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Mixed martial arts Monday Tennis Best Bet: WTA Miami, Kaja Juvan vs Storm Hunter
Kaja Juvan vs Storm Hunter Best Bet: Monday, March 20th
Despite the slower courts in Indian Wells, Elena Rybakina once again handed Iga Swiatek a resounding defeat. The world No. 1 mentioned after the match that she has an injury that she and her team are monitoring. That is worth watching as the second half of the Sunshine Double gets underway in south Florida.
For our Monday selection, we’ll take a look at the match between Kaja Juvan and Storm Hunter from the qualifying draw, as each woman looks to book a spot in the main draw.
In this article:
Kaja Juvan vs Storm Hunter Preview
March 20th, 16:30 (UK Time)
It’s been an odd few years for the Slovenian Juvan, who was hailed as an exciting prospect a few years ago, but currently sits outside of the top-100 in the rankings (explaining why she’s in this qualifying draw) and she hasn’t yet lived up to expectations.
Luckily for her, she’s still only 22 years old and she has a great chance to get into the main draw at this high level event, and with the 32 seeds all having a bye to the second round, she should have a manageable opponent in the opening round should she get there.
Juvan has a well-rounded game that can play across surfaces, able to move well, defend and counterpunch and generate pace on her forehand when the situation calls for it. The errors, combined with some unlucky draws have kept her from really breaking through, however.
On these slower Miami hard courts, I do have her coming through against Hunter.
The Aussie has been playing doubles more often than singles at the big events like this, and while she’s 8-4 on the season, it’s worth noting that the majority of those wins came at a W60 ITF event in Australia – where the fields are notoriously weak.
She’s also far more comfortable on quicker surfaces, with slow hard courts never having really produced the best results for the 28-year-old.
Her lefty game hasn’t bothered Juvan in previous meetings, and that’s most likely because of the well-rounded game I mentioned earlier. Having a strong backhand wing allows Juvan to ensure that she doesn’t get stuck in crosscourt exchanges with Hunter’s forehand that inevitably lead to errors.
Kaja Juvan vs Storm Hunter Best Bet
Hunter picked up a win over Kimberly Birrell in the opening round of action, but other than that, hasn’t been that good this year in singles.
Birrell surged a bit in recent months, but there isn’t anything that stood out to me that indicated she had staying power at the WTA Tour level anyway.
I’m happy to oppose Hunter here, considering she is far worse on the given surface, against a well-rounded opponent who is likely undervalued due to struggles against big names like Caroline Garcia and Elena Rybakina this season, as well as an in-form Rebeka Masarova on a quicker indoor court.
I have this handicap closer to -4 games at 1.88 odds, so getting -3 at a better price is certainly something I’m happy to back.
- Selection: Juvan -3 Games
- Best Odds: 1.93 (Pinnacle)
- Stakes: 5/10
Odds as at 3:30 am UK Time on March 20th, 2023. Odds may now differ.
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