Britain’s Johanna Konta has yet to find herself under any real pressure at Wimbledon so far. The degree of difficulty steps up for her in this third round clash on Saturday though. She will be taking on American Sloane Stephens who has hit the ground running at SW19.
Sloane Stephens v Johanna Konta odds*
Johanna Konta 1/2
Sloane Stephens 13/8
* (betting odds taken from bet365 on July 5th, 2019 at 11:19 pm)
Can Johanna Konta beat Stephens?
Jo Konta had that wonderful clay court swing of the season and now the real business on the grass is here, she will be looking to peak in London. Konta opened with a straight sets win over Ana Bogdan, racing away with the second set. She then took out a tricky opponent in Katerina Siniakova in the second round, again without dropping a set.
She is the leading British hope at Wimbledon in the singles this year and will be looking to at least emulate her semi-final finish from 2017. This year’s campaign is just the second time that she has been past the second round at the tournament. She needs that wonderful first serve of hers to be on point against Stephens, a former Wimbledon quarterfinalist. Konta is at 6/5 to win 2-0 in set betting* (betting odds taken from bet365 on July 5th, 2019 at 11:19 pm).
Head to Head
There have been three previous meetings between Konta and Stephens. All three of those have been this year as well. Konta took a straight sets win over the American at the Australian Open before beating her twice on clay in Rome and then at the French Open. This then will be their first meeting on grass.
Can Stephens upset the home crowd?
Like Konta, Stephens had a pretty solid French Open campaign, that was until she lost in the quarters to the Brit. Stephens is ranked in the top ten in the world but her most notable performances have been on clay. Stephens bowed out at the quarter-finals stage in this season’s Australian Open. Heading Into Wimbledon she carried a W18 L11 match record for the season.
The best career finish that Stephens has produced at Wimbledon was a quarter-final place in the 2013 edition. In the last two seasons, she has been upset in the first round. So this has been progress for the former US Open champion. But she isn’t a player that naturally looks suited to the grass. The American goes as the 13/8 underdog for the match* (betting odds taken from bet365 on July 5th, 2019 at 11:19 pm).
Predictions
Konta looks the more likely of the two to put things together. Her first serve is going well at the moment and she is taking on a strong player, but not one that particularly deals with the grass courts all that well. With home support behind her, this is a good chance for Konta to progress. She has the aces that Stephens doesn’t. Konta to win.
