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Paula Badosa in action ahead of WTA Hamburg

WTA Hamburg Round of 16 Best Bets Including Paula Badosa vs Panna Udvardy

The WTA Hamburg tournament features the Round of 16 on Thursday. The clay event has produced many higher seeds as winners. Most of the betting-market favorites are advancing in this event. It makes you wonder if WTA Hamburg is about to create more surprises as we head toward the weekend in Germany. The fact that betting favorites are winning means you should see a lot of good players face each other, creating the possibility that the weekend’s semifinal and final will be especially interesting. LWOS has our best bets for three matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.

WTA Hamburg 

Mayar Sherif – Elsa Jacquemot: 5:00 EST

H2H: 0-0

This WTA Hamburg match seems clear-cut on the surface. Mayar Sherif is 30-11 in 41 clay tennis matches in 2026, while Elsa Jacquemot is 3-8 in 11 matches on clay this year. One player is a lot better on clay than the other and has played a higher volume of matches on the surface this tennis season. Can Jacquemot defy the odds and also the betting markets? 

Best Bet to Make

The facts are what they are. Mayar Sherif has won 27 more clay tennis matches than Elsa Jacquemot this year, and she is plus-19 in her win-loss differential on clay in 41 matches. That’s not a tiny sample size. Jacquemot is minus-5 in wins and losses on clay in 11 matches. Do you really want to bet anything other than Sherif to win convincingly and decisively? Just keep it simple here, and the price is obviously right.

That being said, betting on Sherif winning 2:0 is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: Sherif winning 2:0 at 2.00 @10bet      

Oleksandra Oliynykova – Leyre Romero Gormaz: 6:30 EST

H2H: 1-0

This WTA Hamburg match features two players who really like playing on clay. It’s exactly what you would expect from a small late July clay tournament. Oleksandra Oliynykova made a strong run at Roland-Garros and was able to push her way into the WTA top 50 as a result of that and other recent clay performances. She has had a good year, steadily moving up the rankings. Currently No. 45, she is ranked 108 spots higher than Leyre Romero Gormaz, who is No. 153. Oliynykova is 17-10 on clay this year, while Romero Gormaz is 27-13. However, Oliynykova, as shown at Roland-Garros, has played and beaten better competition than Romero Gormaz, hence her higher ranking and her position as the betting-market favorite here. 

Aug 15, 2022; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Mayar Sherif (EGY) returns a shot during her match against Elena Rybakina (KAZ) at the Western & Southern at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports | Source: Lastwordonsports.com - Jakub Bobro

Best Bet to Make

What you have here at WTA Hamburg is a situation in which two players know how to play on clay, but one has played a higher level of competition. This is a theme I often harp on in our WTA best bet previews. Oliynykova has beaten tougher opponents than Romero Gormaz, so even though Romero Gormaz has 10 more clay wins in 2026 (27 to 17), Oliynykova is the better choice to win the match. Yet, because Romero Gormaz is competent on clay, the price for Oliynykova is better than what some might expect. Just take Oliynykova to win the match.

That being said, betting on Oliynykova winning is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: Oliynykova winning @1.60 @betway

Paula Badosa – Panna Udvardy: 8:00 EST

H2H: 1-0

The WTA Hamburg Thursday schedule includes this very interesting Round of 16 match. Paula Badosa retired from the WTA Iasi Open final in Romania on Sunday, bothered by yet another injury. We wondered why she even bothered to come to Germany for this Hamburg tournament. Still, she got through her first match against Katarzyna Kawa in straight sets, so obviously the injury was not too severe and was something Badosa could play through. However, the threat of another injury is always just around the corner with Badosa. Will she stay healthy enough to compete at the highest possible level? It’s a question which never goes away.  

Best Bet to Make

The continued injury uncertainty around Badosa is always there, so while she might win the match, it might not be an easy process for her. You could bet on the match going three sets. The markets are offering a better-than-usual price because they definitely expect Badosa to win. We aren’t 100-percent confident in Badosa because of the injuries, and we always tell you that if you’re not certain about the winner in a match, over 2.5 sets is a bet you can and should turn to.

That being said, betting on over 2.5 sets is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: over 2.5 sets @2.60 @unibet

Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports