The second round of Wimbledon begins and Wednesday's matchups are excellent!
I’ve found value on two of Wednesday's matchups — Yastremska–Gracheva and Vekic–Andreeva.
Read on for my Wimbledon best bets.
Note: Match times are subject to change. Read here for tips on viewing tennis matches and seeing tennis odds.
Wimbledon Odds & Best Bets
Dayana Yastremska (-130) vs Varvara Gracheva (+100)
10 a.m. ET
Dayana Yastremska eased past Nadia Podoroska 6-1, 7-6(1) to advance in Wimbledon. Yastremska won 51% of her return points and improved her record on grass to 22-19 for her career.
While a bit unpredictable, Yastremska is very dangerous on grass. The 24-year old has a big first serve and takes the racquet out of her opponents' hands with her aggressive groundstrokes. Yastremska can overwhelm her opponents from both wings with her pace, although she's most effective with her forehand. Especially on the quick grass surface, the Ukrainian can end the point with one swing of her racquet.
The problem for Yastremska is that she can sometimes lose control of her groundstrokes. With that said, in 2024 the Ukrainian boasts a 19-13 record overall. She's reined her shots in a bit while continuing to pressure her opponents with the sheer pace of her shots.
Varvara Gracheva beat Lesia Tsurenko 6-3, 6-1 in the first round of Wimbledon. Gracheva is now 16-8 since the start of the clay season, showcasing strong form. On grass though, Gracheva has just played two matches this season and 10 as a professional, with just a 4-6 record on the surface.
Gracheva doesn't do anything spectacular, but she plays solid tennis. The 23-year old can dictate at times with her heavy forehand, but her shots from this wing can sit up on the grass. She has a flatter backhand that cuts through the court, but it's difficult for the Frenchwoman to effectively play offense from this wing.
In that first-round matchup, Gracheva got to face a player in Tsurenko who lacks firepower and allowed the Frenchwoman to play a baseline-oriented game, which suits her game.
Yastremska won't allow Gracheva to gain a baseline rhythm, as this Ukrainian has the level of controlled aggression to overwhelm Gracheva with pace and make her feel her lack of experience on the surface.
Indeed, Yastremska might not be dominant on grass, but she still has over 30 more matches of experience on the surface compared to Gracheva with the grass enhancing her game, as opposed to being more of a hinderance for the Frenchwoman.
Pick: Yastremska ML (-130 via BetMGM)
Donna Vekic (-385) vs Erika Andreeva (+290)
12 p.m. ET
Donna Vekic passed a stern test in the first round, defeating powerful lefty Xiyu Wang 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. The-28 year old, who made the final of Bad Homburg (grass) last week, is now 6-3 on grass this season with a strong 51-34 mark on the surface for her career.
Vekic's game suits the grass well. She has a huge first serve, which won her 78% of her first serves against Wang. And the Croat plays attacking baseline tennis, hitting 27 winners in her win over the Chinese. Vekic can play power tennis from both wings, although her forehand is most potent. Vekic positions herself nicely on court, understands how to construct points on the surface and knows the right balls to attack.
While Vekic hits her fair share of unforced errors from the ground – 28 in the first round – it's this level of power tennis that puts her in the driver's seat on grass.
Erika Andreeva entered the main draw as a lucky loser when Aryna Sabalenka pulled out and then beat Emina Bektas 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 to open her campaign in London. The Russian has a 4-2 mark on grass this year, having gone just 5-3 as a professional on the surface.
Andreeva is fairly solid from the ground and places her groundstrokes well. The 20-year old has flatter groundstrokes that don't sit up on the grass and can cause havoc for her opponents. But, don't let her 30 winners against Bektas fool you, while Andreeva can hit winners when she sees an opening, she doesn't have overwhelming power to her game, both on her serve and from the baseline. Players who hit with controlled aggression can drag Andreeva around the court.
Having played 77 more matches on grass, Vekic has a significant edge in experience on the surface, and that's reflected in their grass Elo ratings, as Vekic's grass-court Elo is 255.8 points above the Russian's.
And, even beyond point construction and shot selection, the Croat has the power to rip through Andreeva when given a chance from the ground.
Free points on grass are also so important on grass and Vekic has the significantly better serve.
Pick: Andreeva to NOT win a set (-122 via FanDuel)
