The WTA Madrid first round continues on Wednesday. The opening round began on Tuesday with former Major champion Venus Williams losing. Many of the matches on the order of play were straight-set wipeouts. Some players looked fully prepared for this tournament, while others were rusty or simply caught off guard. Let’s see if there are more three-set matches and more overall competitive balance as the tournament continues in Spain. We will look at three matches on the Wednesday card.
WTA Madrid
Snigur – Kasatkina: Time 6:30 EST
H2H: 0-0
It’s Daria versus Darya. Snigur meets Kasatkina in Spain. Snigur has played many matches at the ITF level in recent weeks. Kasatkina hasn’t played much of any tennis, having been slowed down by a hip injury. She has played only one match since February, and she lost earlier in April. Will that one match give her a little more rhythm and confidence when she takes the court here?
Best Bet to Make
Although Kasatkina is a better and more proven player than Snigur, the fact that she has not played much tennis in the past two months, just one match since mid-February, means she is rusty. Kasatkina might win, but it makes sense to bet that Snigur will make this match competitive. If Kasatkina wins, it won’t be by a large margin. That’s where you should go with your play, probably a set spread rather than a game spread. This is me being a chicken, straight up. These matches terrify me.
That being said, Snigur +1.5 sets is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Snigur +1.5 sets @1.75 @Interwetten
Uchijima – Starodubtseva: Time 6:30 EST
H2H: 1-0
Moyuka Uchijima has been playing ITF events for most of the past several weeks. Now she moves up to the WTA Tour for a match she urgently needs to win. Yulia Starodubtseva is a lucky loser. She lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in qualifying but was able to get into the field because of several withdrawals, including Amanda Anisimova. How will Starodubtseva respond to a loss earlier in Madrid? Will she regain confidence and capitalize on this new opportunity, or will she continue to struggle?
Best Bet to Make
The odds on this match are not extensive, and the returns are not amazing, but Starodubtseva certainly looks like the better player in a head-to-head comparison. You can cash a ticket without too much of a sweat. Starodubtseva’s loss to Pavlyuchenkova is no cause for embarrassment, since Pavlyuchenkova is a former French Open runner-up and someone who can play really well. Don’t overcomplicate this one.
That being said, Starodubtseva winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Starodubtseva winning @1.60 @1xBet
Pavlyuchenkova – Eala: Time 7:00 EST
H2H: 0-0
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova made the French Open final a few years ago. She lost, but she at least played to her potential. That is not something she has been doing recently. She had to go through the qualifying rounds. She did manage to get into the main draw, beating Yulia Starodubtseva earlier this week in Madrid. She now goes up against Alexandra Eala, who had a very strong tournament on hardcourt in Miami, making the Round of 16. Eala is primarily a hardcourt player. Can she adjust to clay?
Best Bet to Make
Eala is 1-3 in her last four matches, but those losses have come against good or at least talented players. Jelena Ostapenko, Karolina Muchova, and Leylah Fernandez are all top-40 players. Pavlyuchenkova is ranked outside the top 100. Even though Eala is not especially strong on clay, she is a solid player who has faced tough opponents. That should be enough to give her the edge over Pavlyuchenkova, who is not in the best form of her career. The return on an Eala win is reasonable. Stick with the simple and reasonable bet here. There will be plenty of other matches to overthink.
That being said, Eala winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Eala winning @1.80 @bet365
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
