Elite Sports Betting Tips: April 22
IPL - Royal Challngers Bangalore vs Sunriserss Hyderabad - 1st Innings Virat Kohli Total Under 29.5 @ 1.85
Nick
Having made a poor start to this season, this runs margin seems quite a task for Kohli to cover at the moment.119 runs in his last 7 innings - including a golden duck in his last innings - it seems the bowlers are exploiting a new found weakness of his; back of a length balls outside off stump.
Given RC Bangalore are still doing quite well without relying on Kohli, the pressure is off him for now. But we don’t expect his form slump to improve anytime soon. 2 units
Dota2 DreamLeague - Ivy vs Team Bald Reborn - Total Maps Over 2.5 @2.01
David
We’re on the last match of the WEU DOTA Pro Circuit Tour 2 Division II which is a tiebreaker wherein the loser will be eliminated from the Dota Pro Circuit.
Odds indicate Team Bald Reborn as the heavy favorite at 1.42 but I see it as a very even match.
Both teams have a record of 2W-5L and a very similar map score, 5-11 for Ivy and 6-11 for Team Bald Reborn.
The last time these guys met, the match went to the third map and now that they’re literally going to fight for their lives, I expect neither of the teams to lose in two straight maps. 1.5 units
English League Two – Bristol Rovers v Forest Green Rovers - 1x2 Bristol Rovers @ 2.7
CBod
Only looking at League Two table can you see why Forest Green would be favourites here.
Dig deeper and it shows The Pirates had a bad start to the season under Joey Barton, so much so they’ll be kicking themselves if they don’t secure automatic promotion.
They beat the 3rd placed (last auto promotion spot), Port Vale, away on Easter Monday - a massive win that leaves them 2 points outside the automatic spot and everything to play for.
But this was no fluke…if the season started in November Bristol Rovers would be sitting top of the league.
And this all stems from their home form at Memorial Stadium. They’ve won their last 5 at home conceding 1 goal. Going back their last 10 in Bristol (W8, D2) conceding just 2! Momentum and a fortress.
Forest Green cannot be ignored, they’re top of the league and champions elect for a reason. But that is just it, champions elect - they can afford a slip up, probably 2 and still win the league.
The possibility of relenting was there to be seen in their previous away match to Barrow - a team battling relegation, with only 4 wins at home all season - losing 4-0!
This result means their last 5 away reads: W1, D2, L2. 1 unit
CS:GO - PGL Major Antwerp Europe RMR B - Nip vs Copenhagen Flames - Winner: Copenhagen Flames @ 2.18
Alex
An interesting matchup with the heavily underrated Copenhagen Flames currently on a 5 match winning streak.
Looking at past matches between these two sides, Copenhagen Flames most recently won 2-0 back in February at IEM Katowice, even dominating on Nuke 16-3. Back in 2021, Nip managed to scrape a win, going to the 3rd map in overtime.
While Nip is a solid side, they seem to struggle against this up and coming team. Definitely a match worth watching between these two talented Danish teams. 1 unit
UFC Fight Night Lemnos Vs. Andrade - Maycee Barber vs Montana de la Rosa - de la Rosa to win @ 2.5
Blake
It's fair to say that Maycee Barber's UFC career has been a rollercoaster from her stunning entrance which led to predictions of becoming the youngest UFC champion in history to the losses against Modaferri and Grasso in two of her past three fights.
It's a simple fact that she's become somewhat gun shy since her knee injury in the Modaferri fight and even with one win in 2021, we haven't seen the same explosive talent we saw as she was rising in the ranks.
On the other hand, de la Rosa has been quietly amassing experience against some solid competition including a win over Ariane Lipski mid-last year before a draw in her most recent fight.
She comes into this fight having not seen the octagon in over 12 months but has the tools to make this fight more than competitive and if she can get things on her terms early, the price here will look pretty big as the fight goes on. 1 unit
Asian Champions League - Sydney Fc vs. Yokohoma F Marinos - 1x2 Yokohoma F Marinos @1.60
Matt
Backing last seasons J-league runners ups to win this champions league matchup against the team from Australia, Sydney FC.
Yokohama has a big Australian influence with the current manager, Kevin Muscat, having won 46 caps for Australia, and having managed Australian A-League team Melbourne Victory, while their previous manager, Ange Postecoglu was also Australian, and managed Yokohama to the J-League title back in 2019.
Sydney FC have struggled big time this year, with their manager looking to be on the way out.
They are currently 7th out of 12 teams in the A-League, a competition which is of a far lower standard than the J-League where Yokohama are currently third in the league, after having finished 2nd last year.
While 1.60 is short, I think it is warranted and should be a comfortable win for Yokohama here. 2 units
Copa Del Rey - Betis vs Valencia - 1x2 & Total Betis & Under 3.5 @ 2.65
Cesar
We head over to sunny Spain to enjoy an unusual Copa Del Rey final with two teams that have not reached the final in years!
So get your tapas sorted, have a sit and punt on what is set to be a soccer match full of technique!
Two-time winners Real Betis take on Valencia, who have won the competition on eight occasions.
Real Betis overcame Rayo Vallecano 3-2 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the tournament to advance to the final, while Valencia beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 over two legs to progress.
This year, Real Betis recorded a 4-1 win over Valencia in La Liga earlier this season, but Valencia have been victorious in three of the last four Copa del Rey contests between the two sides which may be something that proves intimidating to the green and white side.
However, Valencia will enter this match off the back of successive La Liga defeats to Osasuna and Villarreal, which has seen them drop into 10th position in Spain’s top flight and may be affecting their confidence into the final.
Regardless, Betis are set to return with key players such as William Carvalho, Borja Iglesias and Hector Bellerin, which will strengthen their side even more.
Betis have shown the ability to score several goals a game while on the other hand, Valencia have struggled to score more than 1 goal a game in 11 out of their last 12 matches.
Therefore I predict a match under 3.5 goals. Vamos! 2 units
English Premier League - Norwich v Newcastle - 1x2 Newcastle @ 2.13
Dom Rae
Newcastle are all but safe from relegation following the turnaround led by the superb Eddie Howe and they can pile more misery on Norwich this weekend.
Bruno Guimaraes is showing why he was linked with Europe's top clubs and clocked up another assist in midweek and the Magpies look a different side at the back with some astute signings.
The Canaries on the other hand are in last place in the table and it's difficult to see things improving in this game given the form their opponents are in. 1 unit
NBA - Atlanta Hawks vs Miami Heat - Atlanta Hawks @ 2.03
Nathan
At time of writing, the Hawks sit at 1.5 point underdogs with the series moving back to the A and the home side in dire need to turn around a 2-0 deficit against the #1 seed.
It’s been a tough series for the Hawks to say the least, headlined by the shutdown of Trae Young on offence which has inevitably reflected on the Hawks ability to put up points - a trend we’re expecting to change with home court advantage.
Some interesting numbers from Hawk losses this season, they are 0-41 ATS and 0-23 as underdogs, meaning when they lose, they don’t cover, so we’re going to forego the 1.5 points here and ride with the Trae’n getting back on track! 1 units
Czech Republic Extraliga Handball Playoffs - Plzen v HC Zubri - 1x2 HC Zubri @ 2.60
Brad
We’ve reached the Semi Final stage of the Czech Republic Extraliga Playoffs with the top four seeds all progressing past the Quarter Finals.
It was an easy passage here for the third ranked Zubri who had little trouble dealing with Nove Vesili, winning the best-of-five series 3-0.
Zubri have been in red hot form of late with their last defeat coming back in the first week of February.
A third-round exit from the European Cup has proved to be a blessing as it has left them to focus only on domestic matters.
It was a different story for their opponents Plzen in the quarters however who needed all five games to overcome a plucky seventh-seed Brno.
This was a more competitive tie than what the rankings would have suggested with two matches decided by a solitary point and another going all the way to a penalty shootout.
The fixtures have piled up for Plzen of late having played two more games than Zubri in the last round, as well as an exit in the Quarter Finals of the European Cup earlier this month at the hands of Swedish outfit Alingas.
Plzen have the advantage of playing this opening match at their home arena, but Zubri have the form going into this one making them an attractive proposition as underdogs. 1 unit
Bundesliga - RB Leipzig v Union Berlin - Over 2.5 goals @ 1.88
George
Quite possibly the most undervalued spot for the weekend across the league!
RB Leipzig are known to be a high goalscoring team in quite arguably the most attack-friendly league in the world, while Union Berlin like to play with a high counter-pressing system.
Since 2020, these two teams have played 5 times, with 4 of those times going over.
One of those contests were played Thursday morning in the German Cup, with the scoreline being 2-1.
Additionally, it is important to note that Leipzig's Hungarian maestro Dominic Szoboszlai was missing in the one meeting since 2020 that did not go over, showing how prolific he is in front of goal and in front of his home fans.
Both these teams have something to play for this weekend, with Leipzig hoping to clinch a UCL spot and Union fighting for the second Europa League ticket with Bayer Leverkusen; it is known that when German teams have something to play for late in the season, they try to win on offensive superiority rather than defensive stubbornness.
I'm picking 3-2 in this game with my man Szoboszlai to score a brace. 2 units