Eastbourne 2024: Madison Keys vs Anhelina Kalinina preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick | Rothesay International
Match Details
Fixture: (4) Madison Keys vs (Q) Anhelina Kalinina
Date: June 26, 2024
Tournament: Rothesay International 2024
Round: Second Round (Round of 16)
Venue: Devonshire Park LTC, Eastbourne, United Kingdom
Category: WTA 500
Surface: Grass
Prize Money: $922,573
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Tennis Channel, BBC | Canada - TSN+
Madison Keys vs Anhelina Kalinina preview
After a first-round bye, Madison Keys will commence her title defense against Anhelina Kalinina in the second round of the 2024 Rothesay International.
Keys missed a good chunk of the hardcourt season at the start of the year due to an injury. She reached the third round of the Indian Wells Open upon her return and went a round further at the Miami Open.
The American tasted considerable success on clay after that, reaching the semifinals of the Madrid Open and the quarterfinals of the Italian Open. She captured her first title of the year at the Internationaux de Strasbourg.
However, Keys bowed out of the French Open earlier than expected as she lost to Emma Navarro in two tight sets in the third round. This will be her first tournament since that loss.
Kalinina came through the qualifying rounds in Eastbourne with straight-set wins over Sarah Grey and Lauren Davis. She was drawn against World No. 29 Sorana Cirstea in the first round.
The two started quite well but Kalinina upped the ante midway through the first set as she swept four games in a row to take the opener. She continued to dictate the play in the second set and broke Cirstea's serve twice to register a 6-3, 6-2 win.
Madison Keys vs Anhelina Kalinina head-to-head
Kalinina leads Keys 3-0 in the head-to-head. She won their previous encounter at the 2023 Italian Open in three sets.
Madison Keys vs Anhelina Kalinina odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Madison Keys vs Anhelina Kalinina prediction
Kalinina barely broke a sweat against Cirstea in the previous round. She didn't even face a single break point, won 83 percent of her first serve points, and outplayed her opponent in most of the rallies.
Keys won't have it easy in her first grass match of the season as she has lost all three of her prior meetings against Kalinina. They've never met on grass, a surface on which the American has a better record compared to the Ukrainian.
Keys has won this event twice in the past and has made the quarterfinals at Wimbledon twice as well. Kalinina, on the other hand, has only 10 main draw wins on grass so far.
While Kalinina has struggled on grass, she still has five wins over top-40 players on the surface. Considering this will be Keys' first match on grass, a slow start could result in yet another win for the Ukrainian. However, if the American is quickly able to adjust to the conditions, she could snag her first win in this match-up.
Pick: Madison Keys to win in three sets.