Bet du Jour: Kayla Day vs. Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Roland Garros

On Saturday, world No. 138 Kayla Day will look to keep things rolling when she takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova at Roland Garros. Day is far from a household name, but the American is one of the hottest players in the world on clay right now.

Having qualified to reach the main draw, Day has won five consecutive matches in Paris—and since the start of April, she is 18-5 on clay. Not all those matches were played at the WTA level, but it says a lot that Day has played that often on the surface, with success. By comparison, Schmiedlova has played just 10 clay-court matches since the start of April, and she is only 6-4 in that span (with some of her wins also coming at the ITF level).

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Kayla Day's win over Madison Keys in the second round should have served as a serious statement.

Form is such an important factor when handicapping tennis, and it’s hard to find many that can say they’re playing as well as Day right now. Her win over Madison Keys in the second round should have served as a serious statement. Keys made it to the semifinals of this event in 2018, and she’s the 20th-ranked player in the world. Day should now have the confidence she needs to go out and feel like she can beat anyone.

Once the 26th-ranked player in the world, Schmiedlova has had only one winning season over the last eight years. Schmiedlova also happens to be just 6-11 against left-handed players at the WTA level. And Day’s lefty serve and forehand have given much better opponents trouble in the past. That makes it hard to believe the American is in real danger of losing this match.

I absolutely love the value on Day to keep this dream run alive. And hopefully this tournament serves as the long overdue breakout for a player that has dealt with a lot early in her career.

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