Cross-Sport Multiple: Back the draw in Porto Alegre

9Jun 2013

Betfair

Andrew Hughes thinks France can hold Brazil in the Confederations Cup and help land a Sunday cross-sport multiple in the process.

Bet 1: Back France to draw with Brazil at 3.8

Brazil and France have met fourteen times and have five wins apiece, but you have to go back to 1992 to find the last Brazilian victory. France have also won four of the last five meetings, going back to the infamous World Cup Final of 1998.

A run of one win in six games has the home fans grumbling and with the Confederations Cup starting next weekend, the pressure is on coach Felipe Scolari to produce a winning team.

France lost their friendly against Uruguay earlier in the week, by a single goal, their third defeat in four international matches this year. However, Uruguay are a good team, and their other two defeats were against heavyweights Spain and Germany.

Brazil will be desperate to give their home fans something to cheer about, but a solid looking French team could prove hard to break down, and the draw seems the safest option.

Bet 2: Back New Zealand to beat Sri Lanka at 1.95

Two underrated teams take the field on Sunday for what could be a cracking fifty over game. Sri Lanka's preparation has not been ideal. Key batsmen are out of form, and many of the players arrived late because of the IPL. They've also failed to make it out of the group stages in the last three Champions Trophy tournaments.

By contrast, New Zealand belied their lowly ODI ranking by warming up with a stirring 2-1 series victory against the hosts. That was no fluke result; they also won a series in South Africa earlier this year by the same score.

The key could be how well these teams cope with conditions that will favour swing and seam bowling, and here the Black Caps have the edge. Their battery of fast-medium bowlers can cause the lightweight Sri Lankan middle order problems. Back New Zealand to open their tournament with a victory.

Bet 3: Back Rafael Nadal to beat David Ferrer at 1.11

Rafael Nadal has had to battle his way to the final of the French Open, but after that titanic struggle with Novak Djokovic in the semi-final on Friday, he is a strong favourite to lift his eighth title at Roland Garros.

David Ferrer has had a smoother passage, reaching the final without dropping a set, comfortably disposing of French hope Jo Wilfreid Tsonga in his semi-final clash. He enjoyed his best ever season in 2012 and is in the form of his life. Against almost any other opponent, he would be odds on to lift his first Grand Slam title, but not against Nadal.

The top two players in Spain have played one another twenty-three times, and Nadal has won nineteen of those encounters, including all bar one of their meetings on clay, and all of their seven meetings in finals. Back the champion to defend his title.

Total Odds for this multiple: 8.23 Remember, multiple prices are based on our Sportsbook product, so any winnings are exempt from commission.