Ons Jabeur celebrates a win (Twitter)
4th seed Ons Jabeur takes on Polish qualifier Magdalena Frech in the round of 64 of the 2023 Indian Wells on Saturday.
The Tunisian star began the season by reaching the semifinals in Adelaide International 1. She defeated Sorana Cirstea and Marta Kostyuk before losing to Linda Noskova. In the Australian Open, she suffered an early exit as she bowed out in the second round following a defeat to Marketa Vondrousova.
She wouldn’t have happy memories of Indian Wells from last year. Jabeur suffered an upset loss in the round of 64 against Daria Saville. The 28-year-old has come a long way since that defeat as she finished runner-up in two Grand Slam events between then and now. Jabeur will start as the favorite in this Fun88 encounter.
Prior to Indian Wells, Frech had only won three qualifying matches this season with no wins in the main draw of any competition. She picked up two comfortable wins against American players, Robin Montgomery and Ashlyn Krueger in the first couple of rounds to make it to the main draw.
Frech came back from a set down in the round of 128 and defeated Maryna Zanevska 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. The 28-year-old Frech did not play her best game as she converted only 7 out of 16 break points and had a win percentage of just 58 on the first serve. However, her comeback must be lauded as she didn’t get bogged down after losing the first set.
This will be the first meeting between Ons Jabeur and Magdalena Frech and therefore, the head-to-head scoreline currently stands at 0-0.
Prediction: Ons Jabeur to win in straight sets.
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