Elena Rybakina vs Clara Burel Prediction: A Comfortable Opener for Elena

On Tuesday, August 30, number 25 seed Elena Rybakina will face French qualifier Clara Burel in the first round of the 2022 US Open.

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No. 25 in the world Elena Rybakina comes in New York fresh off a quarterfinal loss to Madison Keys in Cincinnati, but not before overcoming Mayar Sherif, Garbine Muguruza, and Alison Riske-Amritraj.

Rybakina's deep run was her first since winning the Wimbledon title. The 23-year-old Kazakh had an incredible campaign, beating out major names like Bianca Andreescu, Petra Martic, Ajla Tomljanovic, Simona Halep, and Ons Jabeur.

Elena's record presently stands at 32-15, and she was a runner-up in the Adelaide International and a quarterfinalist in the Indian Wells Open earlier this season.

Rybakina has a strong pedigree as well, having reached nine WTA career finals. She is in a whole different league than her French opponent, with a more sophisticated level of play.

131st World Clara Burel began her US Open career as a qualifier, beating out Seone Mendez, Arianne Hartono, and Misaki Doi.

The match against Doi was a nail-biter that went to three sets and concluded in a tiebreak, with Burel prevailing 2-6, 6-4, 7-6. (10).

The 21-year-old will participate in the main draw at Flushing Meadows for the second year in a row; she lost in the first round last year.

Burel has had a pretty dismal season in 2022, going 12-20. Her whole year has been marked by early defeats, with the Makarska Challenger being the only high point of her run, as she reached the quarterfinals.

Anything less than a straight-set victory for Rybakina would be completely unacceptable. She has the form, experience, and momentum to rapidly work the struggling Burel and comfortably advance to round two.

• Total Under 18.5 for 1.88
• Handicap Elena Rybakina (-6.5) for 2.02
• Individual Total 2 Under 6.5 for 1.81