The finals for the women’s bracket of the 2019 Australian Open is set, and it’s going to be a match between Naomi Osaka and Petra Kvitova. Osaka is the younger one, but Kvitova is just as thirsty for a Grand Slam win, having not won one since taking home the top prize at the 2014 Wimbledon. Will Osaka win her second Grand Slam? Or will Kvitova be the last woman standing in Melbourne?
Osaka has finally made it to the grand stage of the Australian Open. She’s never reached this far before in the tournament. In fact, the furthest she’s been before in an Australian Open was to the Round of 16 of last year’s edition of the tournament. To get to the finals, Osaka took down Karolina Pliskova to the tune of a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 set. Osaka’s service game was on point in that match, as she scored 15 aces compared to just three by Pliskova. Osaka also had a large plus-36 over Pliskova in terms of winners, 56-20. She put 58 percent of his first serves in play and scored on 81 percent of them. Osaka’s serve will be especially crucial in the finals. Despite some hiccups in her serves, Osaka’s service game is still devastating when she gets going. In fact, she leads the women’s side with 50 aces. No other player from the women’s field had more than 37 prior to the finals.
Betting on the Petra Kvitova (-135 to win)
Kvitova is scary to face right now. She has been phenomenal in the tournament, with no one seemingly able to keep in step with her. To make that point clear, consider the fact that she has not lost a set yet. She has yet to see a third set. Kvitova almost did when she was taken to a tie-break in the first set of her semifinals match with Danielle Collins, but after wining the tie-break, she went on to eviscerate Collins to finish the contest with a 7-6 (7-2), 6-0 victory. Clearly, Kvitova has the fresher legs between her and Osaka, so that’s one advantage for her – a big one. The 28-year-old Czech, who has a 14-9 record in Australian Open matches dating back to 2009, is going to rely on her strong return game to combat Osaka’s power service. Kvitova leads the tournament with 115 first serve return points.
