Barbora Krejcikova vs Lin Zhu Prediction & Betting Tips - Birmingham, Great Britain

Prediction published on 24/06/2023, 02:40  by Devesh Jaganath | Modified on 24/06/2023 at 02:56 in Tennis Predictions

World number eight Barbora Krejcikova will take on 33rd-ranked Lin Zhu in the semi-final of the 2023 Birmingham Open on Saturday. The winner of this match will face either Anastasia Potapova or Jelena Ostapenko in the final. Krejcikova was almost flawless in the last round against her compatriot Linda Fruhvirtova and looked certain to win the match from the first serve. She did not face a single break point in that match and managed to convert three of the five that she earned. Krejcikova is yet to drop a set here, having beaten Cristina Bucsa and Tereza Martincova with relative ease in the opening rounds. The Czech is now 23-11 for the year and has already broken back inside the top ten with her run here in Birmingham. Krejcikova looks primed to reach the final. 

Zhu has had a productive season which has seen her improve her world ranking from 54th in January to 33rd at present, which is her peak career ranking. The Chinese will be making her first-ever grass-court appearance here after beating Rebecca Marino in the last round. The Canadian put on a very good performance, clinching the first set. However, Zhu rallied back strongly in the second set, and after breaking her opponent's serve early on, she carried her momentum through to the final set and came out on top by a margin in the end. If she wins here, it will be only her second WTA final ever, but she will need to be at her absolute best to overcome the dominant Czech.