Top seed Bianca Andreescu will lock horns with Russian youngster Anastasia Zakharova in the round of 16 of the 2023 Thailand Open on Thursday.
The hot favorite has got off to a great start in the tournament. She made light work of the talented Harriet Dart in the round of 32. The Canadian youngster managed to dominate proceedings and she converted 6 out of 8 break points. Dart had 5 double faults to her name and that didn’t help her cause. The match eventually ended in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in favor of Andreescu.
The 2019 US Open champion has not had a memorable start to 2023. She lost in the second rounds at the Adelaide International 1 and the subsequent Australian Open. This win against Dart will give her a lot of confidence in a tournament where she is expected to have a deep run.
The 21-year-old played in an ITF event in Australia to start the season. She made it to the main draw with wins in the two qualifying rounds. In the first round of the main draw, she lost to Nigina Abduraimova. At the Australian Open, Zakharova lost to Lucrezia Stefanini in straight sets in the first round of qualifying.
In the round of 32, Zakharova managed to fight back strongly after losing the first set against Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. Zakharova won the match 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 to punch her ticket to the round of 16.
Bianca Andreescu and Anastasia Zakharova have never faced each other so far. Therefore, the head-to-head scoreline currently stands at 0-0.
Prediction: Bianca Andreescu to win in straight sets.
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