The second round of Wimbledon continues on Friday with a great slate of matches, and I've picked out two favorites who I feel are more deserving of our respect.
Let's get into how to bet Norrie vs Eubanks and Pella vs Safiullin.
Match times are subject to change. Read here for advice on viewing Wimbledon matches.
July 7th Wimbledon Odds & Picks
Cameron Norrie (-360) vs Christopher Eubanks (+280)
9:15 a.m. ET
Chris Eubanks is a very trendy underdog pick these days. The American had a brilliant run in Mallorca en route to his first ATP title and seemed to figure out how to play on grass along the way.
That's the thing, however – Eubanks has still yet to play a ton of grass-court tennis in his career and is still in the early stages of his development as a tennis player. He possesses a gigantic serve and has made some strides in shoring up his groundstrokes, but the backhand is still a glaring weakness.
Whether you like it or not, Cam Norrie has to be considered one of the world's best at the moment. The world No. 13 is just about as steady as they come from the back of the court, giving little away and extracting errors out of his opponent's racquet. He's very capable of picking on the Eubanks backhand, and I think the changing levels he brings with his low, flat backhand and his topspin forehand should make for a very uncomfortable match.
Eubanks simply won't be ready to hit his still-improving backhand this much, particularly if he's going to have to generate pace. That's what he'll need to do, too, considering the Norrie topspin forehand will die on the grass and sit up for Eubanks to hit. I think he'll falter when asked to make shots like that.
Expect Eubanks to have his shine in this match as he showcases the improvements he's made, but don't expect an upset.
Pick: Norrie -4.5 games (-115 via PointsBet)
Roman Safiullin (-215) vs Guido Pella (+175)
8:30 a.m. ET
Guido Pella has carved out a nice little niche for himself as a trendy Wimbledon underdog. He won a match here as a +1200 underdog back in 2018 on his way to the third round, and the year following he made the quarterfinals with a couple of impressive wins along the way.
The fact remains, though, that Pella is 13-18 on grass for his career and has hardly played any tennis at all over the last two years with an 8-10 record. It was nice to see him come through some grass-averse players in Borna Coric and young Harold Mayot, but Roman Safiullin is going to be a much tougher test.
Safiullin was scary good in his win over a very strong Corentin Moutet, pummeling his big serve all match long and keeping his composure under pressure. His sheer power makes him a very dangerous player to face on a hard or grass court when he's feeling it, and it's clear he's in his bag at the moment.
He should be able to break down the Pella backhand here and prevent him from digging his heels into rallies as he loves to do as a natural clay-courter. I think the books are respecting Pella far too much here; it's important to remember the players he's beaten and the lack of matches.
Picks: Safiullin -3.5 games (-110 via DraftKings)
