoming for Duckworth, who in any other country would be a far larger underdog.
Pick: Van Assche ML (-145 via DraftKings)
Andy Murray (-140) vs Tomas Martin Etcheverry (+115)
10:30 p.m. ET
While it's hard to really ever put stock into exhibition matches, there are a select few that really do matter to players. The events prior to Wimbledon usually hold some weight, given grass matches are hard to find for players, and the events in the lead-up to the Australian Open usually feature a bit higher of a level given players are trying to build some form coming off of the off-season.
Well, we may have to talk about Murray's non-competitive loss to Marin Cilic this week — a player who has been demonstrating a horrific level this month as he attempts to come back from an injury that's kept him out for a year ats he nears 40 years of age. It wouldn't be too much cause for concern had Murray been playing some good tennis leading into the event, but this is a man who lost five of his final six matches last season as he stumbled to the finish line.
One of those matches came on an indoor hardcourt against none other than Tomas Martin Etcheverry. While I've long been somewhat skeptical of his ability on this surface, he's earned respect from me with his relentless aggression from the back of the court and his ability to scratch and claw in points to make his opponents play extra balls.
This is the last man Murray, a 36-year old with a metal hip, wants to see as he attempts to find his level again. Etcheverry is going to make this an incredibly physical match, and I'd be remiss if I didn't say he deserves a big victory like this one.
Murray has been coming out rather slowly after the offseason over the last couple of years, and Sunday should be no different. He's always capable of the impossible, so certainly proceed with some degree of caution here, but in theory this should not be a match Etcheverry loses. He's produced an excellent level in the last two Grand Slams he's contested and I expect another solid performance here.
Pick: Etcheverry ML (+115 via DraftKings)
