Bet on Pavle Marinkov vs James McCabe on Tennis

James McCabe is slightly favored to win this Australian Open qualifying match, as he is currently ranked around ATP 188 compared to Pavle Marinkov at approximately ATP 561, indicating a higher proven level on tour. Early market prices in similar qualifiers for McCabe against lower-ranked opponents have hovered near 1.45–1.60 for McCabe and 2.30–2.70 for Marinkov, making him the notional favorite with DexWin - Best Odds on Your Favourite Sports.

The match between Pavle Marinkov and James McCabe is scheduled to start on 12 January 2026 at 11:00 PM UTC. In local time for Melbourne, this corresponds to 12 January 2026 at 10:00 AM AEDT, allowing for typical Australian Open qualifying morning sessions.

This Australian Open qualifying clash will be played at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, the traditional home of the tournament. Melbourne Park features multiple show courts with hard Plexicushion or similar acrylic hard courts, including arenas like Rod Laver Arena and Margaret Court Arena, with overall complex capacity in the tens of thousands of spectators across all courts.

Given McCabe’s significantly higher ranking and greater experience at Challenger and ATP qualifying level, the prediction leans toward a James McCabe win, especially on hard courts where he has posted more consistent results than Marinkov. With indicative odds in the 1.45–1.60 range for McCabe and 2.30–2.70 for Marinkov, value bettors might look at McCabe to win in straight sets or Marinkov on a games handicap if markets overestimate the gap.

Official records list this as a qualifying match in Australian Open, Melbourne, with prior head-to-head meetings between Pavle Marinkov and James McCabe noted but not widely documented in public stats databases. Available summaries suggest no clear long-running rivalry, and there is no confirmed major-tour head-to-head, so this encounter effectively serves as a fresh matchup in high-stakes qualifying conditions at Melbourne Park.