The WTA French Open women’s qualifying action moves into the third and final round. This is it. This is the most pressure-filled match of the year for a lot of the players involved. The difference between making the main draw of a major tournament and not making it is often the defining part of the season for professional tennis players. Let’s see which ones handle the pressure of the moment. LWOS has our best bets for three matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.
WTA French Open qualifying
Sun – Liu: Time 13:00 EST
H2H: 1-0
Lulu Sun faces Claire Liu. Both players looked very solid in winning two qualifying matches this week in Paris. Now they meet for a spot in the French Open main draw. Sun turned back Yexin Ma and Aoi Ito. The win over Ito was a clean and routine 6-3, 6-3 win. Liu defeated Laura Pigossi and Katarzyna Kawa, both in straight sets. Sun is ranked roughly 70 spots higher than Liu, but Liu is certainly offering evidence that she should be taken seriously going into this contest.
Best Bet to Make
Odds for this match have just been placed, and they are a bit all over the place. Before the odds become more streamlined, there is incredible value on a Sun moneyline price at Bet365. Grab it while you can. This match might be close, but Sun is the higher-ranked player and is in good form. It’s a high-value bet to get her at the Bet 365 market rate (before it potentially changes).
That being said, betting on Sun winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Sun winning @2.10 @Bet365
Bandecchi – Hruncakova: Time 13:00 EST
H2H: 0–3
Susan Bandecchi faces Viktoria Hruncakova. Bandecchi defeated Chloe Paquet in the first round of French Open qualifying and then took down Dominika Salkova in the second round. Hruncakova is coming off a big upset of former major champion Bianca Andreescu in qualifying. Hruncakova was priced at 4.92 on the moneyline, so if you took her to upset Andreescu, you hit the jackpot. The markets have Bandecchi as a slight favorite, so it will be fascinating to see if Hruncakova can pull another upset and advance to the French Open main draw.
Best Bet to Make
These two players are within nine spots of each other in the WTA world rankings. Bandecchi is No. 215, Hruncakova 224. Hruncakova, however, is 3-0 in the head-to-head and has just beaten Bianca Andreescu. That’s a high-quality win. Bandecchi should probably be a slight underdog. At worst, this match should be priced as a toss-up. You’re getting amazing value with Hruncakova. Go for it.
That being said, betting on Hruncakova winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Hruncakova winning @2.10 @Bet365
Sasnovich – Bassols Ribera: Time 13:00 EST
H2H: 0–0
Aliaksandra Sasnovich takes on Marina Bassols Ribera. This is a really interesting match because both players played what is probably their best match of the year in the previous round of French Open qualifying. Sasnovich was virtually perfect, losing just one of 13 games played. She nearly double-bageled Oceane Dodin. Bassols Ribera might have actually played an even better match. She scored a decisive and routine win over former World No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, who had played well the previous few weeks but could not figure out Bassols Ribera’s game. Which player will maintain her form in this match?
Best Bet to Make
Bassols Ribera beating Pliskova is a much more impressive win than Sasnovich blowing out Dodin. Pliskova was playing strong tennis and was regaining form. Pliskova is a former major finalist who had gone on maternity leave and had dealt with surgeries, but was playing a lot like the former top-10 star she used to be. Bassols Ribera cooling off Pliskova is a real statement. Oceane Dodin is not very good, so the Sasnovich win shouldn’t be given too much weight.
That being said, betting on Bassols Ribera winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Bassols Ribera winning @3.75 @10Bet
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports