Second seeded and world number four Karolina Pliskova will play her Czech compatriot Barbora Strycova in their second round match on Wednesday, September 16. The match begins at around 7 pm local time (6 pm BST). Get the live streaming options of this Karolina Pliskova v Barbora Strycova match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Karolina Pliskova v Barbora Strycova Head to Head
Counting just the tour matches, Pliskova and Strycova have played each other five times before this. Pliskova leads 4-1 which includes a win at the Australian Open in 2018, and the Miami Open in 2017. Strycova’s only victory came on the grass court of Birmingham in 2016.
More recently, the two Czech countrywomen faced off in a couple of exhibition matches – at the Livescore Cup and the Tipsport Elite Trophy. Both matches were played on clay and Pliskova won both without dropping a set.
Also Read:
Pliskova’s Season Has Tapered off Since Brisbane Win
It’s been a disappointing season for Pliskova so far despite adding a 16th WTA title to her kitty. That came at the Brisbane International where Pliskova was required to beat Alison Riske, Naomi Osaka and Madison Keys to clinch the tournament win.
Since then, however, Pliskova’s results have taken a beating.
Hunting for her first Grand Slam title, Pliskova fell in the third round at the Australian Open and then did a 2-2 win-loss in Dubai and Doha. While she played a couple of tournaments during the pandemic break, those came on clay and once the season resumed she fell to an opening loss at the Cincinnati Open and a second round defeat at the US Open.
The good news is she now returns to clay on which she had played a few exhibition matches during the break. Three of her career titles, including the previous season’s Italian Open have also come on clay, and with the kind of head to head she has with Strycova, it should give her the confidence to shrug off her recent past.
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Strycova Struggling to Serve up Two Wins in a Row
The Italian Open is Strycova’s seventh tournament this season and in none of the previous six competitions has she been able to win a couple of matches in a row. It began with a second round loss at Brisbane, and was followed by a win and a loss apiece at Dubai and Doha as well.
Amidst all that, Strycova also lost in the opening rounds of the Adelaide International and the Australian Open to add to her troubles.
Because it hadn’t been too different last season either as she had finished her season 20-23 on win-loss, despite reaching the semifinal at Wimbledon, Birmingham, Prague and Istanbul. In fact, it was those results which helped her maintain her ranking within the top 40 players.
In the first round here, the 34-year-old had no difficulty in defeating Veronika Kudermetova but the bigger challenge starts now. A second successive and beating Pliskova – couple of improbabilities in recent times.
Pliskova v Strycova Prediction & Tip
Pliskova is a heavy favourite despite her recent struggles and she should take this in straight sets against her 34-year-old opponent who has found it tough to put it past the world number four.
Tip: Pliskova to win in straight sets: 1/1 (bet365)
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The Italian Open 2020 will be played from September 14 to September 20. You can watch & bet on the Italian Open here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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