Aryna Sabalenka vs Elina Svitolina Prediction: Back Aryna to win

Aryna Sabalenka qualified for the WTA Cincinnati round of 16 and she is set to meet Elina Svitolina. Both players have faced each other 4 times in the past and Aryna Sabalenka won 3 of the 4 meetings, while Elina won only once. The most recent meeting was at the WTA Rome back in May and Aryna won the match in 3 sets.

Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka heads back to the court for the next round in the WTA Cincinnati tournament. She had a bright start by beating Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the previous round to see her come into the round of 16. She will now go head-to-head against Elina Svitolina in the round of 16.

Aryna’s match against Elisabetta Cocciaretto ended in straight sets, and Aryna won by a 6-3,6-4 score. Her stats are summarized below:

SERVE: - first serve 62%, first serve points 89%, second serve 87%, second serve points 48%, break points saved 100%

RETURN: - first serve return points 32%, second serve return points 57%, break points converted 2.

Elina Svitolina advanced into the round of 16 in the WTA CIncinnati tournament. She had been in very fine form in the tournament, winning in the previous 2 rounds. She is set to face Aryna Sabalenka in the round of 16 stage and according to the h2h, she trails 1:3. Hopefully, she is extra motivated to settle the score against Aryna.

Elina Svitolina’s last match against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro ended in a win for Elina, in straight sets. The score of the match in the end was 6-4,6-1 and her stats were:

SERVE: - first serve 52%, first serve points 64%, second serve 96%, second serve points 62%, break points saved 33%

RETURN: - first serve return points 40%, second serve return points 73%, break points converted 5.

She leads Svitolina 3-1 in head-to-head series, including the recent one on a hard court. Her forceful serve and aggressive play from the baseline give her clear edges. In her last match, she won rather comfortably without losing a set, which tells a lot about being in fine fettle on these Cincinnati hard courts. While Svitolina has also had a fairly good season, reaching the Auckland finals, she will have to be at her best to come through against Sabalenka. On the other hand, clearly, Svitolina's tenacity, consistency, and ability to grind out points may present problems for Sabalenka if she can stretch the rallies to force errors. However, Svitolina has already spent more time on court in this tournament, which might make a difference regarding her endurance.

• Under 22.5 at 1.61 Odds
• Aryna Sabalenka to Win 2-0 at 1.83 Odds