US Open Odds & Picks Quarterfinals Sept 8: Brady vs Putintseva & Osaka vs Rogers

• Only one of the projected seeds made it to the US Open women’s singles quarterfinals in the top half
• No. 4 Naomi Osaka, the highest seed remaining in that half, has been the favorite from Day 1
• Read below for odds, analysis and betting predictions for Tuesday’s women’s quarterfinals

Can rising star American Jennifer Brady keep her dream US Open run going?

Given she faces a very beatable opponent Tuesday in Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan, it seems she will.

US Open Day 9 Women’s Singles Quarterfinal Odds

All odds taken Sept. 7

[4] Naomi Osaka vs. Shelby Rogers

Naomi Osaka has been to the quarterfinals of a major a few times. And she has won two of them.

For Rogers, five years older, it is only the second time in her career, and the first time in more than four years.

Naomi Osaka vs. Shelby Rogers Head to Head

The 3-0 career head-to-head record Rogers holds over Osaka looks pretty gaudy.

But all three matches were contested before Osaka was really Osaka, international star and Grand Slam champion.

Naomi Osaka vs. Shelby Rogers – Previous Matches

They first met at a $50,000 ITF tournament in July 2013. Rogers was the No. 4 seed; Osaka was a 15-year-old qualifier ranked No. 534.

Their most recent meeting was on the slower Har-Tru surface, Osaka had just jumped into the top 50, and was even ranked a few spots ahead of Rogers.

But the Charleston event is in Rogers’ home town, and on a surface she masters better than Osaka does.

Fast forward 3 and a half years, and it’s akin to facing a completely different player.

Rogers has had a tremendous run in the tournament. And her upset victory over No. 6 seed Petra Kvitova Sunday was a squeaker of Grand Slam proportions.

It also helped her get timed for the barrage of power to come.

But although Rogers has played one night match, she hasn’t seen the inside of Arthur Ashe Stadium yet in this tournament – never mind at night.

Never mind against a US Open champion and former No. 1.

Best bet: Osaka (-435) 

[23] Yulia Putintseva vs. [28] Jennifer Brady

Yulia Putintseva is the higher ranked of these two quarterfinalists – ranked No. 35 to Brady’s No. 41 – but she’s the decided underdog in a match that is a huge opportunity for both.

It’s not often that you get a player ranked outside the top 30 in a Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Yulia Putintseva vs Jennifer Brady Head to Head

Different roads for Putintseva and Brady

The two are only three months apart in age, but have taken completely different paths to get here.

Putintseva played her first WTA-level tournament as a 14-year-old back in 2009, and won two matches in qualifying (including a win over a top-75 player).

Brady has bloomed at a relatively late age; she didn’t play her first WTA Tour event until the end of 2015, after two years playing college tennis at UCLA.

Putintseva has been out there, grinding and retrieving and dramatizing, for nearly a decade including reaching junior finals in Australia and the US Open, and a high ranking of No. 3. She did that basically on her own – scrambling for everything from clothing to racquet to coaches.

Brady never got higher than No. 36 in the juniors, and was never a hotshot. But she’s been supported by the USTA, a wealthy national federation.

But both roads led to the same place: a date on Arthur Ashe Stadium at noon Tuesday.

Putintseva is more than used to hard hitters. Her skill is scrambling, distracting, retrieving and creating.

It might be enough to steal a set, but it’s unlikely to stop Brady’s roll despite Putintseva’s 2-0 head-to-head against her. The only thing that could stop her would be the thigh injury she suffered in her win over Cornet.

Best bet: Brady (-335)