Australian Open Odds, Picks & Predictions | Best Bets For Tsitsipas vs. Lehecka, Korda vs. Khachanov

Australian Open Odds, Picks & Predictions | Best Bets For Tsitsipas vs. Lehecka, Korda vs. Khachanov article feature image
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Manan Vatsyayana, William West/Getty. Pictured: Sebastian Korda & Karen Khachanov.

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We've come to the quarterfinal stage of the men's draw at the Australian Open, with the first two matches going off on Monday night.

A pair of youngsters made headlines with wins on Saturday night, but I think they might be in for tough tests on Monday.

Read below for my analysis of the Australian Open odds, with picks and predictions.

Match times are subject to change. Read here for advice on viewing Australian Open matches.

Australian Open Odds, Picks & Predictions

Stefanos Tsitsipas (-600) vs. Jiri Lehecka (+450)

4:15 a.m. ET

These two met nearly a year ago now in Rotterdam, and it was right at the start of Lehecka's breakout. He'd been winning plenty of matches on clay at the Challenger level, and it was at that event he defeated Denis Shapovalov, Lorenzo Musetti, Botic van de Zandschulp and others en route to a semifinal clash with Tsitsipas.

The Greek was still finding his form at that point in time, and even so he was able to easily dispatch of Lehecka after the Czech took the first set.

Lehecka's run to the quarters here has been magical and has seen him beat some big names like Cam Norrie and Felix Auger-Aliassime, but how much of it has been due to his own play? Norrie made countless unforced errors in a rare sight, and Auger-Aliassime did the same in their fourth round encounter.

The breakout Czech has been able to serve his way out of trouble and has made a habit of redlining and playing some stunning tennis at times. Those moments are few and far between, however, and a player like Tsitsipas is not going to afford you a ton of opportunities by donating errors.

Full credit goes to Lehecka for the run he's had here, but I don't think he's quite ready for a challenge like this. His focus and his level will have to be up all match, and I see far too many lapses happening.

Pick: Under 35.5 (-115 via DraftKings)

Sebastian Korda (-140) vs. Karen Khachanov (+115)

10 p.m. ET

The young American looks ready for the big time after taking out Daniil Medvedev and Hubert Hurkacz in succession, and he's certainly made some improvements on serve and with his forehand, which had been balky.

While an even bigger breakout run is surely coming for Sebastian Korda, I think this is where his Australian Open journey ends.

Karen Khachanov is playing other-worldly tennis at the moment, serving to perfection and hitting his opponents off the court. This iteration of the Russian is nowhere close to the one who lost twice to Korda on hard courts last season, winning far more points behind his second serve with some tantalizing work from the back of the court.

Korda has been a bit too shaky under pressure for my liking, and while he was able to survive a bunch of service breaks in his last two matches, I'm not quite sure he will be able to do so here against someone who just negotiated 90% of points behind his first serve against a very good returner in Yoshihito Nishioka.

I expect this to be a ball-bashing contest, and there are few I'd pick in such a match than Khachanov. He looks like the second-best player remaining in the draw right now, and it's not particularly close.

Pick: Khachanov ML (+115 via Caesars)

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