We hit on 2/2 betting tips in the two Australian Open Women’s semifinals as Naomi Osaka defeated Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova took down Danielle Collins to advance to the final on Saturday night! The game gets underway at 7.30pm and we have a full betting preview below!
Australian Open Women’s Singles Final
Naomi Osaka (4) vs Petra Kvitova (8)
Saturday, 26th of January, 7.30pm AEDT
Naomi Osaka took care of Karolina Pliskova in the semi in three sets. She won the first set 6-2 before taking her foot of the second and losing that 6-4. The Japanese World No.4 bounced back in the deciding set to win 6-4 and book a place in her second straight Grand Slam Final.
Osaka has arguably been the most in form Women’s tennis player in the world over the past few months. Her shock upset win over Serena Williams in the US Open Final was followed by a string of impressive performances on hard court throughout the Asian leg of the WTA as well as the early stages of the Australian hardcourt season.
Osaka has had a few tough games throughout her Australian Open run, including a great performance over World No.7 Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinal.
Round 1: dft. Magda Linette 6-4, 6-2
Round 2: dft. Tamara Zidansek 6-2, 6-4
Round 3: dft. Su-Wei Hsieh 5-7, 6-4, 6-1
Round 4: dft. Anastasija Sevatosa 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
QF: dft. Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-1
SF: dft. Karolina Pliskova 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Osaka’s serving has been one of the key factors of her successful run thus far. She served a whopping 15 aces in her semifinal win over Pliskova and while she is still refining other aspects of her game, the base for potential World No.1 is there.
Osaka will be looking to become the first woman not named Serena Williams to win back to back Grand Slam titles since Belgian Kim Clijsters took out the US Open and Australian Open in 2010-11. In an era of Women’s tennis that has almost thrown up a new Grand Slam winner in every tournament where Williams is not holding the trophy at its conclusion, it would be a monumental effort.
World No.6 Petra Kvitova will be attempting to win her first Grand Slam tournament since her Wimbledon win back in 2014 and her third overall. She has racked up two Wimbledon wins in her career, proving that grass is her preferred surface, however, her hardcourt form has been unquestionable to start the 2019 WTA season.
Kvitova bowed out in the second round of the Brisbane WTA with a loss to World No.20 Anett Kontaveit. However, since then, Kvitova has gone on to win her 11 games in Australia, dropping just one set along the way as she hoisted the Sydney International trophy in early January before breezing through the rounds of the Australian Open.
Kvitova was dominant in Sydney, winning all four of her games in the lead up to the final in straight sets. It took a little more work to get past Aussie Ash Barty in the final, however, she came up trumps in a third set tiebreaker to lift her 26th WTA title. Since then, it’s been smooth sailing for Kvitova, as she has rolled through her Australian Open draw in second gear, not dropping a set through her six games.
Kvitova Road to the Final:
Round 1: dft. Magdalena Rybarikova 6-3, 6-2
Round 2: dft. Irina Begu 6-1, 6-3
Round 3: dft. Belinda Bencic 6-1, 6-4
Round 4: dft. Amanda Anisimova 6-2, 6-1
QF: dft. Ash Barty 6-1, 6-4
SF: Danielle Collins 7-6, 6-0
Kvitova’s career so far has been defined by a few dominant years from 2011-2014 where she made the quarter final of five straight Wimbledon’s and picked up two trophies. However, she is yet to really prove herself outside of London, especially given she has been a mainstay in the WTA Top 10 for some time now.
She has reached the semifinal of the Australian Open on just one occasion, back in 2012 and since then has been bounced in the first three rounds in every visit to Australia. A win here would cement a fantastic return to form after a few down years and also solidify her spot as one of the greats of Women’s tennis.
Kvitova’s form through the draw of the Australian Open has arguably been more impressive, but she has only faced off against one seeded player to this point, that being Ash Barty in the quarterfinal, who she made light work of in straight sets.
Osaka’s run has been a little tougher, and while she has looked vulnerable at times, dropping the first set of a match on two different occasions, her serve has been able to bail her out of some tough situations. We have picked the Japanese sensation from the start and we are going to stick with her here as an underdog.
