Odds Alpha #19
This week, we look at a fascinating tale of events in the crypto market, whilst highlighting two betting selections taking place either side of the world this week.
Cryptocurrency price updates - Bitcoin pulls clear of the rest
It's been an interesting past week as we have seen the price of BTC continue to rise steadily whilst the other major currencies have been left behind. BTC currently sits stable at $29,982 while ETH, for example has stayed solid around the $1,881 mark. As previous patterns have shown, ETH may well now be due for a more significant uptick bringing it's increase more in line with BTC. If you're playing, play wisely, but the market is certainly interesting.
Sport
The amount of sport at this time of year may slow slightly, with many competitions in the northern hemisphere breaking for the summer, so the abundance of betting is harder to find. Instead, quality replaces quantity this weekend and we have picked out a couple of highlights below…
Rugby Union
The Super Rugby Pacific Final is on in New Zealand this weekend and, on the face of it, the Chiefs are worthy favourites here after a stellar regular season campaign.
They have lost only one match all season and finished top of the table, 11 points clear of their opposition for the Final, the Crusaders. They also managed to beat them home and away (the first ever team to achieve this feat in Super Rugby history).
However, this perspective ignores the Crusaders’ imperious record in the competition - they have won the title 11 times in total (8 more than the next best team) and the last 4 in a row (three of the four by more than 10 points). They are practically unstoppable at this time of season & have showed that once more this year, despite being without a host of key players, winning both their playoff games at a canter.
The Chiefs, conversely, have had to battle out their two playoff games with gritty performances which may well have taken more out of them so that, along with the Crusaders’ scarily impressive playoff record, should play into the visitors’ hands.
The Final will have the added element of this being the last game for Crusaders coach, Scott Robertson, and their star playmaker, Richie Mo’unga, who have, together, headed up the most successful period in the club’s history.
Saturday is sure to be an emotional occasion. As Mo’unga rightly said, rugby does not just hand out fairy tale endings, but it would certainly be fitting to see the Crusaders lift the trophy for the 12th time as they bid farewell to two of the greats of Super Rugby…
The Selection: Crusaders -5.5 vs. Chiefs
Details: Saturday 24th June at 8.05am GMT
Link: bet here
Horse Racing - Royal Ascot Takes Centre Stage
Across the equator, Royal Ascot is maybe the feature of the sporting week as the best of flat horse racing come from all over the world to try their hand.
The race of the day on Saturday is the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes with horses from England, Ireland, the USA, Australia, and Spain competing for this Group 1.
The selection for the race is Rohaan. The thinking is fairly simple - he has form figures reading 110114 at the Ascot, including a win at the Royal Meeting last year in the Wokingham Handicap.
He has been placed three times at Group 1 level and his performance in the Champions Sprint Stakes at the end of last season should be upgraded as 5 of the first 7 home that day were in the group on the other side of the track. He also came from the back of the field to stay on well.
His reappearance run was poor, but it should be noted that he has taken a race each time to get back to true form so that result should not be taken at face value (he finished 8th on reappearance last year before winning at Royal Ascot last year).
Double figures odds do not do him justice here so he is fancied as a value bet.
The Selection: Rohaan to Win the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot
Details: Saturday 24th June at 3.40pm GMT
Tennis - Andy Murray gearing up for another tilt at Wimbledon this year!
Elsewhere in the world of sport, be sure to keep an eye on the Queen’s Championships Tennis in London where Andy Murray is tournament favourite after success last week at Nottingham Open. Odds throughout the tournament will be available via our tennis betting pages.
Good luck this weekend!