The quarterfinal of the Australian Open 2019 will have the Czech No. 1 Petra Kvitova go up against the Australian No. 1 and the local favourite Ashleigh Barty.
Watch & bet on Petra Kvitova v Ashleigh Barty live with bet365 here* on Tuesday, January 22. The Kvitova v Barty match will be played at 7 pm local time (9 am BST).
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Barty’s Best Performance at a Grand Slam
Ash Barty, driven by the cheers of the local fans, has delivered her best result at a Grand Slam so far. The best she could do before this was reached the fourth round at the US Open last year, where she lost to Karolina Pliskova.
What has been particularly more intriguing is the fact that Barty has achieved all of this in a remarkable manner. The 22-year-old Aussie started the season in Brisbane, where she lost in the final to none other than Petra Kvitova. That runner-up feat, however, helped her retain her career-best singles ranking as the No. 15 in the world.
Barty then travelled to Melbourne where she played some of the best tennis of her career. She breezed past her unseeded opponents in the opening rounds in the straight sets, namely Luksika Kumkhum, Yafan Wang, Maria Sakkari.
Her real test came in the fourth round when she met Maria Sharapova. After going down in the first set, she moved on to stage a remarkable comeback and knock out the Russian star with 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. Barty was superb in every aspect – she lost only two break points out of a possible eight and produced 28 winners as against Sharapova’s 17.
At the same time, however, she committed 45 unforced errors – six less than Sharapova’s. Nonetheless, Barty now finds herself in the biggest match of her career against a daunting opponent.
Barty has done exceptionally well as a doubles player and now, she is turning a lot of heads on the singles circuit too. Last year, she won the WTA Nottingham and the Elite Trophy in Zhuhai. She was also a semifinalist in Wuhan and Montreal. Needless to mention, she has a bright future ahead of her and can very well break into the top 10 by the end of this week.
Kvitova Continues to Impress
Petra Kvitova is one of the few players on the tour who have started their season in the best way possible. Having won the title in Sydney, the Czech came to Melbourne highly confident and roaring to reach the top.
So far in the last four rounds, Kvitova has defeated all of her opponents in straight sets. Her service game is right on top, with her first service win rate averaging at around 80%. She has produced a lot of impeccable winners with her left forehand although, she has also committed her fair share of unforced errors.
Her most recent victim was the rising American star Amanda Anisimova – a 17-year-old who has impressed many spectators over the course of the week. Kvitova headed into the fixture, trailing by 1-0 in the head to head tally. However, in exactly an hour, Kvitova won the match 6-2, 6-1 in what was an absolute display of personal statement.
Kvitova never found herself on a break point and created 18 winners, as against Anisimova’s eight.
Last season, the Czech won five singles titles, the most notable of which was the Madrid Open. She also won the title in Prague – a feat that definitely aided her stay in the top 10.
Kvitova v Barty – Head to Head
In their three encounters so far, Kvitova has been victorious in all of them and presently leads by 3-0. Prior to their encounter in Sydney this year, they last met in the final of the 2017 WTA Birmingham, where Kvitova won in three sets.
Kvitova v Barty Tips & Predictions
Kvitova will start this match as the favourite to win – this is a given. However, Barty will have the local support along with a great deal of confidence, courtesy of her impressive win over Sharapova. The young Aussie will definitely give Kvitova a run for her but at the end, the Czech should be able to win this one.
You can watch & bet on Petra Kvitova v Ashleigh Barty live with bet365 here on Tuesday, January 22.
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