The WTA Eastbourne semifinal action unfolds on Friday. The four players who have gotten this far have had a very good week. Even if they lose in the semifinals, they will have gotten four matches in during the week. That is substantial preparation for next week at the All-England Club. They will have reason to think they are ready for Wimbledon. It’s an interesting pair of matches. There’s a grass specialist involved, plus two major champions and a total surprise no one expected to be here. Will the favorites take care of business, or will the underdogs continue to pull upsets and create a very unexpected final? LWOS has our best bets for the two semifinal matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.
WTA Eastbourne
Marcinko – Keys: 7:30 EST
H2H: 0-0
Petra Marcinko has made her way to the WTA Eastbourne semifinals. She hasn’t beaten elite players, but she has won every match she played. She has beaten Antonia Ruzic, Kimberly Birrell, and Caty McNally. Maybe those players don’t stand out as being extra impressive, but Birrell beat former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova earlier in the WTA Eastbourne event. Marcinko is playing her way into the WTA top 50 and is beginning to make a name for herself. Upsetting Madison Keys would be a massive step forward for her. Let’s see if she can pull it off.
Best Bet to Make
Madison Keys is a much better player than Petra Marcinko has faced so far this week at WTA Eastbourne. She is a former major champion, very much used to playing in big tournaments, and will be hungry for a trophy this weekend. She has a power game that works well on the grass surface. Also note that multiple Marcinko victories this week have been in three sets. It’s not as though Marcinko is dominating the competition. Keys should beat her in straight sets. However, the price for Keys in straight sets is not high enough to make it our value bet. You should put Keys to win in straight sets as a parlay piece at 1.54. The standalone bet has to be a game spread bet, and the evenly-priced spread is 5.5 games. Though we think Keys will win in straight sets, we actually think the match won’t be a total blowout. A routine 6-4, 6-3 win for Keys would still cash for Marcinko. The price is right.
That being said, betting on Marcinko +5.5 games is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Marcinko +5.5 games @1.85 @Betway
Maria – Ostapenko: 6:00 EST
H2H: 1-0
Tatjana Maria continues to show at the WTA Eastbourne tournament how good a grass tennis player she is. Earlier in the week, she took down No. 1 seed and former Wimbledon finalist Jasmine Paolini in straight sets. What was interesting about that match from a betting standpoint is that Maria was not a clear-cut underdog. The match was priced close to a toss-up, even though Paolini was the top seed and is a top-30 WTA player. Maria didn’t stop winning after that big victory over Paolini. She has maintained focus and has remained in rhythm. She is now 9-3 on grass this year. Jelena Ostapenko did not play lawn tennis in the first two weeks after the French Open. She came to the WTA Eastbourne event ready to test herself on grass for the first time in 2026, and so far, the test has gone really well. Ostapenko is 3-0 this week, and she has lost just one set out of the seven she has played. Two in-form players meet in the semifinals.
Best Bet to Make
This is a battle between two players who are playing well. Maria has won her last three matches in straight sets. Ostapenko has won twice in straight sets this week. This might seem like a good reason to expect a straight-set match, but when two players both in rhythm go against each other, the trend of straight-set results might actually change. One player might push back against the other and create a third set. Also, keep in mind that Ostapenko is known for having up-and-down matches that go in different directions. You could have Maria, who is priced as the underdog, plus 1.5 sets as a parlay piece. You could also have Ostapenko moneyline as a parlay piece. However, for the standalone best bet, over 2.5 sets is the play. Both players are likely to do something well in this match. It’s not likely to be easy for either player.
That being said, betting on over 2.5 sets is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: over 2.5 sets @2.42 @Betsson
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
