World number three Jessica Pegula plays the 28th-ranked Elise Mertens in the third round of the 2023 French Open on Friday, June 2. Get the predictions and odds of this Jessica Pegula v Elise Mertens match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
- Other French Open match previews & predictions options here
Jessica Pegula v Elise Mertens Head to Head
There have been two previous meetings between these two plays and Mertens has both times. Both those matches had come on hardcourts though – in Cincinnati in 2020 and Dubai 2021.
It must also be quickly added that these were times before Pegula improved drastically and broke into the top 10.
Also Read:
Pegula Benefits from Giorgi Retirement
Pegula had made a solid enough start to her second round match against Camila Giorgi but that result was expedited when her Italian opponent retired from the match at the end of the first set.
Giorgi took a medical timeout at the end of the first set and while we are still unaware of the cause of the issue, it was also the reason for her withdrawal from the match. The world number three had grabbed the first set 6-2 having broken Giorgi twice in the set.
This follows an equally straightforward win for Pegula in her opener in which she defeated Danielle Collins. Pegula had won 6-4, 6-2 against a player who has made a name for herself in hardcourt competitions including having made the final of the Australian Open last year.
Both, Collins and Giorgi can be easily termed tricky opponents for any top-10 players and for Pegula to not have had an issue in overcoming either one of them should give her some confidence coming into round three.
Can Pegula take that step closer to her best ever performance at the French Open which had come last season when she made the quarterfinals?
Also Read:
Mertens Staves off Osorio Challenge
Camila Osorio isn’t quite the most straightforward of opponents. Especially not on clay.
Which is why it was no surprise that bookmakers had pegged the two at very similar odds to win with Mertens starting out at 8/9 while Osorio at 10/11.
Which is also why Mertens will be mighty chuffed to have come through in straight sets against Osorio, and in turn for sealing her third round place in the tournament where she had made the fourth round last year.
Mertens was a 6-3, 7-6 (3) winner in a match that lasted over two hours.
In a match filled with breaks of serves, it became a matter of who held more serves that decided the winner. And that turned out to be Mertens who managed to hold it six times as opposed to her opponent’s three.
In fact, Osorio had a good chance to level things out in the second set when she went a break up on three separate occasions including in the first, third and seventh games but was broken back every single time.
Mertens now face a way bigger challenge but she won’t be shy of trying to get past the world number three.
Pegula v Mertens Prediction and Tip
Pegula is a heavy favourite but a quick word on Mertens who has done well in the tournament so far. We will still go with Pegula who could see one of the sets getting stretched.
Tips:
- Low Risk Tip: Pegula to win: 1/3
- Moderate Risk Tip: Over 21.5 games in the match: 5/6
The 2023 French Open will be played from May 28 to June 11. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also get rest of the tennis match previews here.
Be the first to comment