3 big dogs....

Ostapenko holds 3-0 in head to head but its one of the bad things for Ostapenko backers along with her inexperience. Ostapenko will be overwhelmed at being gland slam quarter final and the game will depend on how she handles the situation mentally--she shouldn't come in thinking that she is a favorite because of the 3-0 h2h. Wozniacki definitely holds the edge in experience. But current form and talent is in favor of Ostapenko. Ostapenko's ground game, when on, is top 5 on tour with her versatile striking abilities. Wozniacki's rally ball pushing stile matches up very poorly against Ostapenkos power striking skills. Ostapenko completely embarrassed Woz in Charleston Or when she hit 70 winners past her in Prague. As long as Ostapenko remains calm (a tough ask in this big stage), its over for Wozniacki, because as has been said, Wozniacki's rally ball is ripe for Ostapenko to put her out of position, and it's even easier on a surface like clay that makes it harder for Woz to change direction. Look out for Ostapenko, she is future (perhaps near future) top 5 player with a very good game--her main weakness is her second serve and once that is fixed she will rise fast.

Thiem as a 2.70 is the value pick even though Djokovic's low odds seems tempting. Djokovic is 5-0 against Thiem, including 2-0 in clay--straight set domination in last year's french open and another trashing in Rome last week. In terms of current form and game quality Thiem is ahead but Djokovic holds huge advantage over the mental aspect of the game. Thiem will definitely make adjustments and if he builds a good game plan with his coaching staff situation is ripe for his picking. Forecast calls for 25MPH wind and rain. Djokovic hates wind and is prone to many unforced errors in windy conditions--many of his upset lossess to players other than Federer, Murray and Nadal came in windy conditions. Thiem himself is not a fan of wind but if he can limit his ball bashing and plan a balanced game between attack and defense, his chances to advance are as good as Djokovic's.