The WTA Stuttgart tournament moves into the Round of 16. You will see some matches between top-25 players in this round, since Stuttgart generally attracts top players who want to sharpen their games before moving on to Madrid for the 1,000-point tournament next week. Here are some of the better matches in the Round of 16, which will showcase the best of women’s tennis this week:

WTA Stuttgart
Muchova – Mertens: 01:00

H2H: 1-1

Karolina Muchova made the semifinals in Miami. Muchova won Doha earlier this year and has shown how talented she is. This is the kind of tennis season she was hoping for, mainly because she has been able to stay relatively healthy. She beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich earlier this week in Stuttgart and hopes to make another deep tournament run. Elise Mertens beat Germany’s Ella Seidel earlier this week in Stuttgart. Winning a match in her opponent’s home country should give Mertens confidence for this battle against Muchova.

Best Bet to Make

Muchova is the more talented player here. Mertens is a solid, proven pro, but Muchova has more shots and more ways to win points. Playing well, Muchova should be viewed as the clear favorite. Mertens will put up a fight, but Muchova should be able to show that she is the superior player. As long as the margin isn’t razor-close (a tiebreaker in at least one set), Muchova covering the game spread is a solid play.

That being said, Muchova -3.5 games is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: Muchova -3.5 games @1.83 @bet365

Samsonova – Gauff: 01:00

H2H: 0-3

Liudmila Samsonova faces Coco Gauff. Samsonova won her first-round match against Antonia Ruzic in straight sets to advance to the second round and face Gauff, the No. 2 seed at this tournament behind No. 1 seed Elena Rybakina. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka pulled out of the tournament to get healthy for Madrid next week. Gauff is playing her first match since the Miami final, which she lost to Sabalenka in three sets.

Best Bet to Make

Gauff hasn’t played in two weeks and might be rusty, but Samsonova’s one win over Ruzic in the first round of Stuttgart isn’t enough to convince us she’s a real threat to Gauff. Samsonova has not been playing particularly well. She lost to Lilli Tagger, a teenager, in Linz last week. She lost six straight matches before the win over Ruzic. Gauff should be able to beat her fairly handily.

That being said, Gauff winning comfortably (-5.5 games) is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: Gauff -5.5 games @1.73 @bet365  

Lys – Svitolina: Time 20:00

H2H: 0-0

Eva Lys plays Elina Svitolina. Lys fought past Paula Badosa in three sets to win her first-round match. That’s a really good win for a player who has played very few matches since the Australian Open back in January. Lys is trying to regain form, and that win over Badosa moves her in the right direction. Svitolina reached the semifinals of Indian Wells in March. She didn’t go deep in Miami, but she won a match at the Billie Jean King Cup last weekend as a warm-up for Stuttgart. 

Best Bet to Make

The fact that Svitolina did get to play one match before coming to Stuttgart (last weekend) means she won’t be playing this match after a multi-week layoff. She should have enough rhythm to win this match comfortably. Lys beating Badosa is a good win, but it says more about Badosa, who has been battling injuries and is not close to top health or form. Svitolina should be able to take charge of this match.

That being said, Svitolina -5.5 games is a value bet for sure.

Value bet/ the best odds: Svitolia -5.5 games @2.00 @bet365

Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images

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