The WTA Washington tournament continues its first round on Tuesday. There were some surprises on the opening day of main-draw action on Monday. Madison Keys got knocked out of the tournament by Liudmila Samsonova. Clara Tauson was a strong betting-market favorite over Elisabetta Cocciaretto but lost. What surprises will WTA Washington offer next? This is a 500-point tournament, so any player who is not in the top 30 has a lot to play for. Getting a big points boost will help a lot of players gain direct entry for bigger and more important tournaments later in the 2026 tennis season. There is a lot on the line. LWOS has our best bets for three matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.
WTA Washington
Bucsa – Kudermetova: 11:00 EST
H2H: 0-0
Cristina Bucsa hasn’t played since Roland-Garros. When she was playing back in the European spring clay swing, she wasn’t doing very well. She lost her last six matches. Now she is attempting to return to the tour in Washington after not playing at all during the grass season due to a wrist injury. Polina Kudermetova has won two qualifying round matches at this ATP Washington tournament, earning a spot in the main draw. She is 3-3 in her last six matches. She is ranked No. 108, whereas Bucsa is ranked No. 40. Yet, Bucsa’s injury issues and six-match losing streak have led the betting markets to make Kudermetova the betting favorite.
Best Bet to Make
Bucsa is ranked 68 spots higher, but everything else points to Kudermetova winning. Kudermetova is 32-17 in 2026 across all surfaces. Bucsa is just 7-11. Kudermetova has the better hardcourt record, 8-4 compared to Bucsa’s 7-7 record. Bucsa is coming off a long injury break and has lost six straight matches. There’s no real reason to pick Bucsa on any bet.
That being said, betting on Kudermetova winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Kudermetova winning at 1.85 @pinnacle
Eala – Zheng: 13:00 EST
H2H: 0-1
Alexandra Eala, who had a very solid Wimbledon run, now moves from grass to hardcourt for this WTA Washington first-round match against Qinwen Zheng. Eala made the Round of 16 at Wimbledon and reminded everyone how talented she is. She now comes to hardcourts, where she is 15-8 this year. Zheng is 6-4 on hardcourts this season. Zheng lost in the first round of Wimbledon but then went to the WTA Athens hardcourt event and made the quarterfinals.
Best Bet to Make
Eala is ranked No. 28, Zheng No. 123. That’s a difference of almost 100 spots. Yet, Zheng is the betting-market favorite. Maybe it’s because of the two wins in Athens, and maybe it’s because Eala did so well on grass that the markets are unsure she will carry that form to hardcourts. However, Eala has a solid 15-8 record on hardcourts, so we’re not sure why Eala is an underdog at all. She played really good tennis at Wimbledon while Zheng lost there in the first round. Eala plus 1.5 sets doesn’t have a high enough price for that to be our recommended standalone wager, but you could certainly fold that into a parlay. The main bet is simple: Eala will win the match.
That being said, betting on Eala winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Eala winning at 2.33 @unibet
Pareja – Wang: 11:00 EST
H2H: 0-0
Julieta Pareja is playing very good tennis. She is 8-1 in her last nine matches. However, seven of those nine matches were ITF challenger matches. She won two qualifying matches at WTA Washington to get into the main draw. Xinyu Wang is just 5-4 in her last nine matches, but she has played on the main tour in those nine matches, going to Roland-Garros, Berlin, Bad Homburg, and Wimbledon. Pareja is ranked just outside the WTA top 300, while Wang is at 42, inside the top 50. The markets have Wang as a favorite, but not a huge one. The markets seem to be impressed by Pareja’s ability to win matches, even if they are at a lower level of competition.
Best Bet to Make
The fact that Pareja is winning a lot of matches should not be discounted, but both players are 9-7 on hardcourts this year, so it’s not as though Pareja has a surface-based advantage in this WTA Washington match. If she did, that would be reason to think Pareja would win. Without any clear hardcourt-oriented edge, Pareja doesn’t figure to beat Wang, who should be priced as a bigger favorite than what she currently is in the markets. Taking Wang to win is a simple and obvious wager to make. This is the right play.
That being said, betting on Wang winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Wang winning at 1.68 @Pinnacle
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
