Ekaterina Alexandrova vs Venus Williams: Let’s bet on the underdog

Ekaterina Alexandrova’s opponent, the world No. 34 in the first round of the women’s Roland Garros will be Venus Williams, the world No. 104. Venus is a veteran of the women’s tour, a once-dangerous opponent against the young Russian quoted as a clear underdog.

For Ekaterina, Roland Garros will be her fifth clay-court tournament. Before Paris, the Russian played on the courts of Stuttgart, Madrid, Rome and Strasbourg. In Germany, Italy and France, Ekaterina reached the third round of the draw, where Alexandrova lost to Halep, Pegula and Krejcikova respectively. The results are indifferent, but Ekaterina certainly doesn’t need to be at the peak of her form to beat the current Venus. Also, Alexandrova has reached the third round of Roland Garros two years in a row in 2019 and 2020.

Even in her prime years, Venus has not won so many clay-court tournaments. The last such tournament she won was in 2010 in Acapulco, more than 10 years ago. Now the older Williams’ statistics on the clay are simply awful, with three defeats in her last three games. In Madrid, Venus lost to Brady, in Parma to Schmiedlova and in Strasbourg to Cirstea. Before that, the American was knocked out after the first round in Miami by Diaz. However, managed to make it to the second round of the Australian Open by outplaying the same veteran, Flipkens.

Alexandrova is the clear favorite to win. We have almost no doubt that Ekaterina will make it to the second round of the 2021 Roland Garros. Another thing is that Venus is sure to put up a fight against the Russian. The upcoming match is a first-round match, there’s no fatigue yet, so you’ll have to be tough against Venus, even despite the venerable age of the American. Here are the odds for this match: Handicap2 (+5.5) for 2.12, Total Over 19.0 for 1.90.