tennis | Tuesday, October 18, 2022 8:43 AM

Tuesday Tennis Best Bet: WTA Guadalajara, Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova

Jon Reid

Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova Best Bet: Tuesday, October 18th

Well, a manageable loss there, as the over 21 games selection voids with a 6-3, 7-5 scoreline to Petra Kvitova, while Bernarda Pera to win falls short. Tough one to swallow, as Pera lost five games on the trot in the first set. What could’ve been!

Onto Tuesday in Guadalajara, where we’ll preview an all-Czech matchup between Marie Bouzkova and Tereza Martincova.

In this article:

Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova Preview
Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova Best Bet

Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova Preview

October 18th, 18:30 UK Time

Nice matchup here for the favourite in Bouzkova, as it’s a stylistic contrast, but one she won’t mind at all.

As a wall from the baseline and one of the elite movers on the WTA Tour, she’s become one of the biggest pests to play on tour. It takes elite ball striking and doing it consistently to be able to hit through her.

Martincova is one of those players caught in between. She doesn’t have elite power, and she isn’t nearly consistent enough to be accurately portrayed as a defensive grinder that can elicit a frustrating number of unforced errors for her opposition.

For me, that’s the ideal opponent for someone like Bouzkova. There’s enough pace on the forehand to redirect, but not so much she can’t run it down and return it effectively.

There will be long rallies, which she won’t mind, but she’ll also see a fair amount of free points come her way when Martincova uncorks a wild forehand that sails. At altitude, the one kind of error you don’t want to be prone to? The bail that sails about half a foot long. Getting those under control in the thinnest air the tour has seen in quite some time won’t be easy.

To make matters worse in that regard, the frustrating defence of her compatriot could very well force Martincova into believing she needs to start hitting her forehand with more power to try and find ways to win points. That is likely to trigger a nasty cycle of overhitting.

Marie Bouzkova vs Tereza Martincova Best Bet

All that said, Bouzkova should be a big favourite, and in terms of the 1X2 market? She is.

It’s the games handicap I’m looking to target, however, as I don’t just believe she’s 3-4 games better than Martincova. In these conditions, on these courts and with the styles they play, I have her as a five-game favourite, so am more than willing to stake a position with the current handicap at -4.