Sixth-seeded Latvian Jelena Ostapenko will begin her campaign in St. Petersburg against the Frenchwoman Kristina Mladenovic, on Tuesday.
Watch & bet on Jelena Ostapenko v Kristina Mladenovic with bet365 here* on Tuesday, January 29. The Ostapenko v Mladenovic match will begin not before 6:30 pm local time (4:30 pm BST).
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*Geo-restrictions apply & pre-funded account needed
Mladenovic’s Uneventful Start to the Year
Coming in the WTA St. Petersburg, Kristina Mladenovic, who is currently the World No. 44, has had a very poor start to the year on the singles circuit. She has played in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne so far and in all the three cases, she lost her opening match.
As a doubles player, however, she has had an astounding amount of success already. She is currently ranked No. 3 on the doubles circuit and most recently, she lifted the runners-up trophy at the Australian Open 2019 with Timea Babos for women’s doubles.
Considering her performance in the previous season, Mladenovic started the season in the top 15 but owing to her lack of form, she gradually moved down in the rankings. She mostly lost in the opening rounds and the events where she did manage to move through, she lost in the quarters. She incurred a similar feat at the WTA Linz, where she lost to Andrea Petkovic.
Ostapenko – A One-Time Wonder?
The 21-year-old Latvian turned a lot of heads around in 2017 when she won the French Open. She moved to build on that victory further in 2018 when she reached the final of the Miami Masters, where she lost to Sloane Stephens.
Shortly thereafter, she became the World No. 5 – her best singles ranking yet. However, that also marked the beginning of her decline in form.
While Ostapenko managed to reach the penultimate rounds at the Wimbledon and WTA Eastbourne, a dearth of singles titles pushed her out of the top 10. Her form continued to deteriorate this season as well. She lost in the first round in Shenzhen, Sydney, and Melbourne and courtesy of those defeats, she is now the World No. 22.
Ostapenko v Mladenovic – Head to Head
The head to head record between the two players is currently tied at 1-1, with their last meeting taking place in the 2016 Italian Open. Back then, it was Ostapenko who got the last laugh and won the match 6-3, 6-1.
Ostapenko v Mladenovic – Who Will Win?
The two players are heading into this fixture on the back of disappointing spells. In a way, this makes them evenly matched as neither of them possesses the necessary momentum or confidence for the time begin. This one is too close to call and can very well go either way.
You can watch & bet on Jelena Ostapenko v Kristina Mladenovic with bet365 here on Tuesday, January 29.
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