Canada’s Bianca Andreescu will face the challenge of Marketa Vondrousova in the opening round of the Italian Open
Vondrousova is coming into this tournament at the back of a decent Madrid Open campaign. She earned a hard-fought victory in her opening match in Italy against Estonia’s Karia Kanepi.
Vondrousova has not been in the best of form but she is capable of causing major upsets on her day. Her best performance so far this season came at the Linz Open, where she reached the Semi-finals and the Czech ace would aim to replicate that form in Italy.
Bianca Andreescu is currently ranked World No.27 in women’s singles but she hasn’t been able to live up to her billing so far this season. She started the season on a good note but her form has faded out gradually as the season progressed. Her best performance so far in 2023 came at the Hua Hin Championships in February, where she reached the Semi-finals before losing to Lesia Tsurenko.
Andreescu is coming to this tournament at the back of a first-round exit from the Madrid Open. Her results in the previous events haven’t been any good either. The Canadian is seeded 24th in this tournament and she will be desperate to put together a string of positive results. It remains to be seen if Andreescu can get over this rough patch and live up to expectations in Italy.
Date – Thursday, 11th May
Court Type – Clay outdoor surface
Telecast – Tennis Channel
Start Time – To be Announced
Location – Foro Italico
Match details – Round of 64 match
Vondrousova and Andreescu have never played each other before on the WTA tour. This is the first professional head to head clash between the two players. On paper, Andreescu is the favourite both in terms of rankings and experience at the top level. However, one can certainly not rule out Vondrousova and the Czech is expected to put up a tough fight. We are expecting a close encounter with Andreescu eventually getting the better of Vondrousova in three sets.
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