Petra Kvitová clashes with Zhang Shuai in this fourth round fixture of the 2020 French Open. The match is scheduled to begin at around 11 am local time (10 am BST or 5 am Eastern Time) on Monday, October 5. Get the live streaming options of this Petra Kvitová v Zhang Shuai match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Petra Kvitová v Zhang Shuai Head to Head
This will be the sixth meeting between the two players, and the second within the last two years. Petra Kvitová brings a 3-2 head-to-head advantage coming into this match. She won their last head-to-head in Prague, 2018 when she defeated Zhang in the semifinals en route to becoming the Prague Open champion.
Her other victories over Zhang came in 2016 and 2010, where, in both scenarios, she bettered Zhang in straight sets on hard courts.
Zhang’s two triumphs over Kvitová came in 2017 in New Haven and in 2014 in the Italian Open.
This upcoming matchup will be their first-ever Grand Slam meeting. Additionally, this will be the third time that they play each other on a clay surface. They both boast 1 win each on clay in all their head-to-head meetings.
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Petra Kvitová One of the Last of Fading Seeds
Seeded players and favorites have had a hard time in the tournament so far. Only 13 seeds made it into the third round, the fewest since Wimbledon expanded to 32 seeds in 2001. Now there are only six left in the fourth round, and Petra Kvitová is one of them.
She entered the tournament as the 7th seed, and unlike most of the other seeds, her matches so far have at least supported her high ranking.
In her latest match against Leylah Fernandez, she came back in the first set from trailing 5-1 and won six games in a row to turn the tide and the set in her favor, before controlling the second set with ease, showing the grit that wins players titles in the process.
Her second match against Paolini was her most convincing one in the tournament. She won in straight sets, winning each set by 6 games to three. And even though she’s had some nervy affairs, she’s still yet to lose a set in the tournament. She shares that statistic with four other players, and one of them is her fourth-round opponent: Zhang Shuai.
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Can the Perpetual Underdog Strike Again?
Zhang Shuai has been the underdog in all but one of her matches. She stunned Madison Keys in her opening match, eventually beating her in a second-set tiebreaker.
Her resilience pushed her forth against Alize Cornet, where, again, having come in as the underdog, she controlled the first set and calmed her nerves to win in another second-set tiebreaker. But her closest match so far was against Clara Burel, when she came in as the favorite.
She won the first set with another tiebreaker and narrowly edged out the second set 7-5. So safe to say she seems to handle the nerves better when she’s placed as the underdog.
Now she comes in as the dark horse once more, and as the tournament has shown thus far, it would be folly to call this a straightforward affair.
What Zhang may lack in rankings she makes up for it with her willingness to take on her opponents. She also boasts a little bit Grand Slam experience, having played in 34 Grand Slam matches so far, her best finishes being quarterfinal berths in Wimbledon 2019 and in the 2016 Australian Open. Plus, having won the women’s doubles Australian Open last year, she also knows what it takes to grind out winning results.
Therefore, I’d expect Zhang to go toe to toe with Kvitová, as she’s been willing to do so far with all her opponents. And since all her matches have been close and entertaining, that seems like the best option on the cards.
Petra Kvitová v Zhang Shuai Prediction and Tip
As many prior matches have already shown, games in this tournament are hard to call. Kvitová’s slight edge may drive her through to the quarterfinals, but in either scenario, it looks like the tie will be a hard-fought one. Therefore, handicap betting in Zhang’s favor may have some hidden value, and since her first sets have been more than entertaining, total games in that set seems like a safer option.
Tip: 1st set total games over 8.5: 11/20 (bet365)
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The French Open 2020 will be played from September 27 to October 11. You can watch & bet on the French Open here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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