Thursday Bonus Tennis Best Bet: WTA Indian Wells, Lauren Davis vs Maryna Zanevska

Lauren Davis vs Maryna Zanevska Best Bet: Thursday, March 9th
Our bonus selection for Thursday will come from the women’s draw, as Lauren Davis goes toe-to-toe with Maryna Zanevska for a spot in the second round.
The winner will take on Ons Jabeur, who is returning from injury after having taken the last few months off since the Australian Open.
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Lauren Davis vs Maryna Zanevska Preview
March 10th, 2:30 (UK Time)
Another spot where I’m happy to back the underdog in a matchup where the favourite is getting respect due to their hard-court record, and they may be susceptible to defeat on slower courts.
I’ll start by saying, expect this matchup to be a break-heavy as many of the matches on Day 1 ended up being for the women.
Due to her height, it’s tough for Davis to get much pace on her serves, and really struggled to back up the second serve in particular.
As a flatter hitter and a counterpuncher, the slow courts of Indian Wells give Davis very little room to play any kind of offensive tennis. She could very well be reliant on Zanevska to lose this match, rather than on herself to go out and win it.
Davis’ record at Indian Wells hasn’t been great in recent times. She’s just 2-4 in her last four trips to Tennis Paradise, has lost some lopsided sets, had a loss to the now-retired Kirsten Flipkens as a big favourite last year, and she’s won fewer than 45% of her second serves in five of those six matches.
Zanevska, on other hand, is more well known as a clay courter, but her serve plays on hard courts and she’s upped her level on hard courts in the last few years. She has a few impressive wins this season as an underdog to her name already, and the majority of her losses have come to players who can rush her play and hit her off the court – something that won’t be too much of a concern for her in this one.
Lauren Davis vs Maryna Zanevska Best Bet
Ultimately, I cannot justify Davis being a strong favourite on super slow courts – especially considering it’s pretty well documented that her stronger surfaces are those that are slick, lower bouncing quick courts.
Without the power to hit Zanevska off the court, this one should be heavy on breaks of serve and should remain fairly close throughout.
In those cases, I’ll side with the player that is priced well above evens, as in the long run, these 52-48 matches will bear fruit.
- Selection: Zanevska to win
- Best Odds: 2.60 (Coolbet)
- Stakes: 4/10
Odds as at 1:30 am on March 8th, 2023. Odds may now differ.
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