Though finding value might be a bit tougher in the second weeks of Grand Slams such as Wimbledon, the flip side is that we do get some very fun matchups.
Here are my previews for Rybakina – Kalinskaya and Collins – Krejcikova in my Monday Wimbledon predictions.
Match times are subject to change. Read here for advice on viewing Wimbledon matches.
Wimbledon Picks & Wimbledon Predictions
Elena Rybakina (-400) vs Anna Kalinskaya (+300)
8:30 a.m. ET
This is the match of the fourth round from the women's draw for me. Rybakina looks like she's back to her best after sustained bouts with physical issues (though who knows if that's actually the case) and Kalinskaya has been one of the breakout players of the 2024 campaign.
These two can both strike the ball well, with Rybakina obviously possessing more raw power both on serve and from the baseline.
The flip side? Kalinskaya is very strong at dealing with pace, can hit both her groundstrokes to any part of the court, hits a very flat ball that was always going to see her succeed on this surface with the kind of year she's had and has a serve that can find her a sneaky number of cheap points.
With one woman near the top of the women's game and a former Wimbledon champion and the other on the ascent with a game style that has proven to take to grass well, I'm excited to watch this one. The stylistic contrast could also make for a fun tactical battle to keep an eye on.
That said, I'm not sure the price is wrong. Rybakina has proven more and does have the match on her racquet if she's striking the ball cleanly. Might be a bit of value on the underdog, as Kalinskaya has the talent and a path to victory that may mean she should be getting a bit more respect than a 25% valuation, but I'm happy to pass here.
Pick: Pass
Danielle Collins (-220) vs Barbora Krejcikova (+175)
11:30 a.m. ET
The opening week from the All England club was a much needed one for Krejcikova, who had been really struggling since February.
Problem is, she barely got by Veronika Kudermetova, who has been equally as poor in 2024, and was behind in both sets against the underpowered Katie Volynets, winning them both in tight tiebreaks before receiving a retirement in the second set against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, someone that hasn't proven herself above the ITF level.
This is a big step up for Krejcikova in terms of opposition. Collins doesn't just have elite firepower from the baseline, but she's also been in tremendous form as one of the best players in 2024 on the women's circuit.
The Czech has been decent at redirecting pace and manipulating the ball around the court against big hitters in the past, but with her form lagging and the errors being more commonplace in her game than normal, I'm not sure I'd trust her to do that against Collins.
Collins hasn't played her best tennis this past week, yet she's still won every set (one from 0-4 down it must be said) and her margin of victory in her first three matches? Four, five and four games. With room to improve and the major power advantage, I wouldn't be surprised to see her win another match by a 2-0 scoreline and by a fair number of games.
I do think there's the slightest of edges on -3.5 here, but I'll only be risking a half unit for this Wimbledon play.
Pick: Collins -3.5 games, 0.5u (-115 via DraftKings)
