World no. 90, Rebecca Marino of Canada, will play Emina Bektas of the USA, the world number 150, in the second round of the 2023 Birmingham Classic on Thursday, June 22. Get the live streaming options of this Rebecca Marino v Emina Bektas match along with its preview, head-to-head, and tips here.
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Rebecca Marino v Emina Bektas Head to Head
The pair have never played each other before.
This will be the first match between the 32 year old Canadian, and the American, two years her junior.
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Lucky Loser Marino Beats Another Qualifier
Marino, whose tennis career has been punctuated by long periods away from the sport, looked like she would be an early casualty at this event, beaten in the second round of qualifying. But, when it came to choosing a Lucky Loser, it was the Canadian’s turn to be pulled out of the hat.
And fortune smiled on her a second time by giving Marino a comparatively easy first round opponent in the form of the Chinese qualifier Xiyu Wang.
Both women struggled on serve in the first set, which saw one break apiece and a number of other break points come and go. It was Marino, though, who claimed the tie-break. There was a tightening up on both sides in the second set, to the extent that there was only one break of serve, which was claimed by Wang, enabling her to level the match.
Marino began the third set on the back foot, dropping her serve in the opening game, but a sequence of three games against serve in the middle of the set brought her on even terms again.
Wang then dropped her serve again, giving the Canadian the chance to serve out. She made heavy weather of it, seeing three match points saved, but she got the job done in the end.
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Bektas Knocks Out Seventh Seed
Although Bektas arrived in Birmingham with a career high ranking, people could be excused for not taking her challenge seriously. After all, this is a woman, who at the age of 30, had only qualified for two Grand Slam events before, both last year in Melbourne and Wimbledon, going on to lose in the first round each time.
And even after she won both matches in qualifying, both in straight sets, that would have caused barely a ripple. The same could not be said after she dumped the number seven seed, Shuai Zhang of China, out of the competition.
It was actually Bektas who dropped her serve first, but she hit back with two breaks of serve that enabled her to take the first set.
And then she struck again midway through the second set, breaking Zhang again. From there it was just a case of holding her nerve before celebrating one of the best victories of her career.
Marino v Bektas Prediction and Tip
Although Bektas is very inexperienced at this level, the way that she dealt with the number seven seed suggests that she may be more than a match for the Canadian, who struggled past another qualifier.
Tips:
- Low Risk Tip: Bektas to win: 8/11
- Moderate Risk Tip: Over 22.5 games in the match: 19/20
The 2023 Birmingham Open will be played from June 19 to 25. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also get rest of the tennis match previews here.
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