This article is part of our Tennis Picks series.
The second round of the Canadian Open begins Wednesday, with the men playing in Montreal while the women take the court in Toronto. The top eight seeds in both draws enjoyed first-round byes, while all the remaining players won their first-round matches to get into the Round of 32. A few of the players ranked near the top of the women's game have struggled lately, providing some possible openings for opportunistic opponents Wednesday, while a rising star on the men's side should continue his winning ways. All Tennis Odds & Lines are taken from DraftKings Sportsbook, but you can sometimes find more favorable odds on some of these matches by checking other mobile sportsbooks such as FanDuel, BetMGM or Caesars.
All the matches at this high-profile hard court event are best of three sets. A mix of players' previous hard court results, recent form and stylistic matchups can help pinpoint intriguing betting opportunities, both among favorites likely to cruise to victory and underdogs ready to pull off upsets. The aforementioned underdogs are highlighted in the Upset Alert section, the Lock It In section covers players who can safely be considered overwhelming favorites, while the Value Bet section recommends enticing options in matchups that are considered closer to toss-ups.
Upset Alert
Jil Teichmann (+155) vs. Anett Kontaveit
Kontaveit has struggled mightily of late, getting knocked out of each of her last five tournaments by a player ranked outside the top 40 while failing to defeat a top-60 opponent over that stretch. It's likely no coincidence that she battled COVID shortly before going into this tailspin. The 21st-ranked Teichmann will be the highest-ranked opponent Kontaveit has faced in a while, and the Estonian's recent results suggests she should hardly be viewed as the favorite in this match despite being seeded No. 2.
Sara Sorribes Tormo (+235) vs. Aryna Sabalenka
Sabalenka's serving struggles have resurfaced, as she served up a whopping 43 double faults in just two matches in last week's Silicon Valley Classic. With all those double faults, it's no surprise she was pushed to 7-5 in the third set by 168th-ranked Caroline Dolehide and then lost to Daria Kasatkina. Sorribes Tormo doesn't beat herself, and the 41st-ranked Spaniard will give Sabalenka the opportunity to implode by keeping the ball in the court and making the match as physical as possible.
Honorable Mention:
Grigor Dimitrov (+155) vs. Alex de Minaur
Lock It In
Paula Badosa (-265) vs. Yulia Putintseva
This should be a rather straightforward match for the world No. 3 against a player ranked 44 spots behind her. Putintseva has struggled against quality competition in 2022, going just 2-8 against opponents ranked better than 40th. That includes a 6-3, 6-2 loss to Badosa on hard court in March, which was the Spaniard's second straight sets win in as many career meetings between these two. Badosa got a bye into the second round, while Putintseva didn't look particularly impressive in her first-round match, going to 7-5 in the third against 299th-ranked Katherine Sebov.
Jannik Sinner (-575) vs. Adrian Mannarino
This should be a straightforward match for the red-hot Sinner in the No. 7 seed's first action of the tournament following a first-round bye. In his two previous tournaments, Sinner had a two-set lead against Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon quarterfinal and then claimed a title at the Croatia Open, beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final. Sinner should continue to thrive against the 70th-ranked Mannarino, who has a pedestrian 19-18 record this year and has dropped his last six matches against top-20 opponents.
Honorable Mention:
Jessica Pegula (-700) vs. Asia Muhammad
Value Bet
Marin Cilic (+100) vs. Karen Khachanov
Prior to having his season put on pause by COVID-19, Cilic was having the substantially better 2022 campaign between these two, and he showed no signs of rust in his return here, beating Borna Coric 6-3, 6-2. With that win, the 16th-ranked Cilic improved to 22-13 on the year, including a semifinal run at Roland Garros. The 28th-ranked Khachanov is 26-18 in 2022 but hasn't found success at bigger tournaments, failing to reach the quarterfinals of any Grand Slam or Masters 1000 event. Khachanov's likely the oddsmakers' favorite because he managed to defeat Cilic in both Adelaide and Doha earlier this year, but Cilic triumphed in their two prior meetings and presents a nice value as the better player in this match.
Leylah Fernandez (-165) vs. Beatriz Haddad Maia
Fernandez struggled in her first-round match against Storm Sanders but found a way to get through it 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-3, displaying her superb mental toughness down the stretch. The 19-year-old Canadian will have the crowd behind her once again in the second round and is an accomplished hard-court player, having reached the final of last year's US Open. In addition to having a higher ceiling than Haddad Maia, who is just 2-6 against top-40 opponents on hard courts this year, the 13th-seeded Fernandez has also proven capable of finding ways to win when she doesn't have her best tennis.
Honorable Mention:
Elena Rybakina (+125) vs. Coco Gauff
