World No. 136 and lucky loser Nao Hibino will square off against Czech qualifier Viktoria Hruncakova in the second round of the 2023 Prague Open on Wednesday, August 2. Get the predictions and odds of this Nao Hibino v Viktoria Hruncakova match along with its preview, head-to-head, and tips here.
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Nao Hibino v Viktoria Hruncakova Head to Head
Hibino and Hruncakova have never played each other before this.
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Hibino Benefits From Luck Of the Draw
Nao Hibino can count herself fortunate on two occasions this week. The Japanese veteran lost quite heavily to Colombia’s Emiliana Arango in the final round of qualifying but received a direct entry in the main draw as a lucky loser.
Hibino had perhaps the most winnable opener, taking on Sara Errani, a player in the twilight of her career and is not renowned for her hard-court prowess.
Although Hibino came in as the clear-cut favorite, Errani pushed her to the wire, but the 28-year-old Japanese came out on top 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in a match that lasted two hours and 29 minutes.
After the first two sets were split, the third set was an incredibly tough one to call with momentum shifting without any pattern. First, it was Errani who led 3-0 with a double break, but she completely imploded and it wasn’t like Hibino was playing well either.
The Japanese was broken three times in that decider and the match looked like a low-quality affair from a spectacle standpoint, as both players tallied first-serve points won below the 50% mark.
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Hruncakova Fights Back to Beat Wang
Viktoria Hruncakova won her third match in a row in Prague, coming from a set down to beat World No. 73 Xinyu Wang 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 in two hours and 22 minutes.
Hruncakova had a seamless qualifying run, tallying wins over Renata Voracova and Chloe Paquet, and despite dropping the first set to Wang, she produced a swift reaction in the second set by establishing a 5-0 lead.
Wang managed to recover one of the breaks back, but it was a little too late as the set was beyond her reach.
The third set was closely contested. Hruncakova had momentum on her wing after winning the second set at a canter.
She broke Wang midway through the decider for a 3-2 lead and served for the match at 5-4 up. But Wang cranked up the temperature a bit and generated break point after another until Hruncakova dropped her serve.
Wang eventually forced the set into a tiebreak, but she was only delaying the inevitable as Hruncakova raced to a 4-0 lead before sealing the deal on her third match point.
Hibino v Hruncakova Prediction and Tip
Hruncakova is growing in confidence and she’s been playing at a higher level for weeks now. We are backing the Slovak to end the lucky loser’s run in Prague.
Tips:
- Moderate Risk Tip: Hurncakova to win: 4/7
The 2023 WTA Prague will be played from July 31 to August 6. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also get rest of the tennis match previews here.
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