tennis | Friday, August 19, 2022 11:14 AM (Revised at: Friday, August 19, 2022 11:15 AM)

Friday Tennis Best Bet: WTA Cincinnati, Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic

Jon Reid

Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic Best Bet: Friday, August 19th

Well the streak of higher-staked bets losing has come to an end, as Caroline Garcia ends up taking down Elise Mertens in straight sets (though she gave us a scare after going 5-2 up to 5-5 in the second set).

For Friday’s quarterfinal selection from the women’s draw, we’ll delve into a match featuring Petra Kvitova and Ajla Tomljanovic.

In this article:

Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic Preview
Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic Best Bet

Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic Preview

August 19th, 18:30 UK Time

It’s a matchup of big serves and big-hitting women in this quarterfinal matchup from the American midwest.

Kvitova – who’s made a career off blitzing opponents with one of the best serves the women’s game has ever seen – is always at her best on quick courts. Her biggest career titles came on the grass courts of Wimbledon, while her lone appearance as a runner-up at one of the sport’s biggest events came down under on the quick hard courts of Australia.

Her WTA Finals titles also came on quick indoor courts and this year has been no different. While Kvitova certainly hasn’t been at her best, her lone title came on grass in Eastbourne and this run on the quick court of Cincinnati has already been her second best result of the season.

After a tough opening match (in humid conditions she’s not fond of), Kvitova has dispatched Sorana Cirstea and Ons Jabeur – both strong servers and hitters in their own right – with relative ease.

With Tomljanovic also fitting that bill, but not being nearly at the level of her Czech counterpart, it would not be a surprise to see Kvitova once again use her powerful game and the quick conditions to power through another opponent.

Considering Tomljanovic doesn’t possess the variety of someone like Jabeur and isn’t an elite mover or defender, it’s hard to see what in particular she does better than Kvitova in order to at least keep this match close.

Petra Kvitova vs Ajla Tomljanovic Best Bet

A few final things to consider. First, as a form player, Kvitova does tend to cover a 3.5-game handicap when she has found her rhythm in a tournament. In Eastbourne, only Beatriz Haddad Maia managed to keep it closer than that number (she beat the Brazilian by just three games). Keep in mind, Haddad Maia was on a grass-court win streak that spanned more than 10 matches at the time. In her four other wins and two of three this week, she’s managed to win by at least four games.

The other factor to consider is the time on court this week of the Australian. Tomljanovic had to come through qualifying and as a result has already played five matches to reach this point. In those matches, she’s played for over 11 hours – including six sets and nearly 5.5 hours in the last two days. Potential fatigue has to be a concern entering this one.

I have this handicap much closer to 4.5 games than the 3.5 on offer.