Wimbledon is off to an incredible start and more exciting matches are slated for Tuesday.
The good news for us is that I've found more value on Tuesday's order of play.
Read on for my Wimbledon best bets and previews.
Note: Match times are subject to change. Read here for tips on viewing tennis matches.
Alize Cornet (-130) vs. Yulia Putintseva (+104)
6 a.m. ET
Alize Cornet played well in Bad Homburg last week, but she ultimately lost in the semifinals to Caroline Garcia.
Cornet won 75% of her first serves, serving at 67% first-serves in, and 61% of her second serves. She went 3-of-9 on break points and came up short in the crucial moments of match.
The Frenchwoman did beat impressive grass-court opponents such as Tatjana Maria and Angelique Kerber in Bad Homburg.
She also beat Serena Williams in the third round of Wimbledon in 2014. So, it's somewhat surprising is just 27-35 on grass in her career.
Cornet can sometimes fall into a defensive mindset, which is not conducive for grass-court success.
On the other hand, when Cornet is on her game, she can control the baseline with her powerful backhand, including getting terrific angles from this wing. Her forehand stays consistently deep in the court, making it hard to attack.
Yulia Putintseva lost in the second match of her only Wimbledon warmup event, falling to Anhelina Kalinina. Putintseva only won 47% of her service points in the match and failed to win 65% of her first-serve points in either of her matches in Eastbourne this past week.
Putintseva is just 12-19 on grass as a professional. She has a heavy forehand and a high rally tolerance, but she struggles to produce the power necessary to make an impact on grass courts.
In addition, the faster conditions and low bounces don't play to Putintseva's strengths, though her dropshot and backhand slice can be effective on grass.
This will be a baseline-centric match, with both players solid on the ground. Cornet has the biggest weapon on the court in her backhand, which she will use to control the baseline.
Her forehand has looked solid enough recently where Putintseva won't be able to effectively target that wing.
Cornet, having already played seven grass-court matches this season, has more experience on the surface both this season and overall. She is more comfortable on grass than Putintseva and will be able to better assert herself during rallies.
Pick: Cornet ML (-130 via FanDuel)
Kristina Kucova (-200) vs. Laura Pigossi (+160)
11 a.m. ET
Kristina Kucova hasn't played on grass yet this season, losing in the round of 16 of a clay Challenger in her only event since Roland Garros. However, Kucova does have some grass-court experience, as she's gone 7-15 on grass in her career.
Last year, Kucova played in Wimbledon qualifying, advancing past her first qualifying opponent before falling in three sets to 2022-qualifier Astra Sharma.
Kucova has the game to be successful on grass. She can flatten out her groundstrokes from both wings and generate good controlled aggression that allows her to power through opponents. The Slovak also controls her groundstrokes well.
Laura Pigossi has never played a professional grass-court match in her career. Pigossi hasn't even played since losing in three sets to Nastasja Mariana Schunk in French Open qualifying. So, expect Pigossi to be rusty and unaware of how to play on a grass court.
Pigossi's game is not suited for grass whatsoever. While Pigossi's consistency, movement and heavy forehand are admirable, she has very little power. The Brazilian struggles to finish points, even when she has an opening.
And while Pigossi is not terrible at the net, she's not terribly comfortable with her transition game, either.
Neither player is a grass-court specialist, but Kucova at least knows what to expect on the surface in terms of the lower ball bounces, movement and point construction.
Pigossi will need time to figure out the basics of grass-court tennis. She's played one match since May 12th, meaning rust could also be a factor.
In addition, Kucova's game is better-suited for grass. She hits with more power and can flatten out her groundstrokes and hit with controlled aggression in a way that I've never see from the more defensive-minded Brazilian.
At the very least, I expect Kucova to comfortably win the first set as Pigossi gets her bearings.
Pick: Kucova -1.5 games first set (-135 via PointsBet)
