While many players are still dusting the Paris clay off their shoes, the WTA Tour hits the grass this week. The shadow of Wimbledon looms ever closer, and this week both Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina will seek to make strong starts to their grass seasons at the bett1open in Berlin.
With the third Grand Slam of the year just two weeks away today, only a small window exists for players to make the transition from clay to grass. Despite the bett1open being only a WTA 500 tournament, expect an extra competitive field and higher stakes for every player involved. Will Rybakina bounce back from her Roland-Garros disappointment? Can Ons Jabeur build on her momentum?
We break down the best bets to make on the bett1open in Berlin, with all the latest odds from bookmaker William Hill.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: June 18th, 9:00 P.M. (GMT)
World No. 2 Aryna Sablalenka and world No. 3 Elena Rybakina are a dead heat in the betting odds at bookmaker William Hill, with both women paying 4.50 to win the bett1open this week. As two of the in-form players of 2023, these two are well ahead of the rest of the field, with Ons Jabeur and Coco Gauff sit at third equal in the betting favourites at 10.00. Rounding out the top five is Petra Kvitova on 13.00.
This is a significant tournament for Elena Rybakina, and many will be closely watching her form. After hitting her top form on the Sunshine Double, the 24-year-old had a patchy clay court season, being forced to withdraw from Roland-Garros in the round of 32 due to illness. As the defending champion at Wimbledon, the Kazakh will be eager to get some early momentum ahead of her maiden title defence.
It comes as no surprise that Rybakina’s biggest competition will be Aryna Sabalenka in the bett1open 2023. The two are No. 1 and No. 2 seeds with a potential final meeting on the cards should they navigate their respective sides of the draw. For Sabalenka, she has the game to succeed on grass, previously making a semi-final in her last Wimbledon appearance in 2021 where she defeated Rybakina in their round of 16 meeting.
We say that Rybakina will have the upper hand in this tournament purely because she’s had a good patch of rest heading into the grass season and will be focused on getting results. Back the No. 2 seed to get a win here with Petra Kvitova as a dark horse contender for those who are after some higher odds. Kvitova has a wealth of experience and has won two Grand Slams on grass, making her an ever-present threat.
