Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova Prediction, Stats, Form, H2H, February 29th

Second preview of the day as we near the end of the week comes from the WTA 250 ATX Open.

Let’s look at Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova in a match between two veterans with different points to prove.

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Our Stephens vs Sevastova prediction is for Sevastova to win.

In this article:

• Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova Prediction
• Sloane Stephens Recent Form
• Anastasija Sevastova Recent Form
• Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova H2H Stat of the Match
• Safer Gambling

Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova Prediction: Returning Sevastova Playing at Higher Level Than Market Realises

• Prediction: Sevastova to win
• Best Odds: 2.67
• Bookmaker: Pinnacle
• Stakes: 3/10

Odds as at 1:00 am UK Time on February 29th, 2024. Odds may now differ.

I’m going to keep backing Sevastova here, as I’ve been impressed with her level since she returned for the first time in two years back in December.

I was on board with opposing her in her first match back, but quickly realised she was playing much better tennis than I had anticipated for someone who was away from the professional game for so long.

The market hasn’t caught up as quickly. At least in my mind.

She is a quality, consistent baseliner, has a variety of different shots she can lean on and most importantly, spreads the court very well off both wings, produces angles and can use the dropshot. Those are always nice things to have, but against someone like Stephens, whose weak point is her footwork and movement around the court, those strengths should be even more apparent in this matchup.

Read on for more expert insights.

Sloane Stephens Recent Form

As usual, Stephens has started this season by putting forth some impressive stretches of tennis as well as some really low-level stuff.

She was surprisingly competitive against Iga Swiatek, who many expected to move past her with ease, beat Daria Kasatkina (another player near the top of the women’s game) and won as an underdog against Clara Burel – an ascending Frenchwoman.

Yet she also has been beaten fairly easily by Sorana Cirstea and Anna Kalinskaya (despite taking the first set in that one).

She has a decent serve, can hit with a sneaky pace on her groundstrokes, is very consistent and can work the ball around the court with precision.

She isn’t the fleetest of foot though, and her attitude is often questioned on court when things aren’t going her way.

If I were to pick two characteristics I wouldn’t want as weaknesses against someone like Sevastova, those would be the two.

Anastasija Sevastova Recent Form

Not a whole lot to go on here, but the fact that after such a long time away from the tour the Latvian is 7-3 in a trio of tournaments played is incredibly impressive.

Now, it’s worth keeping in mind that they’ve all been 125K or 250-level tournaments, but it’s more about the way she’s looked on court that impresses me.

She crushed Cristina Mitu (as expected), beat a very tough player to hit through in Elina Avanesyan – actually outlasting the physical, defensive-minded player – and took care of business against Julia Riera, a player the market has liked more than I have this season on hard courts.

Forget the results, Sevastova has shown value pre-match several times already this season, as I backed her personally against Mitu, Avanesyan and Riera. Now, none of them are Stephens quality-wise, but my point is more along the lines of her being mispriced and undervalued and that trend continues in this second-rounder.

Sloane Stephens vs Anastasija Sevastova H2H – Stat of the Match

These two have split the four matches they’ve played, but I’m not sure any of them mean a thing with regard to Thursday’s encounter. They all came over five years ago and neither player is playing at the level they were back in 2018 (the time they last played).

It’s also tough to compare any hard court data for these two, because Sevastova’s sample makes it a fairly useless exercise since she just returned and has only played a few matches in the last few months.

SAFER GAMBLING

At bettingexpert, we always take a safe approach to gambling. We’ll never bet more than we can afford or chase losses. For more advice, head to our Safer Gambling hub.