Varvara Gracheva was finally able to defeat Lucrecia Bronzetti at her third attempt, but another stage of the Australian Open awaits an opponent stylistically different to those left behind. She will cross bats with Karolina Pliskova in the 1/16 final. The match will start on January 21 at 00:00.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #1 – Handicap (-4) for Pliskova – 1.68.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #2 – Total Games Under 23 – 1.48.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #3 – 1st Set Games Under 9.5 – 1.616.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #4 – Sets Scoring: 1=2 – 5.20.
Gracheva was pleasantly pleased with her win in Melbourne. However, she has a game against the powerful Pliskova, where she needs to hold her serve steadily, as breaking will not be easy. Karolina is getting better, her serve is very good now. We don’t think Varvara can cope with the Czech’s pressure.
All the matches in Melbourne have not been tightly contested. We expect Pliskova to win in two sets thanks to her strong serve.
Varvara Gracheva is having the best tournament of her career in Melbourne. The Russian had not reached the third round of the Australian Open before 2023.
Gracheva reached the third round for the first time at the Australian Open.
In the first round, Varvara sensationally defeated Daria Kasatkina (6-1, 6-1). This was her first victory over a rival from the top 10.
It is noteworthy that in early January, Gracheva lost with the same score as Anna Blinkova in the tournament qualification in Hobart.
In the second round, Gracheva overcame Lucrezia Stefanini of Italy (6-3, 6-1). The critical point was a feeble serve game of her opponent.
Gracheva has only won one set in her last six lost meetings against the holders of the powerful serve.
Pliskova has not lost a single set so far this week either.
In the first round, Karolina defeated Wang Xiyu of China (6-1, 6-3).
In the second match, the former #1 defeated Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva (6-0, 7-5).
In early January, Pliskova had an unsuccessful performance at the tournaments in Adelaide, losing in both cases already in the first round.
Pliskova has four dry wins in her previous five clashes with the top 100.
Type of Court – Hard
Speed of Court – 7/10
Varvara Gracheva’s Rating – 97
Varvara Gracheva Wins/Losses in 2023 – 3/2
Karolina Pliskova’s Rating – 31
Karolina Pliskova Wins/Losses in 2023 – 4/2
In Pliskova’s three previous matches, less than 9.5 games have been played in the first set. We offer to bet on “1st Set Games Under 9.5” with odds of 1.616.
In three of Gracheva’s last five matches, the number of games played in the first and second sets has been the same. We offer to bet on “Sets Scoring: 1=2” with odds of 5.20.
Varvara Gracheva and Karolina Pliskova will play their first head-to-head match.
The match will be played in Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
We recommend checking out the odds for the 2023 Australian Open: Varvara Gracheva vs Karolina Pliskova at 1xBet and VBET.