The Miami Open resumes with the round of 64 on Friday.
The pre-game narration: Canada’s Bianca Andreescu and Leylah Fernandez won their round of 16 games and are now outsiders. Denis Shapovalov is a big favorite and should progress despite recent flaws.
Below are our Miami Open Round of 64 best bets.
Tennis Odds from 3:24 p.m. on 03/23/2023.
Miami Open Round of 64 Best Bets
Leylah Fernandez vs. Belinda Bencic: March 24
best bid : Fernández +1.5 sets (-134)
Analysis: Fernandez advanced and lost in the round of 32 at the Indian Wells Open, but that’s more than her opponent can boast of.
Bencic was eliminated from the tournament in the round of 64 and surprisingly lost to fellow Swiss tennis star Jil Teichmann. The loss was their third in four games, a stretch that began with a failure against Iga Swiatek due to fatigue at the Qatar Open.
Given the recent poor results, one can wonder if Bencic still isn’t going into this match quite as herself. Despite not playing the best tennis of her career, Fernandez is still a formidable opponent this year with a respectable 10-6 record on hard.
These two have previously met four times (three times in 2022), dividing the series 2-2. Fernandez has covered this number in three of their meetings.
Maria Sakkari vs. Bianca Andreescu: March 24th
best bid : Sakkari wins (-143)
Analysis: While Andreescu’s recent results are encouraging, picking her to beat a player of Sakkari’s caliber seems like a huge leap forward.
The original reason for the optimism comes from Andreescu’s recent match against WTA top player Iga Swiatek. The Canadian lost in straight sets but looked strong in the second, winning three of six returns.
In her round of 16 match against Emma Raducanu at the Miami Open, her serve was her best friend. Andreescu fired seven aces and zero double faults in a three-set win.
Finding and maintaining that kind of success against an opponent like Sakkari is a much more difficult task, however. Sakkari is ranked No. 10 in the world and is fresh off a trip to the semifinals in Indian Wells. She’s a legitimate threat to go deep at this tournament.
Guido Pella vs. Denis Shapovalov: March 24
best bid : Shapovalov -4.5 games (-129)
Analysis: With five losses in the last six games, Shapovalov hasn’t shown us much lately. However, we’re giving him a chance to rehabilitate himself against a significantly inferior opponent in Pella.
Pella returns this year after playing just one game in 2022 but the results are nothing special. He’s 3-4 in 2023, going 2-2 on hard and a below-average 81-88 in his career on the surface.
Shapovalov’s 5-6 record in 2023 isn’t much better, but his 184-121 career mark on the surface is impressive. The Canadian’s 14 unforced errors were the cause of his doom against Ugo Humbert at Indian Wells.
Pella shouldn’t put so much pressure on Shapovalov. If he can play a clean game, he should be cruising.
Shapovalov won his only match against Pella in 2020 at the Italian Open, beating the Argentine 6-2, 6-3 on clay.
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