Sakkari vs Rybakina Odds & Pick: WTA St. Petersburg Open Semifinals
- Sakkari and Rybakina meet in the semifinals of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy on Saturday morning
- Sakkari made it here through the skin of her teeth while Rybakina has been dominant
- Keep reading to see who we believe will walk away with the victory
It’s a heavyweight showdown on one side of the bracket of the semifinal at the WTA St. Petersburg Open.
The sixth-seeded Maria Sakkari faces off with eighth-seeded Elena Rybakina with a chance to head to the finals in the next round. Both women are playing at a high level and have been extremely impressive throughout. Yet the oddsmakers have given the slight edge to Rybakina. But did they get this one right?
Let’s also not forget that Kiki Bertens is still alive and looking to defend her title as well.
Elena Rybakina vs Maria Sakkari Odds
| Player | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elena Rybakina | -2.5 (-109) | -153 | O 21.5 (-120) |
| Maria Sakkari | +2.5 (-111) | +133 | U 21.5 (+100) |
Odds taken Feb. 14th
The Queen of the Comeback
Maria Sakkari had herself a terrific 2019. She managed to end the year at a career-best ranking number 23 and this year she has only improved on those numbers. She currently sits at number 21 in the world and it’s easy to see why.
After a solid 2020 Australian Open where she reached the fourth round, she hasn’t missed a beat during the St. Petersburg Open. But her road to the semifinals has been anything but easy.
Vitalia Diatchhenko was Sakkari’s first round opponent and looked to be on her way to an upset win after winning the first set. The sixth-seeded Sakkari turned up the heat in the second and third sets to edge it out and head to the next round.
Maria win over Bencic #sakkari #GreekQueen #proud 💪💙👌🇬🇷 pic.twitter.com/8cIYFKgCgf
— TenniSfaN (@sakkarinadal) February 14, 2020
Alize Cornet was a bit easier in comparison. It took Sakkari just two sets to get rid of her. Cornet just simply offered little to no resistance.
Sakkari’s quarterfinals match on the other hand was a whole different story. Sakkari almost saw her run come to an end. The number one seeded Belinda Bencic came out hot, winning the first set with ease. The second and third sets, however, were a completely different Sakkari. She broke the number one seed on several occasions and coasted to a victory.
With Sakkari’s propensity to drop a set, she won’t be able to come out so lackadaisical in the next round.
Elena Rybakina Looks Unstoppable
Simply put, there just hasn’t been anyone nearly as impressive as Elena Rybakina.
Her first match against Katerina Siniakova wasn’t much of one. The eighth-seeded Rybakina took care of business in straight sets to move on.
It was another routine win for Rybakina in the following round. Fiona Ferro had absolutely no answers and was broken four times en route to another straight-set win.
🎾🎞 #Rybakina pic.twitter.com/iRxWZMaPhM
— Nadir (@Ndr_Nadir_) February 12, 2020
Surprising quarterfinalist Oceane Dodin was next on the list and gave Rybakina all that she could handle. After losing a close first set in a tiebreak, it was smooth sailing in the following two sets.
For the 20-year-old Rybakina, her impressive run has pegged her as the favorite going into the next round, but should she be?
Who Has the Edge?
With both women being so young in age, it isn’t surprising to see that they haven’t played each other just yet. The accomplishments that they have collectively says a lot about their talents.
Sakkari is classified as the higher-ranked player but Rybakina is on a ridiculous run. We’re only in the second month of the 2020 season and she already has a title in her possession. Taking care of business at the Hobart Open earlier this year. With that being said, Sakkari does have the edge when we look at who made a deeper run at the first grand slam of the year, the Australian Open.
We could sit here all day and nitpick at who has the edge in certain categories but this semifinals matchup is sure to be a close one.
Rybakina vs Sakkari Stats
| 25 | Rankings | 21 |
| 14-2 | Overall record | 7-3 |
| 1 | 2020 titles | 0 |
| 0 | Wins against each other | 0 |
Final Pick: Maria Sakkari
You can’t go wrong picking either woman here. They have both been impressive throughout, but Maria Sakkari is the pick.
Not only does she understand how to battle back from adversity but she also just took down the tournament favorite in Belinda Bencic. It’ll be a tough game, but take Sakkari to walk away with the win.
Hans Themistode has worked in sports journalism since attending Queens College, and has worked for several newspapers including the BX Times and Canarsie Courier, as well as writing for publications such as Fansided and The Clever. His work has also been featured on Bleacher Report.
