Simona Halep vs Anett Kontaveit
29th January 00:00hrs
Tennis – Australian Open – Quarter Finals
Pick Halep 2-0
Bookmaker Unibet
Odds: 11/10 odds taken 23:17 GMT, Monday 27th January
Anett Kontaveit is the next player to try and find a way to crack the surge of Simona Halep at the Australian Open 2020. Kontaveit, 28th seed has made it through to the final eight at a Slam for the first time in her career.
Halep is no stranger to things at the business end of the top tournaments in the world. Will that experience pay dividends for her with a semi-final place at stake?
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Powerful and focused Halep can reach the final four
Romania’s Simona Halep took on world number sixteen Elise Mertens in the fourth round. That was the most difficult opponent that Halep has been up against in the tournament so far. But Halep looked steady and controlled as she ran to a straight-sets victory. That extended her run of not having dropped a set in the tournament yet.
So she is looking strong in all departments. She is defending well on serve, which you would expect as she is one of the best defenders in the game. She is also one of the best counter punchers, which can into play against the determined Mertens in the last round.
With a lot of the other top seeds having taken a tumble, Halep is a clear front runner for the title, aiming to go one step better than her previous best at the event, having been a losing finalist in 2018.
There has been previous meetings between the two players. Two in fact and both were won by Halep. The first of those meetings was in Miami 2017 with Halep running to a straight-sets victory, dropping only three games in the match. In the same year, they met for the second time, with Halep again winning in straight sets.
Can Kontaveit take a further step forward in Melbourne?
Kontaveit has one career title to her name on the WTA. The Estonian star has surpassed any previous best at a Grand Slam by having reached the quarter-finals here. Her previous best at the Australian Open happened in 2018 when she reached the round of sixteen. At that stage of this year’s campaign, she was up against the unseeded Iga Swiatek.
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Kontaveit dropped the first set in that match and had to really dig deep and scrap out the match win, taking the next two sets 7-5 7-5. The big result of her campaign so far was her third-round match up against sixth seed Belinda Bencic. Kontaveit was unplayable on the day posting an absolutely stunning 6-0 6-1 success against the Swiss player. She knows that there is going to be a big grind in this one.
Simona Halep vs Anett Kontaveit Betting Advice
Kontaveit had won one of three fixtures this year before going to Melbourne Park. Even though she pulled out that amazing result against Benic in the third round, she looked as if she was just struggling in the last round for focus.
Key Facts – Simona Halep vs Anett Kontaveit Betting Tip
- Simona Halep has not dropped a set in the tournament
- Simona Halep leads the head to head 2-0
- Anett Kontaveit has secured her best ever Slam performance
Simona Halep has the superb counterpunching ability and is likely to come through this challenge. This is now seriously high-pressure stakes, the likes of which her opponent is not used to. Halep looks to have her emotions in check and can take this 2-0.
The best betting odds for Simona Halep vs Anett Kontaveit
Simona Halep to win: 4/9 at Bet365
Anett Kontaveit: 7/4 at Bet365
