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Fixture: (2) Aryna Sabalenka vs Mayar Sherif.
Date: May 2, 2023.
Tournament: Mutua Madrid Open 2023.
Round: Quarterfinal.
Venue: Caja Magica, Madrid, Spain.
Category: WTA 1000.
Surface: Outdoor clay.
Prize money: €7,652,174.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Aryna Sabalenka vs Mayar Sherif preview
Second seed Aryna Sabalenka will lock horns with World No. 59 Mayar Sherif in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Madrid Open on Tuesday.
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Following straight-sets wins over Sorana Cirstea and Camila Osorio, Sabalenka was up against Mirra Andreeva in the fourth round. The Belarusian started the match with a break of serve, but squandered her lead immediately in the next game.
Following a hold of serve by Andreeva, Sabalenka went on a three-game run to go 4-2 up. After another game, the World No. 2 broke the young Russian's serve once again to bag the set.
The second set was more lop-sided, with Sabalenka dishing out a breadstick to win the match 6-3, 6-1. She's back into the quarterfinals in Madrid for just the second time in her career.
Meanwhile, Sherif knocked out Camila Giorgi, Anhelina Kalinina and Caroline Garcia to reach the fourth round, where Elise Mertens awaited her. The first set featured plenty of momentum shifts as both players struggled to hold serve.
Mertens ended up taking a 4-3 lead after five service breaks, but Sherif fought back by claiming the next three games to clinch the set. However, the Egyptian was completely outplayed in the second set as she failed to win a single game in it.
Sherif regrouped rather quickly as she took a commanding 5-2 lead in the third set. She then served for the match at 5-3, but failed to close out the proceedings as Mertens put up a fight by securing a break of serve.
Sherif didn't let things spiral out of control, breaking Mertens' serve immediately in the next game to win 6-4, 0-6, 6-4. She has now reached her maiden WTA 1000 quarterfinal and is the first player from Egypt to attain this milestone.
Aryna Sabalenka vs Mayar Sherif head-to-head
The two have not faced off prior to this, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Aryna Sabalenka vs Mayar Sherif odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Aryna Sabalenka vs Mayar Sherif prediction
Sherif staged a fantastic turnaround following a massive second set letdown in the previous round to emerge victorious. However, her error count was on the higher side in this match and she'll need to clean up her act going forward.
Sabalenka, meanwhile, overcame some early resistance from Andreeva to take control of the match and score another easy win. She smacked 28 winners in contrast to 16 unforced errors in a great display of first strike tennis.
Unlike Sabalenka, Sherif doesn't have a weapon to make things easier for her. The Belarusian's booming serve and powerful groundstrokes don't give her opponents room to maneuver.
Sherif is a pretty capable player on clay, compiling her career-best results on the surface. She could put the reigning Australian Open champion in a spot of bother by prolonging the rallies, forcing her to pull the trigger early or mishit a shot.
However, considering Sabalenka's form, it's hard to bet against her in the end.
Pick: Aryna Sabalenka to win in straight sets.
