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Match Details
Fixture: (24) Elise Mertens vs (PR) Naomi Osaka
Date: March 11, 2024
Tournament: BNP Paribas Open
Round: Third Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Indian Wells Tennis Garden, California, US
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize Money: $8,995,555
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel/TC Plus | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN/TVA
Elise Mertens vs Naomi Osaka preview
Elise Mertens will lock horns with four-time Major champion Naomi Osaka in the third round of the 2024 BNP Paribas Open on Monday.
Mertens received a bye into the second round, where Wang Xinyu awaited her. The Belgian breezed through the first set as she dropped just one game in it to claim it.
Mertens dealt the first blow to go up a break in the second set but Wang broke back immediately to level the score. The former then snagged another break and maintained her lead this time to notch up a 6-1, 6-4 win.
Osaka, meanwhile, defeated former top 10 player Sara Errani 6-3, 6-1 in the first round to book a second round date against 14th seed Liudmila Samsonova. The former World No. 1 had a comfortable 4-1 lead in the first set but her opponent went on a four-game run to go 5-4 up.
Samsonova then stepped up to serve for the set but it was Osaka's turn to stage a fightback. She stopped the Russian from serving out the opener and bagged three games in a row to snatch the set from her.
Osaka surged to a 4-1 lead in the second set as well but maintained her headstart this time around. She faced a couple of break points when trying to close the match at 5-3. However, she fended them off to score a 7-5, 6-3 win.
Elise Mertens vs Naomi Osaka head-to-head
Osaka leads Mertens 3-1 in the head-to-head. The Japanese won their previous encounter at the 2021 Miami Open in straight sets.
Elise Mertens vs Naomi Osaka odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Elise Mertens vs Naomi Osaka prediction
Osaka secured the biggest win of her comeback by ousting Samsonova in the previous round. Her shotmaking and serving were quite on point, while her body language was extremely positive too. She was fired up and ready to win as her comeback continued to gather some momentum.
Osaka's winning record against Mertens makes her the heavy favorite to win yet another match here. The latter hasn't won back-to-back matches since her run to the final of the Hobart International in January.
Mertens lacks the firepower to dominate Osaka in baseline exchanges. That's why after winning their very first encounter in 2017, she has struggled to keep up with Japanese. The latter's career took off in 2018 and while she's not at that same level just yet, b it's only a matter of time before she's back on top once again.
Pick: Naomi Osaka to win in straight sets.
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