Rebeka Masarova vs Maria Sakkari Prediction & Betting Tips - WTA Mutua Madrid Open

Prediction published on 29/04/2023, 06:57  by Daniel Ngulu | Modified on 29/04/2023 at 15:54 in Tennis Predictions

Maria Sakkari who is seeded ninth and wildcard Rebeka Masarova will for the very first time in their careers, clash in the third round of the Mutua Madrid Open on an outdoor clay court on Saturday. Both players have also never progressed past this stage and the winner here will advance to the fourth round to meet either sixth seed Cori Gauff or 26th seed Paula Badosa. Masarova is making her debut in Madrid and has won her opening two matches with one set dropped. She defeated fellow Spaniard Cristina Bucsa in three sets to start things off and had a more reassuring performance in the second round against 20th seed Donna Vekic, winning in straight sets. A strong performer on clay, the win over Vekic will boost her confidence levels even further as she attempts to continue climbing up the world rankings. Masarova has won 22 of the 30 matches she has played this season with six coming on clay. This has allowed her to currently be placed as number 67 in the live ranking which is a new career high for her. Masarova has played two finals already this season, in Auckland and in the Oeiras Open but unfortunately, she has lost both.

Maria Sakkari is yet to play a final this season and has struggled with consistency, especially in the run-up to her seventh appearance in Madrid. The Greek number one has 16 wins and eight losses this season with three of those defeats coming in her last four matches. Her stuttering form has precipitated her dropping from sixth to ninth in the world ranking and she will be keen not to suffer another upset here and put her top 10 status in even more threat. Sakkari is a former French Open semi-finalist and started the tournament on a winning note after defeating the qualifier Arantxa Rus in straight sets in the first round. It was her first win on clay this year after she started the clay court season on a losing note in Stuttgart. Despite her struggles, she has made it through to three semifinals this season, Linz, Doha and Indian Wells and should feel confident of replicating the same here and set a new personal record in this WTA 1000 tournament.