Queensland Tennis Centre (Brisbane)
Group Stage, Group B
Surface: Hard
31.12.22, 08:30
Iga Swiatek of Poland, the world number one, begins her season on the third day of the 2023 United Cup on Saturday, December 31 with a match against Kazakhstan's 51st-ranked Yulia Putintseva.
Claim Your Welcome Bonus!Iga Swiatek
Doha, Indian Wells, Miami, Stuttgart, Rome, Paris, New York, and San Diego all have something in common. So, here are all the cities where Swiatek will win a tennis title in 2022! Swiatek won eight events last season, including two Grand Slam titles and four more WTA 1000 titles, to cement her position in tennis history.
Swiatek not only finished the season rated first in the world, but she has more than double the points (11085) of the second-placed Ons Jabeur (5055). That kind of domination has seldom been witnessed in women's tennis, especially since Serena Williams lost her position as the top-ranked player.
Swiatek will be hoping that she can maintain her winning streak as she enters a new season. And her first duty is to extinguish the flames of Putintseva, a player who has tested some of the greatest in the world despite never rising higher than 27th in the WTA rankings.
Yulia Putintseva
Putintseva played her opening match at the United Cup against Belinda Bencic, and while she held her own for most of the first set, the Swiss number one won in straight sets. Putintseva held Bencic on the court for over two hours until the Kazakh succumbed 7-6 (0), 6-3.
Putintseva stormed to a 4-1 lead in the first set after taking an early break. Bencic battled his way back slowly but steadily from there, first pushing the set into the tie-breaker and then blanking Putintseva in it. Putintseva was a break up in the opening game of the second set, but missed her serves in the sixth and eighth games to lose fighting. In her second battle, she will face a more difficult opponent and will want to fight for an extended period of time.
Expert Betting Tips
Swiatek shouldn't have too many concerns, other for rustiness, which Putintseva might exploit. Nonetheless, a straight-set victory awaits the Pole.