Tennis
2026-03-20 - Amanda Anisimova vs Ajla Tomljanovic
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
Tennis : WTA 1000 Miami Second Round
Friday 20th March 2026 - Scheduled 11am
3pm (British Time)
Preview
The peak of her career may be behind her, but that does not mean Ajla Tomljanovic is going to roll over for any opponent she faces on the Tour.
However, the gap is increasing between the Australian and the better players on the Tour and that will mean matches are taking away from her, even if she is giving her all on the court.
Ajla Tomljanovic has never been higher than World Number 32, but she is operating with a number 81 next to her name these days- after a slow start to the 2026 season, Tomljanovic has reached the Quarter Final in Austin and the Third Round in Indian Wells where she was able to upset a Seeded player in the Second Round.
That was the Number 30 Seed in Indian Wells, but in Miami she is facing not only a top ten Ranked opponent, but someone who has reached Grand Slam Finals at Wimbledon and the US Open last year and a player who is very comfortable on this surface.
Amanda Anisimova did reach the Fourth Round in Miami last year, but another good run here and moving past that stage would see her edge that much closer to the top four places in the World Ranking. The 24 year old has become an all-court player and credit has to be given to Anisimova for putting together stronger numbers on the clay courts and grass courts in 2025 compared with the hard courts, which suggests this is a player that is a threat at all four Grand Slams played.
The Fourth Round loss in Indian Wells will have been something of a disappointment, but Amanda Anisimova has been a Quarter Finalist at the Australian Open and Semi Finalist in Dubai and over the last twelve months she has been dominant when facing players outside the top 50 of the World Rankings on this surface.
The numbers have backed up the strong scoreboard wins and the American should have too much for veteran Ajla Tomljanovic- the latter has won the two Tour meetings, but one was back in 2017 and the other in 2021 and it was Tomljanovic who was Ranked higher on both occasions.
It is much different now and the Amanda Anisimova aggressive ball-striking should give her the edge in this match, while covering this big line is also well within her scope.
Prediction
Lay the games with the top ten Ranked home player.
The Pick :
Amanda Anisimova 2-0 Ajla Tomljanovic
