Best Bets
The Yankees experienced a bump in the road losing back to back games to rivals the Red Sox and the Oakland Athletics, before resuming normal service with consecutive wins against the A’s. The Nationals are on a hot streak, sweeping the Diamondbacks and winning seven of their last eight games and won’t be intimidated by the Brooklyn Bombers. Giancarlo Stanton is in outstanding form, with three RBI’s and a homer against Oakland that helped the Yankees to a 6-2 victory in their last start. The Yankees offence has been outstanding for the last month and I’m backing them to get the win in the first game against the Nationals.
Japan’s Kei Nishkori will clash with Grigor Dimitrov in the second round of the Rome Masters. The Japanese star has turned around his form on clay in time for the French Open is coming off a straight sets win over Feliciano Lopez and has won three of his last four matches against Dimitrov. The Bulgarian has struggled on clay this season and has struggled for consistency on his first serve. Nishkori has had a history with injuries but the Japanese player is in outstanding form on clay and should be able to win this match in straight sets.
The Cleveland Cavs are coming off a hammering in the opening game of the Conference Finals and the Celtics are playing with confidence at home. Boston were expected to be cannon fodder for the likes of the 76ers and the Cavs but have defied expectations to record an 8-0 record at home in the postseason. LeBron James had his quietest game of the postseason to date recording 15 points for the opening game. Expect the Cavs to bounce back in game two as LeBron has been in outstanding form across the opening ten games, with a 34.5 (PPG) average. The Cavs won’t be fazed by the Game One performance and expect them to come out swinging in game two and bounce back with a win.
Chris Gayle could prove to be the difference for the Kings XI when they battle the defending champions for a place in the IPL Finals. Gayle has been in outstanding form for Punjab with a haul of 350 runs from nine matches at a strike rate of 146.44. Gayle will enjoy the challenge against the Mumbai side and the Kings XI will be looking to bounce back from back to back losses to the Knight Riders and Royal Challengers. The Indians are coming back to earth from a seven-wicket loss to the Royals, after recordings a 102-run win over the Indians. The Kings have a chance of cementing a place in the IPL finals with a win over Mumbai and I’m backing them to fire at the right time of the season.