Featured post

Boxing Picks 2024- Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou (March 8th)

Knockout Chaos comes to our television screens on Friday evening with another big card put together by Saudi Arabia, who continue to have a ...

Friday 26 October 2018

WTA Finals Day 6 Tennis Picks 2018 (October 26th)

The final Group matches in the WTA Finals are played on Friday and there is a scenario in which every player has a chance of making it through to the Semi Final.

Things are most clear for Naomi Osaka and Sloane Stephens.

Naomi Osaka has to win on Friday against Kiki Bertens and then hope Sloane Stephens is able to beat Angelique Kerber, while a win for Osaka will also mean the American has moved through to the Semi Final before she has hit a ball in anger against Kerber in the second Semi Final.

Both Kerber and Bertens can move into the Semi Final if they win their matches on Friday, but the situation is not so clear in that case.

A straight sets win for Bertens will take her through to the Semi Final, but there is a situation where we could come down number of games won rather than sets if Bertens and Kerber win three sets or if Osaka and Stephens win in three sets.

That would make the maths a little more complex, and not easy to discuss here, but all is to play for on Friday.

We have also reached the Quarter Finals at both ATP 500 events being played this week so this is another busy day of tennis to be played as the season draws to a close.


On piece of news that has not escaped me was the Caroline Wozniacki story where she admitted she has been diagnosed with arthritis that has affected her in the second half of the season.

I may not be the biggest Wozniacki fan, but I respect what she has been able to achieve on the court and winning her maiden Grand Slam title in 2018 was huge for the former World Number 1. I really hope she is going to be able to manage the issue and compete at the top level for as long as she wants, but there have been rumours since last year that Wozniacki considering hanging up her racquet.

I hope that comes on her own terms though and she is not forced to call it a day because of her body letting her down.

Get some rest Caroline and hopefully you can manage the condition and keep producing your best tennis on the court in 2019 and beyond.


Naomi Osaka v Kiki Bertens: It has been a difficult first appearance in the WTA Finals for Naomi Osaka but there are going to be plenty of opportunities in the future for the young player to make a big impact in the tournament. Her path through to the Semi Final in 2018 is not fully closed either despite losing her first two matches, and Osaka has been close to winning both of the matches in which she has been beaten.

This all means Osaka has to win on Friday and then need some help from Sloane Stephens, but I think the Japanese player will be up for the fight thanks to the strong support she has been getting in Singapore.

The match up with Kiki Bertens may be better for the Osaka mindset too as she is not facing an opponent that is going to have the same movement and defensive skills as Stephens and Angelique Kerber who have been able to wear down Osaka in three sets each time.

Kiki Bertens is playing in the Singles tournament for the first time at the WTA Finals and she has had a lot more success, although has work to do to make it through to the Semi Final. Like Osaka, Bertens will be targeting a straight sets victory which will guarantee her place in the Semi Final although the Dutchwoman will also be aware that any kind of win would put her in a very strong position.

She has played well this week and shown strong battling intensity in her matches which has seen Bertens make a fight of things even though she has dropped the first set in both matches. The challenge is different on Friday because she is going to have deal with a player who can match her power on both the serve and groundstrokes and this has all the makings of a big hitting match.

My edge just goes to Osaka who has played well this week but just not been able to keep her consistency going against strong defensive players. I don't anticipate Bertens getting to half as many balls as Kerber and Stephens have been able to make and I think Osaka will be able to win the battle of the first strike tennis.

The courts are slower than most hard courts, but I think Osaka can get the better of Bertens even if the latter is perhaps more comfortable in the conditions. It would not surprise me to see a fifth match out of five in this Group going to three sets here, but I will back Naomi Osaka to edge past her opponent.


Sloane Stephens v Angelique Kerber: Like the White Group, a player who has won two out of two Group matches is yet to make sure of a place in the Semi Final at the WTA Finals. Sloane Stephens may be in a strong position and she will know exactly what she needs to do by the time she takes to the court, although there is also every chance that the American will already be assured of a final four spot if Naomi Osaka has won earlier in the day.

In a maiden appearance in Singapore it has been a very good tournament for Stephens but she will want more to underline her place alongside the very best players on the Tour.

Stephens can begin to do that by trying to get the better of Angelique Kerber who has reached the Final in this tournament before. However Kerber has work to do to get out of this Group but kept herself alive with a narrow win over Naomi Osaka a couple of days ago.

Kerber should really have won both matches she has played in Singapore and that is why she goes into this one as the favourite. However the match up is different as she faces someone who will be just as athletic around the court and able to make plenty of balls from defensive positions to try and extract errors from her opponent's game.

It has not been a match up that Kerber has enjoyed with four straight losses to Stephens during which time the German has not won a set. They met on a pretty slow hard court in Miami earlier in 2018 and it was Stephens who dominated for the loss of three games.

I do think Stephens has been set as the narrow underdog because she is almost through and Kerber 'must win' the match to have a real chance. In a tournament where Stephens will be expecting to play at least one more match on Saturday she won't want to spend too long on court, but she also won't want to lose the momentum of winning matches and I am going to back the American to continue her dominance of Kerber with another win here.

MY PICKS: Naomi Osaka @ 1.80 Betfair Sportsbook (2 Units)
Sloane Stephens @ 2.00 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Gael Monfils - 2.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Alexander Zverev - 3.5 Games @ 1.85 William Hill (2 Units)
Roger Federer - 4.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Daniil Medvedev @ 2.20 Bet Fred (2 Units)

WTA Finals Update: 11-7, + 8.04 Units (36 Units Staked, + 22.33% Yield)

No comments:

Post a Comment