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Kiki Bertens has been in some superb form recently but will have her biggest challenge of the French Open yet when she takes on 15th seed Madison Keys. Join The Roar for live scores from around 1:15am (AEST).
The world No.58 Bertens’ last tournament in Nurnberg saw her go from being a qualifier, all the way to winning the final in what was an impressive performance.
Defeating the likes of Roberta Vinci and Julia Georges, particularly Georges in three sets, finishing with a tie-breaker shows her form is good enough to be cool under pressure, and go with players who would supposedly defeat her.
Her first three rounds at the French Open have been incredibly strong, with a massive upset three-set victory against second seed Angelique Kerber to kick things off, before a straight sets win over Camila Giorgi.
The third round though saw her be pushed all the way to the end, only managing to get the better of Darya Kasatkina in an enduring third set 10-8.
It’s that win against Kerber though that should have everyone worried moving forward. With her massive preference of clay, she has hit form at just the right point and could challenge anyone on the WTA Tour.
Keys has also been in strong form during the lead-up and with a strong record on clay is not going to be an easy match for anyone.
Her form though, unlike that of Bertens, was against some of the stronger seeds as she defeated the likes of Petra Kvitova, Barbora Strycova and Garbine Muguruza before dropping the final in straight sets against Serena Williams.
She hasn’t had a tough run through the first three rounds though, so you can’t be exactly sure if that form has carried over into the year’s second grand slam.
With straight sets victories against Donna Vekic, Mariana Duque-Marino and Monica Puig – and only one of those sets going to tie-breakers – this will be her first real challenge of the Open.
The pair have never played before this meeting.
Prediction
Bertens has been in some incredible form, and after knocking off Kerber in the first round Keys might struggle to maintain pace here.
Expect the upset.
Bertens in three sets.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of this match from around 1:15am (AEST) or following the Carla Suarez Navarro vs Yulia Putintseva match on the Suzanne-Lenglen court and don’t forget to add your own comments below.
Follow Scott on Twitter @sk_pryde