It’s time for another big underdog I like in round one of the US Open. Maria Sakkari had a great start to the season. She made final in Indian Wells, the quarterfinals in Miami, and the semifinals In Charleston. Then, European clay season started and things changed. Sakkari was just 4-3 in Madrid, Rome, and at the French Open combined and 2-3 on grass in Berlin, Bad Hamburg, and Wimbledon. She went back to Roland Garros for Olympics where she beat two inferior opponents and lost a tough match to Marta Kostyuk. This will be her first match since then and her first hard court match since March at a venue that outside of one year has been tough for her. Sakkari made the semifinals in 2021, but she’s only won more than two matches in three of her nine appearances at the US Open. Her opponent is Yafan Wang who qualified for Toronto, beat Sofia Kenin, and played a tight match in a loss to Coco Gauff. Wang followed that up by qualifying for Cincinnati and almost beating Elina Svitolina in round one. On paper that may not look impressive at first, but it’s a run of very good form and a level we haven’t seen from Wang in some time. Maybe the break was good for Sakkari and she cruises to victory against a physically inferior opponent, but Wang works hard and will be happy to grind with the Greek. I think Wang has a much better chance to win than the market does and I’m going to bet on her to win a set and win the match.
Suggested Bet
Risk 0.5U – Yafan Wang +300 vs Maria Sakkari
Risk 0.5U – Yafan Wang +1.5 Sets 1.92(-108) vs Maria Sakkari
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Over 18s Only (21+ in some jurisdictions). 1 unit = 1% of bankroll. These are my bets that I am making. Please enjoy your betting responsibly. Never bet more than you can afford to lose, and do not chase a loss.