Emma Raducanu vs Mimi Xu Tips, Predictions and Bet Builder

Emma Raducanu opens her Wimbledon campaign on Monday with an all-British clash against 17-year-old wildcard Mimi Xu on No.1 Court.

The 2021 US Open champion is enduring another injury-hit campaign with recurring back spasms affecting her preparation for the tournament.

She received treatment during her quarter-final defeat at Queen’s Club and again in her last match, a round-of-16 loss to Australia’s Maya Joint at Eastbourne.

Her first-round opponent, Xu, has landed a dream draw on her Grand Slam debut.

She earned a wildcard after a breakthrough grass-court swing featuring two wins over top-100 opponents.

The Swansea teenager arrives at Wimbledon full of confidence after upsetting top seed Alycia Parks in Birmingham and reaching the second round in Nottingham.

The first Welsh woman in the Wimbledon singles main draw for 20 years, she has nothing to lose and could be a dangerous opponent for Raducanu.

Emma Raducanu vs Mimi Xu Tips Summary

Market	Tip	Odds
Match Result	Emma Raducanu	1/7
Best Bet	Mimi Xu +5.5 - Match Handicap (Games)	5/6
Bet Builder	Emma Raducanu to win, Mimi Xu +5.5 - Match Handicap (Ganes) & Score After 4 Games will be Emma Raducanu 3-1	7/1

Key Match Stats

• Raducanu made the fourth round at Wimbledon last year as a wildcard before losing to qualifier Lulu Sun in three sets.
• Raducanu’s 16-13 record on grass gives her a 55% win ratio on turf - her lowest of all the surfaces.
• Xu reached her first WTA 125 quarter-final in Birmingham, defeating world No. 52 Alycia Parks on the way.
• She has lost both of her matches since being handed the Wimbledon wildcard.
• The pair have never met on court before, but Raducanu did lose her last all-British affair against Katie Boulter last summer.

Emma Raducanu vs Mimi Xu Prediction

Best Bet: Mimi Xu +5.5 - Match Handicap (Games) @ 5/6

Raducanu is the heavy favourite because of her Grand Slam pedigree and an all-round game that remains very effective when she is fully fit.

But it is quite clear from her recent matches and reports of her latest practice sessions that she is nowhere near her best at the moment.

The Canadian-born star has had to skip training a few times to manage her back injury.

And she will be looking to avoid a long match as she bids to make a strong start at SW19.

Xu has risen from relative obscurity to become a player who now knows she can compete with rivals inside the world’s top 100.

She took advantage of Parks’ problems on serve to beat the No.1 seed in Birmingham and again showed her killer instinct when defeating world No.98 Katy Volynets in Nottingham.

Her subsequent defeats to Magda Linette and Peyton Stearns were no disgrace as both are currently ranked higher than Raducanu inside the world’s top 40. 

They also came after the Lawn Tennis Association announced Xu was to receive the Wimbledon wildcard, so it was perhaps understandable there would be a drop-off in her performance.  

Xu’s recent form and fearless attitude make her a tricky opponent, especially if she can settle quickly and use her variety to disrupt Raducanu’s rhythm.

Her serve has improved markedly this season and she’s shown she can handle big-stage nerves, all of which make her capable of keeping the clash close through two or three sets.

Simon Barlow explains:

Raducanu’s ability to dictate from the baseline and her superior movement should see her through, but expect Xu to push her in spells. And if the British number one’s back flares up, you do not want to be on the other side of the 5.5-game handicap.

Emma Raducanu vs Mimi Xu Bet Builder Tip

• Raducanu to win
• Mimi Xu +5.5 - Match Handicap
• Set 1 - Score After 4 Games will be Emma Raducanu 3-1
  Pays 7/1

Xu’s form and confidence mean she is unlikely to take a backward step in this match, although there may be a spell of early nerves to battle through on her Wimbledon main-draw debut.

Raducanu’s firepower is likely to be hard for Xu to handle at the start and it would be no surprise if the British number one secures an early break to lead 3-1 after four games.

But the teenager is a versatile player, comfortable moving forward and mixing up spins, and her serve has become a real weapon, as evidenced by her quarter-final run in Birmingham.

She has shown she can take sets off established players and, with the home crowd behind both, expect a competitive opener before Raducanu’s quality prevails.

Learn more about how Bet Builders work in our Bet Builder guide.

Ultimately, Raducanu’s firepower and experience should be decisive, but Xu’s fearless approach and recent form mean this all-British clash could be closer than the odds suggest,

adds Simon Barlow.

Read more tennis betting tips and predictions on site.

Tactics and Form

Raducanu suffered a back spasm in pre-season and another just before the French Open, the lingering effects of which continue to trouble her. 

She received treatment during her quarter-final defeat by Qinwen Zheng at Queen's Club and pulled out of her next scheduled event in Berlin.

The British number one returned at Eastbourne to beat world number 65 Ann Li from a set down.

But she was again affected by back spasms when losing from a set up against world number 41 Maya Joint in the round of 16. 

Raducanu’s defences were no match for the depth and strength of Elena Rybakina’s hitting in a practice set at Wimbledon on Friday, which the 2022 Wimbledon champion won 6-2.

Xu beat world No. 52 Parks in Birmingham and another top-100 player, Volynets, at Nottingham recently.

She later lost to world No.29 Linette in Nottingham, 7-5 6-1, but kept Stearns on a tight leash in a subsequent straight sets loss at Eastbourne.

View the full market and more odds for Emma Raducanu vs Mimi Xu on site.

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.