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2019 WTA Finals Semifinal Odds & Pick: Bencic vs Svitolina

Hans Themistode

by Hans Themistode in Tennis

Updated Apr 8, 2020 · 12:10 PM PDT

Elina Svitolina waiting to return serve
Can Elina Svitolina beat Belinda Bencic in the semis of the WTA Finals on Saturday? Photo by Christian Mesiano (Flickr) [CC License]
  • Elina Svitolina has some real magic when she competes in the WTA Finals as she is looking to repeat as champion
  • Belinda Bencic might be viewed as the underdog but she does have two wins under her belt against Svitolina
  • Can Svitolina continue her hot streak? Or will Bencic take down the defending champion?

The 2019 WTA season has been an unbelievable one.

It’s officially coming to a close with the WTA Finals underway. The field began with 8 but it has been cut in half. The tournament favorite Ashleigh Barty is still hanging around but she’ll have to get through Karolina Pliskova.

On one side of the bracket we have two players who have every reason to believe they can win this entire event in Elina Svitolina and Belinda Bencic.

Both players are about as evenly matched as you can get but it is Svitolina who has the slightest edge according to online sportsbooks.

Elina Svitolina vs Belinda Bencic Odds

Player Spread Moneyline Total
Elina Svitolina -2.5 (-120) -165 O 21.5 (-125)
Belinda Bencic +2.5 (-110) +135 U 21.5 (-105)

Odds taken Nov. 1, 2019

Elina Svitolina Is Looking To Repeat

For Svitolina, her current ranking of 8 is considered a down year. In 2017, she finished the year at number 6 and in 2018 she finished another remarkable year at number 4. Still, even with her ranking slightly down she has had one heck of a 2019. Svitolina now finds herself in a similar position.

Just last year she qualified for the year end tournament. She put on a great display as she didn’t lose a single game en route to the championship.

Her road to repeat with another title at the WTA Finals began with a close straight sets win over Karolina Pliskova. The first set ended in a tiebreaker, while the second was another close one but Svitolina managed to prevail.

In her following matchup she took on the 2019 Wimbledon champion in Simona Halep. It was yet another close encounter but Svitolina took care of business in straight sets.

With a spot in the semi finals already booked, Svitolina took on alternate player Sofia Kenin. Svitolina had no real incentive to win this match. Yet, she still put on an expert clinic and took home another straight sets victory.

Svitolina seems poised to win back to back WTA Finals titles, but she will find the road to that feat extremely difficult.

Belinda Bencic’s Breakout Year Continues

Bencic has always been a great player, but 2019 has been hands down one to remember. She has won two titles on the year and has beaten some of the best names in the world on her way to a career high ranking of 7.

Even with a breakout year, things didn’t look so good for Bencic to start off her WTA Finals adventure.

The world number 7 lost to Ashleigh Barty in the opening round. She seemed to be on her way to another loss until she turned things around against Petra Kvitova in the following round.

Bencic caught a bit of a break as her opponent Kiki Bertens retired in the second set in the following round. She has now set the stage for a showdown with a woman she is very familiar with.

How Do They Matchup?

As it currently stands, both Bencic and Svitolina have grown accustomed to one another’s game. Svitolina might have the edge in terms of odds for this matchup, but it is Bencic who has had slightly more success when they have matched up in the past.

Elina Svitolina vs Belinda Bencic Statistical Comparison

Svitolina
VS
Bencic
8 Ranking 7
1 Head-To-Head Record 2
32-15 2019 Hard Court Record 33-15
38-24 2019 Record 51-24

How can these women be separated at this point? They are almost mirror images of one another. It may not show in the statistics, but one of these women has a slight edge over the other. That could very well decide who is going to be moving on.

Who To Choose?

They have similar rankings and are just within one game of one another in terms of the success they have had on hard courts.

It kind of feels like you can flip a coin and choose. Well, not exactly.

If we count last year’s results, Svitolina is on 8-game winning streak at the WTA Finals. Unprecedented to say the least. For as great as she has been this season, she has yet to hoist a trophy all year long. This will effectively be her last chance to check that box off her list.

Her motivation to repeat as the WTA Finals champion will be at an all-time high. Not to mention she hasn’t dropped a single set and has found ways to win no matter how many break points she was facing.

It will be another close match for Svitolina, but expect her to pull out the victory and get one step closer to repeating as the WTA Finals champion.

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