Online Clock
Sports bettors know well that many factors have to be put together to make a strong wager. From digging through the stats, reading the latest team news and even checking on the weather, many pieces of the puzzle need sorting through before making a bet.
The operator's service also matters. Different bookmakers excel in different areas - some offer superior live betting options, while others specialise in certain sports. To compare them in more detail, platforms like Legalbet.uk are a great starting point. These expert sites review and rank bookmakers, highlighting what each one does best. Once you have chosen your website, it is time to study the different factors of the game you are betting on: team statistics, motivation and other details. One of these factors, often overlooked, is the start time of the match.
This may seem like an inconsequential thing for many punters, because after all, two tennis players facing each other are going to carry the same skill levels into a match, regardless of when it starts. A football match that kicks off at lunchtime should produce much the same result as it would if it was an evening kick-off. But not paying attention to when a match starts can potentially have big consequences for bettors.
Part of the Plan
All sports betting should be done with a plan in mind, including considering when the kick-off is. One reason to know when the start of a match is is to simply get pre-match wagers in on time. You don’t want to have carefully laid out bets only to forget that the game started 30 minutes ago.
Knowing when a match starts is also useful for tracking the live in-play sports betting markets as well. With markets and live odds liable to change very quickly, you need to be ready and settled with your strategy for the big game.
But knowing when the start of a fixture is, can have bigger betting implications than both of things, it can potentially dictate your betting strategy.
The Tennis Example
The first week of Grand Slam tennis is always extremely busy and it’s not uncommon to see some matches extend deep into the evening and even into the early hours of the following morning.
That often creates a backlog of fixtures, when the order of play becomes a lot more congested. A player that’s only finished playing at 11 pm on a Tuesday, may have to get back up and go again in their next match on Wednesday afternoon. If that player happens to be facing an opponent who completed their last match at 3 pm on Tuesday, that late finish puts the one player at a disadvantage.
It’s not only just about playing late and having less time to recover than an opponent which factors into this. After being pumped up on adrenaline, players need time to wind down after a match. They also need to shower, get muscle massages and any other treatments, all of which eat up more time. The lack of comparative sleep between the two players could create quite a wide gap and have major effects on future performance levels.
Messing with the Mindset
Adjusted schedules can mess with the mindset of players. It can cause an issue with focus and confidence, and this is something that bettors have to take into consideration ahead of making wagers.
When fatigue is present, it’s just physically harder to maintain focus, especially over a long match. This has further consequences for live in-play betting as well, besides not missing the live markets.
A favourite that’s had little recovery time between matches, could, for example, start to feel the effects of fatigue later into a match. As a player starts fading in a fixture, it opens up live wagering opportunities on momentum swings.
Fixture Dates
So checking when teams or players were last in action should be something to consider ahead of placing bets. Fatigue can be a very telling factor and while some elite athletes can brush it off easier than others, in the long run, it can potentially ruin a player’s championship bid. A pre-tournament favourite in an event like the US Open Grand Slam tennis could be undone simply because of the timing of their fixtures.
A soccer team that’s having to fit in extra matches can be detrimental to their form as well. Premier League teams involved in the UEFA Champions League group stage have to play extra midweek matches, for example. If Liverpool just played in Europe on a Wednesday and their next domestic game happens to be early on a Saturday lunchtime against a team that’s not played a single match for seven days, Liverpool’s opponents could receive a boost.
So the timing of matches counts for a lot and that is why it’s important to not only know when a team or player’s next match is starting, but when their last one finished as well.