The
Madrid Open will see
Aryna Sabalenka seek out revenge against
Iga Swiatek who won their most recent clash at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
A final between Sabalenka and Swiatek is not a surprise in tennis and actually, we saw this exact matchup in Stuttgart recently. It was an event where Swiatek won in the past and she successfully defended her trophy by beating Sabalenka in the final in two sets. Now we're seeing it at an event which Sabalenka won in the past so it's to see whether she can beat Swiatek.
It's not a matchup that favours her generally as the Polish player is a better fit on clay. Sabalenka's chances rise dramatically in Madrid because these specific conditions play into the strengths of the Belarusian. She was able to outplay all of her opponents rather comfortably while Swiatek faced some issues.
Alexandrova gave her a lot of issues and she's a similar type of player to Sabalenka. Both have powerful serves and aggressive groundstrokes. It's hard to predict but Swiatek will be the favourite. Sabalenka will be able to win the match but she will need a superb effort, especially when it comes to her serve.
If she can keep her opponent away from any slow serves she will have chances. She couldn't do that in Stuttgart and that proved her undoing. The final, today at 18:30. Don't miss it.