Nadia Podoroska vs. Eugenie Bouchard - WTA Chennai (outdoor hard courts)
The quarterfinal stage across the three WTA events going on this week is here, and in India, there are plenty of women that have the chance to pick up a big result for their careers.
Canadian Eugenie Bouchard and Nadia Podoroska are two such players, with both having seen their positions in the WTA rankings plummet thanks to injuries.
They’ll square off for a spot in the semifinals in Friday’s first match in Chennai, and it’s the match we’ll be focusing on for our best bet.
Podoroska a Vulnerable Favorite
It must be said that the Argentine deserves plaudits for the way she battled in her match against German Tatjana Maria. She fought back from 0-5 down in the opening set to get it to 3-5 before losing it, and then had to fend off four break points in the third set (in three different service games) and claw back from 1-5 down (with Maria serving for another point) in the deciding-set tiebreak to emerge victorious.
While admirable, it must be said that Maria lost that match as much as Podoroska won it. In fact, despite not being able to win any point she approached the net on, Maria elected to continue doing so - even on big points. Those decisions likely cost her the match.
The 25-year-old was still far too error-prone throughout and failed to take advantage of an older opponent that looked to have lost a step midway through the second set in the heat and humidity.
Without any matches on hard courts this season that have looked remotely convincing, I’m not sure how Podoroska can be deemed a favorite in this contest.
Bouchard Looking Strong in Tough Conditions
Enter Bouchard, who is another tall opponent with a big serve that can find cheap points, but is much younger and less likely to succumb to the conditions as Maria did in the second set.
Much like Maria as well, Bouchard is much more at home than Podoroska on hard courts, while being level in terms of events played on the surface this season, since both began late thanks to injuries.
After dominating Karman Thandi in the opening set and overcoming a shaky start to the second, Bouchard is going to have a day’s rest to gear up for the quarterfinal tilt - a luxury Podoroska won’t have.
Considering that the temperatures are over 30 degrees in Chennai (even when they begin play in the evening) and the humidity has consistently been hovering in the 75-80% range, having a day off of match play that your opponent doesn’t have to be taken into account - especially when your match is first on court Friday evening.
I have Bouchard as the favorite here, considering her hard-court prowess, previous round performances and the difference in time off prior to this match.
Bet: Bouchard ML, 2 units at +117 (Unibet)