Day 11 is reserved for the Women's Semi Finals at the US Open and we should get a couple of good Semi Final matches in the evening session.
It will be two teenagers taking on two players who will feel they are ready to win a Grand Slam and I do think it is going to be a fun watch to see how the matches develop.
Aryna Sabalenka - 4.5 games v Leylah Fernandez: There are always a couple of surprises at Grand Slam events, but Leylah Fernandez' run to the US Open Semi Final might as unexpected as anything we have seen. There was very little sign in her results that Leylah Fernandez was ready to announce herself in the way she has at the US Open and it should mean the youngster is going to be fearless in this Semi Final.
The run to the Semi Final is less of a surprise for the World Number 2 Aryna Sabalenka, but she is going to have to deal with the pressure of expectation. Many have looked for the Belarusian to make a big impact at a Grand Slam having secured some massive results through the year on the Tour, but she is going to have to deal with that sense of expectation and all of the pressure that comes with that.
Aryna Sabalenka should have more experience having reached the Semi Final at Wimbledon and she is playing at a much higher level than Leylah Fernandez with her results backing that up. Wins over Elise Mertens and Barbora Krejcikova in the manner they have been produced will mean Aryna Sabalenka is feeling good about her tennis on these courts and I do think her big game will be very difficult to contain.
You can't underestimate Leylah Fernandez simply because of the players she has beaten in this tournament already, but the numbers rarely lie and the win over Elina Svitolina in the Quarter Final could have easily gone the other way. Wins over Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber are impressive too, but those were tight wins for Leylah Fernandez and she has invested a lot of physical and emotional effort in winning in each of the last three Rounds.
That may have an impact on the match, but I also think she is playing an opponent who has looked very confident in New York City and Aryna Sabalenka's big, aggressive game suits these courts very well. The serve has been a big weapon for Aryna Sabalenka, but most impressive has been the return of serve and in four of her five wins in this tournament she has won over 50% of return points played.
I expect that to be the approach for Aryna Sabalenka in this match- she is likely going to be playing on the front foot and that is going to exert a lot of pressure on Leylah Fernandez who had some difficulties dealing with the Elina Svitolina serve in the Quarter Final. This is another step up for the young Canadian and I think Aryna Sabalenka is rightly considered the favourite to win the US Open as she finally places herself in with the elite of the WTA Tour.
At times I do think Leylah Fernandez will frustrate Aryna Sabalenka with her defensive skills, but the power of the Belarusian is going to make the difference and she can produce another big win on Thursday.
Maria Sakkari - 1.5 games v Emma Raducanu: There has to be nothing but respect for the way Emma Raducanu has performed at the US Open and the youngster has nothing to lose and everything to gain over the next few days. She has already surpassed all expectations by reaching the Semi Final of the tournament after coming through the Qualifiers and Emma Raducanu has yet to drop a set in the event.
The manner in which she has remained focused even when suffering a few nerves early in matches is impressive and the win over Belinda Bencic in the Quarter Final is the best result Emma Raducanu has had in the tournament. It was also the closest match she has played and Raducanu got the better of the big points as she was able to see off the Olympic Champion.
Emma Raducanu clearly has a lot going for her and she is a player that has a decent serve and backs that up with some aggressive groundstrokes. The consistency in her tennis means it is going to take a serious effort to beat her, but Maria Sakkari has to believe she has the game to do that after a massively impressive performance in her own Quarter Final win.
The Greek player has reached a Grand Slam Semi Final for the second time this season and her experience at the French Open should stand her in good stead. Maria Sakkari has had some impressive wins of her own in this tournament and she was completely in control of her Quarter Final win over Karolina Pliskova with the serve being a particularly big weapon for her.
You do have to wonder if the Sakkari return is good enough to win this Grand Slam, but it has been pretty consistent so far in New York City. She has also played well on the hard courts in 2021, although there had been little from her summer hard court tennis to suggest that Maria Sakkari was going to be ready to have a run like this one.
Her performances have been at a good level at this tournament though and this is a match that feels like it is going to be very close. I can't underestimate Emma Raducanu considering how well she has played over the last two weeks and this is very much a winnable match for her if she continues to play the big points as well as she has throughout the tournament.
Both players are going to be relying on the serve to keep them in a positive position and I do think that shot is going to determine the direction of the match. The experience of Roland Garros should help Maria Sakkari too and she was very close to beating Barbora Krejcikova who eventually won the title in Paris.
This should be a fun match and I think the narrow lean has to be with Maria Sakkari, although Emma Raducanu has shown she should be underestimated at your peril.
MY PICKS: Aryna Sabalenka - 4.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)
Maria Sakkari - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)
US Open Update: 34-30, - 1.14 Units (127 Units Staked, - 1% Yield)
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