Stuttgart Prediction: Elena Rybakina vs Leylah Fernandez
12:30 PM EDT
The Line: Betting Odds: Elena Rybakina -1000 / Leylah Fernandez +540
Elena Rybakina vs Leylah Fernandez Preview
Elena Rybakina played her first match in over two weeks, but encountered little resistance in beating Diana Shnaider in straight sets in the second round of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart. Rybakina set the tone for a comfortable win with an early break in the first set to lead 3-1. The Kazakh served impeccably in the first set, where she bagged the set 6-3 without facing a single break point.In the second set, Shnaider survived a very long fifth game where she erased a break point, but Rybakina’s pressure told late on when the top seed secured the break to move 5-4 up. Rybakina made no mistake in serving for the match 6-4. In the victory, Rybakina hit 9 aces and 2 double faults. She landed 69% of first serves in play and won 91% of first serve points (30/33). She did not face a break point in the whole match.
Leylah Fernandez won a rollercoaster late-night match against Turkish qualifier Zeynep Sonmez. Just a day after earning a first top 10 win, Sonmez was on course to reach the last eight in Stuttgart when she led World No. 25 Fernandez 5-1 in the third set. But the Canadian staged an unbelievable comeback. She won four games in a row to bring the score on level terms. Eventually, the set was decided in a tiebreak and again, Fernandez battled back from a deficit to prevail after three hours and 9 minutes.
In the victory, Fernandez hit 2 aces and 8 double faults. She landed 62% of first serves in play and won 57% of first serve points (45/79). Fernandez won 42% of second serve points (20/48) and saved 18 of 24 break points in the match. This will be Fernandez’s first quarterfinal of the season.