Emma Raducanu v Sofia Kenin: Prediction, Tips and Odds

There’s a day two thriller in store at the US Open when Emma Raducanu takes on Sofia Kenin for a place in the second round of the New York City Grand Slam tournament.

Both women are former major champions - Kenin won the Australian Open in 2020 while Raducanu won the US Open a year later.

But while both players' careers have been affected by injuries and coaching problems since their halcyon days, Raducanu is having a better time of it this year and she looks to be the more progressive performer going into the Flushing Meadows marathon.

It's a little surprising that the pair have never met before, but not many players had come up against Raducanu before she sprang her incredible success in the Big Apple three years ago. She came through from qualifying to lift the singles title without dropping a single set on that amazing run.

That was one of the most unlikely final line-ups - Raducanu defeated Canada’s Leylah Fernandez in the trophy match - but while the Briton has not been back to the well since, she definitely has the game and the groundstrokes to lift further major silverware.

Emma Raducanu v Sofia Kenin betting tips and predictions

Emma Raducanu to win 2-0 - 5/6

Betting on this match is made tougher by the fact that the pair have never played each other competitively, but we probably saw enough at Wimbledon to think that it may not be long before Raducanu returns to the winners' circle.

Kenin is a fine player in her own right, although it has taken her time to recover from her injury woes post-2020 and the American is still not fully back to her best yet.

That fact alone suggests there is real hope that Raducanu can win her Big Apple opener and she is a warm order to come through her curtain-raiser in the final major of the season.

But while punters could argue all day over whether Raducanu may or may not win the first set 6-4 or 6-3 - and coincidentally that’s where the oddsmakers' line is set - it is likely that the Briton will have enough against Kenin to prevail with a degree of authority.

Kenin is still struggling to win her matches and she is still only a patch of the performer who dominated the majors in the early part of 2020, so perhaps the wisest course of action for anyone considering a bet on this first-round clash is to place some trust in the favourite coming through in straight sets.

Raducanu -4.5 games handicap - 5/6

Backing Raducanu to make light of a 4.5 games handicap concession is the second bet for this encounter.

Raducanu’s Wimbledon third-round triumph over ninth seed Maria Sakkari in July signalled arguably the victor’s most dominant performance in a Slam since the 2021 US Open.

But while her London title hopes fragmented against qualifier Lulu Sun, there should be every hope that the Toronto-born 21-year-old can step up again on her return to the Flushing Meadows hard courts, so Kenin could quickly find herself under pressure in round one on Tuesday.

Read more tennis betting tips and predictions on site.

Emma Raducanu v Sofia Kenin odds

Emma Raducanu - 2/7
Sofia Kenin - 11/4

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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.