WTA - Ningbo Open
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by Bradley Gibbs in Tennis Picks
On Thursday, early in the morning for US bettors, in the Chinese city of Ningbo, McCartney Kessler will get back down to business having beaten fellow American Sofia Kenin during the first round of this WTA 500 event. Now ranked at 33rd in the world, Kessler will be up against world number 18 Liudmila Samsonova. We've seen Kessler play some very strong hard-court tennis since touching down in China, winning four out of six matches, but we've also seen her wobble. Can she steady herself and deliver her best effort yet, which will surely be needed if she's to progress?
Liudmila Samsonova started out quite poorly in China, losing first time out in Beijing, but she's since found her feet, picking up three decent wins, with her only defeat since that first-round exit in Beijing coming against the Aryna Sabalenka. Let's face it, anyone can be forgiven for losing to the Belarusian.
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McCartney Kessler vs Liudmila Samsonova Form
McCartney Kessler and Liudmila Samsonova Latest Matches
3/6 (50%)
3/6 (50%)
Oct 13, 2025 - Ningbo Open
Oct 6, 2025 - WTA Wuhan Open
Sep 30, 2025 - WTA China Open
Sep 28, 2025 - WTA China Open
Sep 26, 2025 - WTA China Open
Sep 23, 2025 - WTA China Open
3/6 (50%)
3/6 (50%)
Oct 14, 2025 - Ningbo Open
Oct 9, 2025 - WTA Wuhan Open
Oct 8, 2025 - WTA Wuhan Open
Oct 6, 2025 - WTA Wuhan Open
Sep 27, 2025 - WTA China Open
Aug 27, 2025 - WTA US Open
McCartney Kessler - Liudmila Samsonova Key Points
- Liudmila Samsonova's only loss in her last four came against the world number one.
- Before beating Sofia Kenin, McCartney Kessler lost two matches to worse players than Liudmila Samsonova.
- Liudmila Samsonova has won each of her last three hard-court matches against lower-ranked players.
- This will be McCartney Kessler's first match against a top-20 player since touching down in China.
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Our McCartney Kessler vs Liudmila Samsonova Prediction
McCartney Kessler did get the better of Sofia Kenin during the first round, and that win was admirable, but she'll likely need to pull out more to beat Liudmila Samsonova, so much so that she's probably not worthy of being as close to the Russian in the betting. In other words, the higher-ranked Samsonova, whose only recent defeat came against world number one Sabalenka, should be priced less generously to get the job done. Our McCartney Kessler vs Liudmila Samsonova Pick: Liudmila Samsonova to Win.
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