Elise Mertens and Anna Kalinskaya will meet in the second round of the 2023 WTA Rome Open on Friday, May 12. Get the predictions and odds of this Elise Mertens v Anna Kalinskaya match, along with its preview, head-to-head, and tips here.
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Elise Mertens v Anna Kalinskaya Head to Head
Kalinskaya leads 1-0, beating Mertens last in 2022 Guadalajara Open.
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Mertens, Seeded 25 in Rome
Starting with a bye into round two, Elise Mertens is hoping for a good run in Rome. It will be tricky, to say the least, considering that she is in the same quarter as Maria Sakkari, Bianca Andreescu, and Elena Rybakina.
It has been a pretty average year for the 27-year-old Belgian – but she does have some rhythm to her game. She is 15-10 – supported by her round-of-16 feats in Madrid and Miami and a semifinal showdown in Monterrey.
It is worth noting that in the Spanish WTA 1000 event, Mertens was stunned by the unseeded Egyptian Mayar Sherif in three sets. This does give Kalinskaya some precedent to work with.
That said, Elise is a doubles specialist with over 27 finals to her name – including multiple Grand Slams and Premier tournaments. While that may not amount to much against top-10 stars, it should give her enough to win against the lower-ranked players.
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Kalinskaya Beats Yastremska
Anna Kalinskaya began her Italian Open journey with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Dayana Yastremska.
The win puts her at 14-11 – which may be similar to Mertens’ – but she does have a stronger form on clay of late.
Notably, Kalinskaya reached the quarterfinal in Charleston – beating Victoria Azarenka en route – and round three in Madrid. In the latter, she also upset the reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in three sets. She lost her next match to Petra Martic.
She did not find this rhythm earlier in the season, seeing that she lost in the opening matches in Adelaide, Australian Open, Doha, Hua Hin, Dubai, and Indian Wells.
Now ranked World No. 57, Anna is also a junior French Open runner-up. The 24-year-old may lack top-tier experience when compared to her Belgian adversary – but she has got the skills to make up for it.
Mertens v Kalinskaya Prediction and Tip
Mertens will start as the obvious favourite, but punters may want to consider backing Kalinskaya (2/1). There is not a lot of difference in terms of odds between the two – which is not surprising since this can very well go either way.
Tips:
- Low-Risk Tip: Mertens to win: 1/3
- Moderate Risk Tip: Three sets in the match: 3/1
The 2023 WTA Rome Open will be played from May 9 to 21. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also, get the rest of the tennis match previews here.
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