The Prague Open tennis tournament heads into the quarterfinals and that’s where we’ll pick up our tennis picks.
We had a productive day with our tennis picks on Wednesday as we went 2-1 overall. Our lone loss of the day came with Sam Stosur, who couldn’t get going in her matchup with Beatriz Haddad Maia. Stosur only won five games in the entire match. The good news is we ended up winning our two other picks. That included Jelena Ostapenko, who took out Caroline Wozniacki. Their showdown needed the full three sets and even went into the tiebreaker but Ostapenko outlasted her 7-5 in the third-set tiebreaker to move on. Lastly, we had a much easier time of things with Barbora Strycova, who got the job done for us in straight sets. She took out Lucia Hradecka 6-3, 7-5 to move on to the quarters.
Looking ahead to Thursday, there are a number of Czech players on the schedule, trying to win a title in their home country. Host-nation tennis is a lot easier in Davis Cup, when the atmosphere in an arena is raucous, but playing in a host nation on a regular tour event can be a lot more complicated. Fans might be nervous and tense as much as they might be excited. How will Czech players fare in the upcoming quarterfinals? Here is a closer look at our three favorite tennis picks from the quarterfinals action on Thursday.
Beatriz Haddad-Maia vs. Kristyna Pliskova
This is a match involving a Czech player. Pliskova is the sister of top-seeded Karolina Pliskova, who got knocked out of this tournament in the first round by Camila Giorgi a few days ago. She is the much less accomplished Pliskova sister, and that has overshadowed her to an extent. Now, though, with Karolina out, Kristyna has a chance to make a name for herself. This is a great opportunity, but it also comes loaded with a lot of pressure, and that might be something Kristyna Pliskova might not be able to handle. The home crowd might not be the burden, but living up to a more successful sister’s standards could be the problematic point for Pliskova. Meanwhile, Haddad Maia was very impressive in a straight-set rout of former French Open finalist (and 2016 semifinalist) Samantha Stosur. She is obviously in a comfort zone.
One other complication here: Pliskova advanced only because Lucie Safarova withdrew due to illness on Wednesday. Pliskova is less likely to gain a rhythm in this match because of her unplanned off day. Haddad Maia doesn’t have that problem. Take Haddad Maia with your tennis picks in this spot.
Pick: Haddad Maia in three sets
Camila Giorgi vs. Mona Barthel
This is a very difficult match to predict, because Giorgi is the epitome of a player who is really strong one day and very erratic the next. Giorgi is one of those players who blows hot and cold all the time, and who fluctuates between overpowering and completely careless. She can be intimidating with her big hitting, but she often goes through matches playing without poise or steadiness, and in those moments, she looks like an amateur.
Barthel is the more consistent player, but Giorgi beat top-seeded Karolina Pliskova earlier in this event. That’s a strong statement which is hard to ignore. Therefore, while she is weak and not exactly trustworthy as a tennis player, Giorgi still has more upside than Barthel, and that will probably make the difference for her in this match.
Pick: Giorgi in three sets
Barbora Strycova vs. Katerina Siniakova
This is a match which features two Czech players, the veteran Strycova and the young up-and-comer, Siniakova. It is advisable to bet on youth over experience if the younger player is the clearly more talented player and has a reasonable expectation of being able to play her best. However, Strycova is currently the more talented player and has performed well in her early matches in Prague. Sets should be close, but Strycova should win them and find a way to advance to the quarterfinals.
Pick: Strycova in straight sets
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