French Open preview and odds: Angelique Kerber vs Bertens

Published on: 21/05/2016

French Open preview and odds: Angelique Kerber vs Bertens

May 22, 2016 TBC - Roland Garros

Reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber will begin her quest for a second Grand Slam crown next week when she goes up against World No. 89 Kiki Bertens in the first round of the French Open.

Kerber pushing to regain World No. 2 spot

Having bagged her first ever Grand Slam trophy at the Aussie Open in January, Angelique Kerber will now be looking to make it two from two in 2016 by going all the way in the French Open.

The World No. 3 got her clay season off to a good start with a trophy in Stuttgart but followed that up with first round defeats in Madrid and Rome. A good performance here could see her regain her World No. 2 spot at the expense of Agnieszka Radwanska.

Her previous best result here came back in 2012 when she made it to the quarter-final stage. Last year, she lost a three-set battle in the third round to Spanish sensation Garbine Muguruza.

Meanwhile, Kiki Bertens will be looking to improve on her 2014 display when she made it to the fourth round of this event. That remains her best event performance at a Grand Slam tournament. She comes into this event fresh off the back of a win on clay in Nurnberg - an event that she entered as a qualifier.

On her one and only previous meeting with Kerber, she took the first set before retiring injured in the third. In total, she has lost just three of her last 21 matches.

Betting predictions

Kerber is World No. 3 but Bertens is in fine form and could push her opponent all the way.

Back Over 2.5 sets at 13/8 with Bet365.

By Neil Morris

Published on: 21/05/2016

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (21/05/2016 15:02:19) but are subject to change.