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Match Details
Fixture: Elina Svitolina vs Clara Tauson
Date: February 18, 2025
Tournament: Dubai Tennis Championships 2025
Round: Second Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Aviation Club Tennis Centre, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $3,654,963
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN, TVA
Elina Svitolina vs Clara Tauson preview
Former top 10 player Elina Svitolina will square off against Clara Tauson in the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships 2025.
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Svitolina started the year on a high with a quarterfinal showing at the Australian Open. However, she hasn't been able to capture the same level since then, losing in the second round of the Linz Open and the Qatar Open. She faced Anna Kalinskaya in her Dubai opener, who was the runner-up here a year ago.
The first set was a walk in the park for Svitolina, who conceded only one game en route to claiming it. She raced to a 4-1 lead in the second set thanks to a double break, and while Kalinskaya managed to retrieve one of the breaks, she couldn't close the gap completely. The Ukrainian soon wrapped up the proceedings for a 6-1, 6-2 win.
Tauson won the ASB Classic to start the year, and then reached the third round of the Australian Open. Following a semifinal finish at the Linz Open, she retired from the first round of the Qatar Open after losing the first set. She took on Rebecca Sramkova in the first round here.
Both players remained strong on serve throughout the first set, which led to a tie-break. Sramkova led 6-3 in it and held four set points but Tauson fought them off to snatch the set from her. The second set was over in a flash as the young Dane dished out a bagel to score a 7-6 (7), 6-0 win.
Elina Svitolina vs Clara Tauson head-to-head
This will be the first meeting at the WTA level between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now. However, Tauson did win their only match at the Challenger level a couple of years ago in three sets.
Elina Svitolina vs Clara Tauson odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Elina Svitolina vs Clara Tauson prediction
Tauson seems to have recovered from the injury that forced her to abandon her campaign in Doha a week ago. She didn't face a single break point in the previous round against Sramkova, and finished the match on an emphatic note after a tough first set, and improved her record this year to 11-3 with the win.
Svitolina made light work of last year's finalist Kalinskaya in the first round. She will now aim to win back-to-back matches for the first time since reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open last month.
Tauson's ball-striking is impeccable, though she is often let down by her poor movement. She does like to keep the rallies short, so that isn't a huge factor. That is unlikely to be the case against Svitolina, who can grind out a win when the need arises with her defensive tactics. However, the young Dane's current form still makes her the favorite to win this match.
Pick: Clara Tauson to win in straight sets.
