Garbine Muguruza vs Magdalena Rybarikova - Wimbledon Semi-finals preview and odds

Published on: 13/07/2017

Garbine Muguruza vs Magdalena Rybarikova - Wimbledon Semi-finals preview and odds

July 13, 2017 14:00am - Wimbledon

Wimbledon Championships Womens Tennis

Garbine Muguruza will be aiming for her second Wimbledon final in three years when she goes head-to-head with Magdalena Rybarikova in Thursday afternoons semi-final match.

Back in 2015, the Spaniard was thwarted by the might of Serena Williams but soon bounced back to defeat the American in the 2016 French Open final less than a year later. With a Grand Slam title now under her belt and no Serena Williams to deal with, the World No. 14 may feel that this her chance to finally taste glory on the Wimbledon grass.

Encouragingly, Muguruza seems to have rekindled the fire that propelled her into the top 10 so rapidly. She is showing the same aggressive nature and utilising her power in the same way that she did two or three years ago. But her game is not all about power and she has added a dimension of precision and accuracy that has been delightful to watch in this event. On her way to this last four clash, she has already disposed of top-ranked Angelique Kerber and two-time former Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. Add to that a wealth of experience and a Grand Slam winning mentality and she should be well equipped to go all the way here.

Magdalena Rybarikova will have positive memories of the pair`s one and only previous meeting on grass, having prevailed in Birmingham two years ago. However, she needed eight attempts to get past the first round at Wimbledon - a feat she eventually achieved in 2015 when she was eliminated in round three. She exited at the first round again last year but this year, she seems to have finally brought her decent grass game to the main stage.

Betting odds and tips

The Slovakian player arrived here on the back of successful month on grass in which she picked up two challenger titles and reached the semi-finals at Nottingham. She is stylish performer but lacks the overall power and strength to mix it at the elite level on a regular basis. As a result, the 28-year-old might find it tough going against a resurgent Garbine Muguruza. The Spanish star might need all three sets but she should be expected to power her way to a third Grand Slam final.

Back Muguruza to win 2-1 at 11/4 with Bet365.

By Neil Morris

Published on: 13/07/2017

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (13/07/2017 11:31:33) but are subject to change.