The quarter finals of the Australian Open begin down under on Tuesday and with the remainder of the singles events now taking place on the Rod Laver Arena there should be a real rise in the intensity with the end of the event now in sight.
Eight players will be looking to make their way into the semi-finals of the competition over the course of Tuesday with all the matches on the card looking like they could be full of quality, and for us watching on plenty of drama and tension.
Day Session
Su-Wei Hsieh vs Nomi Osaka
The opening match of a tantalising Tuesday is the all-Asian clash in the women’s draw as Su-Wei Hsieh takes on the US Open champion Naomi Osaka in a match the latter is a heavy favourite to win but admitted after her fine win over Garbine Muguruza in the previous round that she doesn’t like playing the player from Chinese Taipei.
Hsieh has come through a couple of tidy challenges herself in this competition with Bianca Andreescu and Marketa Vondrousova both capable players who have had no answer to the different game that she provides. You get the feeling Osaka will have that but whether she has it quickly enough to demolish her lower ranked foe remains to be seen. My gut feeling is Hsieh might take a set close enough to keep within the handicap but Osaka looks the player to beat from here on in and I’m in no rush to take her on.
Grigor Dimitrov vs Aslan Karatsev
The day session match in the men’s draw sees the incredible journey of the qualifier Aslan Karatsev continuing when he takes on a man who has been to the last four in Melbourne in the past and will be looking to get there once again in the form of Grigor Dimitrov.
Karatsev looked like he was coming to the end of a run which began in the UAE last month when he trailed Felix Auger-Aliassime 2-0 in sets in the previous round but his comeback ensured the fairytale would continue but getting the better of Dimitrov was emphatic in his victory over Dominic Thiem might be a different story altogether. The likelihood and logical play here would be Dimitrov to win 3-0 but the run of Karatsev deserves more respect than that. I’m happy to leave this one alone all things being equal.
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Night Session
Serena Williams vs Simona Halep
The night session opens up with the pick of the matches in the women’s quarter finals as the former champion Serena Williams takes on the woman who beat her to claim the Wimbledon title she currently holds in Simona Halep.
It goes without saying that this one could be an absolute belter of a contest between two women who are the best in the game. Serena reminded us how good she is with an excellent performance against the dangerous Aryna Sabalenka in the previous round while Halep offered up her battling instincts as she came from a set behind to Iga Swiatek to get the job done in a deciding set and looks ready to battle it out here too.
I like Halep in this match. Her defensive skills are known by all and in the last few years she has transitioned from defence into offense fairly well. Serena actually showed defensive instincts herself in the previous round but there was always the feeling that Sabalenka would wilt down the stretch and that is exactly what happened. I don’t see Halep making that same mistake and the longer she keeps points alive and wears Serena down the better her chances will be. I’m with Halep at odds against here.
Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev
The last match of the day might just turn out to be the best one as Novak Djokovic meets Alexander Zverev in a repeat of what was something of an epic contest back at the ATP Cup a couple of weeks ago and will be special if it is anything like as good as that match.
The big question with regards to this match is how fit Djokovic is. He coped with his injury in the win over Milos Raonic in the previous round but you sense Zverev will be a tougher challenge regardless of how fit the Serb is. Djokovic will need to be much healthier than he has been or he could be in a spot of bother. If the world number one is fit it is hard to see him losing given the record he has over his German opponent but if he isn’t Zverev could easily come through. Sadly it is all guesswork so we can’t advise a bet.
Tips
Back S.Halep to beat S.Williams for a 3/10 stake at 2.10 with Bet365
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