Aryna Sabalenka v Coco Gauff: Prediction, Tips and Odds

Aryna Sabalenka was the favourite to win the WTA Finals before a ball was struck in Riyadh and the Belarusian remains on track to win the season-ending title for the first time as she prepares to face Coco Gauff in the semi-finals at the King Saud University Arena.

For much of this week, this looked like a potential final as Sabalenka had wrapped up top spot in the Purple Group after two matches, while Gauff had a 2-0 record in the Orange Group before slipping to a shock loss to Barbora Krejcikova in her final round-robin match.

Sabalenka, the holder of both hard-court Grand Slam titles, is 1/2 to progress to the WTA Finals final, with Gauff a 6/4 outsider in her bid to reach the final of the event for the first time.

Aryna Sabalenka v Coco Gauff betting tips and predictions

Three Total Sets @ 6/5

Sabalenka suffered just a second defeat in 24 matches in her final Purple Group match, losing out to Elena Rybakina in three sets after beating Qinwen Zheng and Jasmine Paolini.

However, the world no.1 had already bagged top spot, so it might not pay to read too much into that result.

The 26-year-old, now confirmed as the WTA Tour's year-end top dog, has triumphed in all but one of the matches that mattered since the start of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, and she will surely take plenty of stopping in Saudi Arabia.

However, there's no doubt that Gauff has what it takes to down the big-hitting Belarusian and the pair will face off for the ninth time having shared their head-to-head meetings 4-4.

Although Sabalenka landed the most recent blow, winning in three sets in last month's Wuhan Open semi-final clash, Gauff had every chance to win that match and might well have been entering this encounter in a more positive mindset had she capitalised on a 6-1 4-2 lead in China.

Gauff's serve fell apart as the winning line drew closer and that is a concern for the 20-year-old, who is still far from the finished article despite being a Grand Slam-winning top-five mainstay.

Sabalenka is a more polished performer and seemingly much tougher mentally than ever before, but she has a few battle scars from previous scraps with Gauff, most notably when allowing the American to come from a set behind to win last season's US Open final.  

Tight contests have been a common theme between this pair, three of their last five went to a deciding set, while their Australian Open clash in January, won by eventual champion Sabalenka, was settled in straight sets, but was a close contest, as a 7-6 6-4 scoreline suggests.

While Sabalenka is arguably in the form of her life, Gauff was a champion in Beijing a month ago and was on the verge of downing her semi-final opponent at the same stage in Wuhan, so back the top-class pair to push each other to a deciding set.

Coco Gauff 10+ Double Faults @ 6/4

For a supplementary wager, consider backing Gauff to register at least 10 double faults in the match.

The Floridian is a brilliant server at her best, but that part of her game has undoubtedly become an Achilles heel in recent months and those issues could resurface in a tense semi-final contest in one of the most important tournaments on the WTA schedule.

Gauff served 21 double faults in her Wuhan defeat to Sabalenka - 18 from the start of the second set onwards - and she racked up 11 in her round-robin contest against Iga Swiatek on Tuesday despite winning that match in straight sets.

The looming presence of Sabalenka at the other end of the court will put immense pressure on Gauff's second serve and she looks sure to wobble at some stage, particularly if the match is a lengthy one.

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Aryna Sabalenka v Coco Gauff odds

Aryna Sabalenka - 1/2
Coco Gauff - 6/4

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.