The WTA Rome tournament second round continues on Friday. The WTA is a very competitive tour right now. No one expected Marta Kostyuk to win Madrid. Will we see a completely unexpected champion in Rome? The French Open could be a lot more wide open than many people think. Will the coming days in Italy shake up the tour even more, or will we see the top players take command and remind everyone they are still the ones to beat in women’s tennis? Heading into the weekend, it’s time to see if chaos will continue to reign on the WTA Tour. LWOS has our best bets for three matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.
WTA Rome
Waltert – Baptiste: Time 9:30 EST
H2H: 0-0
Simona Waltert is posting fairly consistent results for her overall World ranking. Waltert hasn’t won any tournaments, but she has managed to win more than one match in five tournaments, including WTA Rome. Hailey Baptiste has really stepped up her game over the last year. Not only has she risen to No. 25 in the World rankings, but she’s had two semifinal appearances and one quarterfinal on the year. She is coming off a really competitive semifinal loss to Mirra Andreeva at WTA Madrid, and that’s after she beat the World No. 1, Aryna Sabalenka, in the quarterfinals, Belinda Bencic in the round of 16, and Jasmine Paolini in the third round.
Best Bet to Make
The books have Baptiste as a 2-1 favorite, but Waltert has more wins on clay in 2026. Here’s the thing about Waltert’s record on clay: that single tournament by Baptiste tested her more than all the competition faced by Waltert in 2026 combined. The two best wins on Waltert’s clay resumé in ‘26 are Jelena Ostapenko and Yulia Stardubtseva. In fact, even if you included the hardcourt tournaments, the only other name you’d add to that list would be Darya Kasatkina. Baptiste is simply playing another level of opponent and should win easily.
That being said, betting on Baptiste winning 2:0 is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Baptiste winning 2:0 @2.1 @WilliamHill
Masarova – Fernandez: Time 9:30 EST
H2H: 0-0
Rebeka Masarova vs Leylah Fernandez is another one of those matches that looks better than it will turn out to be. While both ladies have a 6-3 record on clay this year, Fernandez has been facing far tougher opponents. The lowest-ranked player that Fernandez lost to was No. 20 Diana Shnaider. The other two losses were to Elena Rybakina and Mirra Andreeva, who have basically been buzzsaws in 2026. Fernandez gave them both all they could handle in extremely back-and-forth matches. This match is only going one way.
Best Bet to Make
Masarova has largely been playing qualifying matches and lower-ranked tournaments. Most books see Fernandez as a 2:1 favorite on average. You can get Fernandez winning in straight sets at 2.1, which will bring you a really solid return for hardly any work. If you’re going to venture outside of a correct score bet, then I wouldn’t go any higher than a spread of 4 games. Keep it simple, reap the rewards.
That being said, betting on Fernandez winning 2:0 is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Fernandez winning 2:0 @2.1 @WilliamHill
Sakkari – Rybakina: Time 10:00 EST
H2H: 1-5
Elena Rybakina has played three finals in 2026, winning two and losing one to Aryna Sabalenka. It’s also worth noting that she did beat Sabalenka in a Major final in Australia, while her loss was at Indian Wells. Rybakina’s only losses have been to Anastasia Potapova, Victoria Mboko, Sabalenka, Karolina Muchova, and Antonia Ruzic. Rybakina has also won here in Rome back in 2023. Maria Sakkari has one total win against Rybakina, and it was in 2022 at Indian Wells. Sakkari’s best finish in ‘26 is a semifinal appearance at WTA Doha.
Best Bet to Make
Elena Rybakina is going to win this one; it’s just a matter of by how much. I think any more than 5.5 games will be a stretch. Sakkari isn’t so bad that Rybakina is likely to humiliate her, but she will win rather convincingly. The odds are about 5-1 in favor of Rybakina; just keep that in mind when you place whatever bet you decide upon.
That being said, betting on Rybakina +5.5 games is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Rybakina +5.5 games @1.85 @Betway
Main Photo Credit: Jay Calderon-USA TODAY Sports
