Can Krejcikova stop the unbeaten Keys’ run?
Last year’s French Open winner Barbora Krejikova has lost just one of the eight singles matches played in 2022: the final of the Sydney Tennis Classic against Paula Badosa. Instead of getting a chance for revenge, however, the Czech will face Badosa’s defeater Madison Keys, who claimed a commanding 2-0 win over the Spaniard in the last 16.
Whether this circumstance will be to the Czech’s advantage or disadvantage remains to be seen. The fact is, however, that in the run-up to the quarter-final between Barbora Krejikova and Madison Keys, the bookmakers’ odds are leaning slightly in the direction of the reigning French Open winner.
However, Madison Keys is in very good form. For her part, the American won the Adelaide International 2 to claim her first singles title in 2022. With a record of nine wins from nine singles matches in the new season, there is a lot to be said for Madison Keys, who also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open as an unseeded player in 2015.
We see the greatest value for Barbora Krejcikova against Madison Keys in the betting that the Czech wins a maximum of twelve games. On the one hand, that would cover most of the two-set wins for the favourite, but also almost all constellations in which the American holds her own.
Barbora Krejcikova – Statistics & current form
Current world ranking: 4
Position in the seedings: 4
The 26-year-old Czech Barbora Krejcikova is currently competing in Down Under for only the eighth time in her career in a women’s singles Grand Slam tournament. She has tried a whopping 15 other times, but mostly failed in the first two rounds of qualifying.
Nevertheless, the Czech is a well-known name on the WTA Tour. After all, she won her first two Grand Slams in doubles in 2018 before, curiously, making her breakthrough in singles late in her career.
Krejcikova’s great strength is her physicality
Last year at the French Open, Krejcikova achieved the incredible feat of not only winning the Grand Slam in doubles, but also winning the women’s singles. To do so, she had to be on court on all 14 days of the Grand Slam tournament.
Accordingly, it is well known that the 26-year-old has an incredibly good physique, which also helped her reach the quarter-finals in the women’s singles at the US Open in her debut at this tournament later in the year.
Thanks to strong serve in Australian Open quarter-final for first time
Now the Czech, who is also known and feared for her concentration, calmness and nerves of steel, is also in the last eight at the Australian Open 2022, for which Krejcikova only had to drop a set against Jelena Ostapenko in the third round. Most recently, she clearly disenchanted the two-time overall winner Victoria Azarenka 2:0 (6:2 and 6:2).
Barbora Krejcikova’s chances of overcoming the next hurdle and storming into the semi-finals against Madison Keys are correspondingly good. Especially on her own serve, nothing has been burning lately. In 26 out of 30 cases (87%) she won the point when her first serve arrived.
Madison Keys – Statistics & current form
Current ranking in the world: 51
Seeded position: unseeded
Seven years ago at the 2015 Australian Open, Madison Keys achieved the feat of advancing to the semi-finals as an unseeded player. The 26-year-old American could now repeat that feat.
As number 51 in the WTA world rankings, the lady from Illinois started unseeded once again and has already had to eliminate two top players on her way to the quarter-finals.
Won all nine singles in 2022
In her opening match, Madison Keys defeated compatriot Sofia Kenin (WTA 13) 2-0 before also dispatching Paula Badosa (WTA 6) 2-0 in the round of 16, losing just four games. It was her 20th win over a top-10 player.
That means the American still has a completely clean slate going into 2022, as the 26-year-old already won at the Adelaide International 2 last week to secure her sixth singles title on the WTA Tour, which could potentially prove to set the tone for a strong 2022.
Keys played 33 winners in her Round of 16 win
Now, however, the American enters her third Ausralian Open quarter-final overall as a slight underdog.
The 26-year-old will also have to carry her recent strong scores into this quarter-final. On 25 of 33 occasions, her first serve against Paula Badosa led to a point win (76%). When it came to the rally, she was convincing with a total of 33 winners – including seven return winners. Numbers that should also give her at least one or two match wins against Barbora Krejcikova.
Barbora Krejcikova – Madison Keys Direct comparison / H2H record
Head to head: 0:0
Never before have both ladies faced each other in a singles match. Consequently, there is no “head to head” data that could be used in the forecast for Barbora Krejcikova against Madison Keys.
Barbora Krejcikova – Madison Keys Tip
Totally, there’s more to be said for the calm Czech, whose serve – when she brings it to the court – is a weapon in its own right. Barbora Krejcikova can never be written off and also has the quality to bounce back with impressive physicality after small phases of weakness. These are all qualities that can work to her advantage in this quarter-final.
Madison Keys is still unbeaten in 2022 and brings a lot of momentum and confidence into the match. The bet on Barbora Krejcikova winning fewer than twelve games offers correspondingly high value. On the one hand, this bet would pay off with most two-set wins for the favourite and, on the other hand, many constellations would be covered in which the American prevails.
