Del Potro can book Wimbledon semi-final dance with Djokovic

Day nine at Wimbledon sees two all killer, no filler quarter final clashes in the top half of the draw and it’s the former US Open winners that are expected to come through at the All England Club.

Novak Djokovic (-5.5 games) to beat Tomas Berdych @ 8/11

If the odds are to be believed, Novak Djokovic’s quarter final meeting with Tomas Berdych is likely to be a one-sided affair, despite the fact that the Czech won their most recent meeting on the Roman clay.

Berdych also boasts a straight sets win in the pair’s only prior duel on grass, having beaten the Serb in the semis at Wimbledon 2010. Djokovic’s career really began to go stratospheric the next year, but nonetheless the Czech has taken at least a set off him in half of their 10 subsequent completed encounters.

The world number six has taken some time to get on top of his foes in his last two matches, losing the first set against Kevin Andersen and taking two sets to work out Bernard Tomic’s serve in the fourth round.

Djokovic on the contrary has been a fast starter in three of his four matches so far, winning first sets for the loss of three games or less.

That his first set against Bobby Reynolds went to a tie break can be attributed to the fact the that the boy from Belgrade needs to play the better players to be on his mettle and Berdych – who beat him in Rome – is certainly one of them.

The world number one is expected to put the first set away with minimal fuss to pave the way for his win on the -5.5 game handicap, just as he has done in the pair’s last two best of five set Grand Slam meetings.

Juan Martin Del Potro to beat David Ferrer @ 6/5

The second clash in the top half of the draw is on a knife-edge in comparison, with French Open finalist Ferrer a narrow jolly in the match betting, as befits a man who has the slightly better recent form this term than his adversary. Both men carry injuries into the match just to give it that extra air of unpredictability.

The hard-grafting Spaniard can boast a 6-2 lead in the pair’s head-to-head, yet it’s Del Potro who is fancied to prevail here.

Ferrer has laboured through the tournament in a manner far different from his charge to the final in Paris, dropping sets in each and every round.

Del Potro on the other hand has spared his beleaguered knee extra use with four straight sets wins.

Having previously won a US Open, he’ll not lack for big match temperament and can use his self-hailed increased comfort on the grass court to smooth a path into the semi-finals at Ferrer’s expense.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.