Australian Open 2022: Elina Svitolina vs Victoria Azarenka preview, head-to-head and prediction

Match Details

Fixture: [15] Elina Svitolina vs [24] Victoria Azarenka

Date: 21 January 2022

Tournament: Australian Open

Round: Third round (Round of 32)

Venue: Melbourne Park

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Hard

Prize Money: $75,000,000

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Eurosport | India - Sony Six, Sony Liv

Elina Svitolina vs Victoria Azarenka preview

Elina Svitolina in action at the Australian Open

Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka will take on 15th seed Elina Svitolina for a place in the fourth round of the Melbourne Slam on Friday.

The Ukrainian had a disappointing 2021 season, slipping out of the top 10 of the WTA rankings. However, she did have a few positive moments, including winning the Chicago Open and claiming bronze in Tokyo.

The 27-year-old began the 2022 season in disastrous fashion, suffering first-round exits to Anastasia Gasanova and Madison Keys in the two tournaments held in Adelaide.

But she notched up her first win of the season at the Australian Open, beating France's Fiona Ferro 6-1, 7-6(4) in the first round. She downed another Frenchwoman in the second round in Harmony Tan. The Ukrainian took the first set 6-3 but Tan won the second 7-5. Svitolina was 5-1 up in the third before her opponent retired.

Azarenka, meanwhile, caught fire towards the end of the 2021 season. She reached the final at Indian Wells and the quarterfinals in Montreal.

The Belarusian launched her 2022 campaign with a hard-fought win over Paula Badosa in Adelaide. She made it as far as the quarterfinals, where she was beaten by Iga Swiatek.

The Belarusian, seeded 24 at the Australian Open, defeated Hungary's Panna Udvardy 6-3, 6-1 in the first round. She followed it up with 6-1, 6-2 win over Jil Teichman to reach the third round of the competition for the first time since 2016.

Elina Svitolina vs Victoria Azarenka head-to-head

Friday's third-round clash will be the fourth meeting between Svitolina and Azarenka, with the Belarusian leading the head-to-head 4-0.

They first met in the 2015 Qatar Open, where the Belarusian won in three sets. They locked horns in the first round in Canada later that year, with the former World No. 1 winning 6-1, 6-4.

The third match between the two was contested at the 2019 Madrid Open, where Azarenka came back from a set down to win 4-6, 6-1, 7-5. Their most recent meeting was in the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open last year, with the Belarusian winning 6-2, 6-4.

Elina Svitolina vs Victoria Azarenka prediction

Both players fared well on hardcourt last year, with Azarenka having a win percentage of 75% compared to Svitolina's 70.5%.

Azarenka is the more aggressive of the two players and will look to take the attack to Svitolina and keep the Ukrainian on the move. Svitolina, for her part, has tremendous court coverage and counterpunching skills, which she will need to make full use of. Neither player has a great serve, so the match could feature numerous breaks.

Given the lopsided head-to-head record between the two, Azarenka will definitely fancy her chances of advancing to the fourth round.

Prediction: Azarenka to win in three sets.

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Also check out: Updated ATP Men's Tennis Rankings