Marie Bouzkova and Elise Mertens will meet in the Round of 64 at the WTA Dubai, UAE tournament on Sunday, February 15, with Mertens favored to advance, according to BetMGM Sportsbook.
The match, scheduled to start at 08:10 UTC at New Court 1, pits the 37th-ranked Bouzkova against the 22nd-ranked Mertens. BetMGM lists Mertens as a -175 moneyline favorite, while Bouzkova comes in at +135.
This will be the third career meeting between the two players, with Bouzkova holding a 2-0 head-to-head advantage. Both of their previous encounters occurred on hard courts, including a 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 victory for Bouzkova in Cincinnati in 2023.
Bouzkova has a 19-14 record on hard courts over the past 12 months, having secured one tournament win. She has demonstrated a strong service game, winning 64.0% of her service games and converting 51.1% of her break points (144 of 282) on hard courts in the same period. However, she was recently eliminated in the Round of 64 of the WTA Doha, Qatar tournament on February 8, losing to Victoria Mboko 5-7, 2-6.
Mertens, while favored, has not won a title on hard courts in the last year, posting a 14-13 record on that surface. She maintains a 71.2% winning percentage on service games and a 35.2% winning percentage on return games on hard courts. Mertens ranks 75th in break points won on hard courts this year, having converted 95 of 222 total break points (42.8%). She was defeated in the Round of 32 of the WTA Doha, Qatar tournament on February 10, falling to Daria Kasatkina 4-6, 0-6.
Bouzkova’s odds to win the tournament are +10000, while Mertens is listed at +6600.
