How to Get a 3.5x Return on Round 1 Action at the Australian Open

Australian Open action begins at Melbourne Park this Sunday, and with 128 matches over the first round, there’s plenty of excellent betting to be had. We’ve broken down the best multi bet to get the week’s tennis betting underway, using odds from the best betting sites in Australia.

Melbourne Park, January 12th, 11am AEDT

Hugo Gaston to win @ 1.50

Omar Jasika did tremendously well last year on the Challenger Tour to improve his ranking enough to now play at the Australian Open. Granted, he is there with a wild card, but he earned it as they’re not handed out on beauty alone. His opponent, however, is the experienced ATP player Hugo Gaston.

Gaston has looked pretty good at the start of the year despite losing two matches. His style of play is very streaky, so sometimes he’ll be excellent and sometimes not. There could be a chance for Jasika, but the problem is that he hasn't seen many players like Gaston. Jasika is a baseliner who doesn’t really like to move around a lot.

He’s super aggressive and keeps the points short, and that’s not going to be enough against Gaston. Gaston plays the drop shot all the time, which is likely to frustrate Jasika. That sort of crafty playstyle and the experience of having played in Grand Slams should be enough for the French player to win the match.

Betting against a native player is never ideal, but we do think that Gaston is simply the better player. He will likely show that in this spot, so take him winning as the opening leg of your multi bet.

Melbourne Park, January 13th, time TBC

Rinky Hijikata to win @ 1.45

Rinky Hijikata has proven himself as a very solid ATP player. While it took some years to get to the ATP level, the Aussie managed to do it last year and immediately showed that he belongs. He’s a very good hard-court player, combining craftiness with a powerful serve, and he loves to play back home.

He has one main draw win at the Australian Open coming in 2023 and nearly made it two last year against Jan-Lennard Struff. We think he’ll do it this year because he’s right on par with Mitchell Krueger in terms of quality. He might be even above him because Krueger is rather limited. There is a great serve and dangerous play from the baseline, but he can be overcome with some craftiness.

That craftiness is a hallmark of Hijikata's game and it’s part of why he won the doubles trophy here with Jason Kubler in the past. The combination of the playstyles mildly favouring Hijikata and him being at home should be enough for him to rise above Krueger and win the match. Take his odds of 1.45 to win at Bet365 as the second leg of your multi.

Melbourne Park, January 13th, time TBC

Kokkinakis to win @ 1.60

Thanasi Kokkinakis is another player who has done tremendously well at home and is expected to do so again this coming week. He has that typical Aussie playstyle with a powerful serve and really aggressive baseline shots. When he’s firing on all cylinders, Kokkinakis the perfect fit for these courts. He’s also a fan favourite, so don’t underestimate just how much fan support he will have in this one.

The Australian has also started 2025 really well, winning a couple of matches in his hometown of Adelaide. He’s been in Australia for a while during the off-season, so he should be as comfortable as ever. Another reason why this pick makes sense is that his opponent, Roman Safiullin, has looked pretty bad this year.

The Russian is a solid player overall and, at his best, is close to the level of Kokkinakis, but he’s not been playing anywhere close to that level at the start of this year.

When you look at the form of both players, it's pretty clear that one player has a clear edge, and it's Kokkinakis. The only concern would be his status, because he did withdraw from a match in Adelaide against Sebastian Korda. Assuming he’s fully healthy, he should be able to get it done and round out a tidy multi to get your Australian Open betting underway.

The Australian Open gets underway this Sunday, with plenty of enticing multi-bet action over the first round of the tournament. We’ve cherry-picked three of the best bets to start off your tennis betting with a gentle 3.5x return multi this week, based on Gaston, Hijikata and Kokkinakis prevailing in Melbourne.