Russia’s Maria Sharapova will take on Australian Daria Gavrilova in the first round of the WTA St. Petersburg Open on day one of the competition.
Watch & bet on Maria Sharapova v Daria Gavrilova with bet365 here* on Monday, January 28. The Sharapova v Gavrilova match will begin at 5 pm local time (3.30 pm BST).
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Sharapova Coming off Mixed Results
After having lost out to Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals at the Shenzhen Open, Sharapova began well at the Australian Open. She defeated Harriert Dart without dropping a game and then lost just three games in her rout of Rebecca Peterson.
Her strongest result of the year came against the defending champion and arch-rival Caroline Wozniacki, whom she sent out in three sets but then lost to Ash Barty in round four. What might have added to her discomfit is that she was booed from the court as she took a long bathroom break during the encounter.
She will hope to get started quickly with her first round in this competition but more importantly as she sharpens her claws to try and go the distance against stiffer opposition in the later stages at the WTA St. Petersburg Open.
Poor Start for Gavrilova
It’s been a season to forget so far for the Aussie. Having finished the last season with two defeats from three matches including a second round exit in Moscow, the 35th-ranked player has played three matches so far and is yet to win a set.
Yes, that’s how bad it has been and it’s not even come against any of the top players.
It began with a 6-3, 6-3 defeat at the hands of Anastasija Sevastova at Brisbane before Yulia Putintseva got the better of her in round one at Sydney. And that was followed by an opening defeat at the Australian Open by Tamara Zindasek, going down in straight sets again.
A sense of nerves would only be natural but the Aussie needs to start putting up a better show than what she has so far.
Maria Sharapova v Daria Gavrilova Head to Head
These two have played each other thrice and Sharapova leads the head to head 2-1. What could given the Aussie some hope is that both the Sharapova wins came on clay, while Gavrilova defeated the Russian on a hard court surface at Miami. This competition is also being played on hard courts.
Sharapova v Gavrilova Predictions & Tips
Sharapova should have it easy, winning in straight sets. Get the rest of the WTA St. Petersburg Open tips and predictions here.
You can watch & bet on Maria Sharapova v Daria Gavrilova with bet365 here on Monday, January 28.
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