Elena Rybakina vs Liudmila Samsonova Prediction & Betting Tips - WTA China Open

Prediction published on 06/10/2023, 14:51  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 06/10/2023 at 15:51 in Tennis Predictions

Fifth seed Elena Rybakina beat world number one in the China Open quarter finals. Now she faces unseeded Liudmilla Samsonova for a place in the final. The winner will take on either Iga Swiatek or Coco Gauff in the final of this hard court tournament. Rybakina is fifth in the latest ranking list but a win over Samsonova will take her up a place to fourth. The 24-year-old has won two titles this year, both of them WTA 1000 events and one on hard court. Rybakina also reached the final of the Australian Open at the start of 2023. This is her first semi-final since the August Toronto event. On that occasion Rybakina lost in three sets and it was Samsonova that beat her. In this China Open the fifth seed has only dropped one set. That was in the last 16 when having to come from behind to defeat qualifier Mirra Andreeva. Only five games were dropped in the two sets that she won. Friday then saw her put in a better performance with a straight sets win over Aryna Sabalenka.

Liudmila Samsonova is unbeaten against her opponent. Three matches (all on hard courts) have been won by the Russian. Two of those three wins required a final set to be played. Samsonova is 22nd in the latest rankings but this run to the last four has seen her climb four places. This is the first time Samsonova has made it past the last 16 of a tournament since losing in the final of the Montreal tournament to Jessica Pegula. Samsonova has also only dropped one set on her way to the last four. That was when losing the second set of her last 16 against Marta Kostyuk. Rybakina is the first seed that she's had to play in this tournament. We go for Rybakina to get her first win over Samsonova.