WTA Palermo Best Bets for August 5: Donna Vekic and Dayana Yastremska

All lines from DraftKings Sportsbook and are of course subject to change.

The only predictable thing about competition in Palermo this week has been the unpredictability. The players are fresh off a five-month hiatus. That, along with extremely windy conditions, has yielded some interesting results. Two of the top three seeds, Marketa Vondrousova and Maria Sakkari, both lost in the first round. Top-seeded Petra Martic was perhaps the most impressive first round performer, and will be a great bet moving forward when she returns to the court on Thursday.

With so little information to work with, it’s important to go with what we know for certain. On Monday, both Dayana Yastremska and Donna Vekic turned in solid, straight-set victories. Neither player had much rust to speak of, and both face beatable opponents in their second round. Yastremska is a (-335) favorite to defeat lucky loser Oceane Dodin, and Vekic is a (-305) favorite to defeat wild card Elisabetta Cocciaretto.

Getty Images

Vekic steamrolled Arantxa Rus, 6-2, 6-1, in her opening round, and while betting $100 just to win $33 isn’t the most sustainable wager, it’s the closest we have to a sure thing on tomorrow’s slate. If you are looking to extract a bit more value, a $100 parlay on Yastremska and Vekic will pay out a solid $73. Although Yastremska plays her next match on Thursday, you can still add her to the bet ticket in hopes for a Thursday payout. A loss for either player would be considered a serious upset. Dodin is fast-improving, but she’s nowhere near Yastremska’s level, and didn’t score a Top 100 victory in 2019.

We won’t usually recommend parlays. Typically, the increase in risk won’t outweigh the reward, especially in a sport like tennis where numerous factors come into play. It’s best to take matches straight up, but if you don’t feel like forking over a lot of cash for Vekic’s not-so-great return, adding Yastremska to your ticket is worth the risk.