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Match Details
Fixture: (4) Elena Rybakina vs Greet Minnen
Date: May 26, 2024
Tournament: French Open 2024
Round: First Round (Round of 128)
Venue: Paris, France
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Clay (Outdoor)
Prize Money: £53,478,000
Live Telecast: USA - NBC, Tennis Channel, Peacock | Canada - TSN, RDS | UK - Eurosport, Discovery+ | India - Sony Ten
Elena Rybakina vs Greet Minnen preview
Elena Rybakina will be eager to record a deep showing at the 2024 French Open. The Kazakh will open her campaign against Belgium's Greet Minnen.
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Rybakina has been in good form at this year's European claycourt swing. The 24-year-old beat World No. 1 Iga Swiatek en route to her title run at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. She also reached the semifinals of the Madrid Open, losing in a tough three-setter to second seed Aryna Sabalenka.
The World No. 4 reached the quarterfinals of the claycourt Major in 2021, going out to eventual runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. While her campaign back then was admirable, she didn't go past the third round in her remaining four appearances in Paris.
Greet Minnen, meanwhile, is yet to make her mark as a singles player on the WTA Tour. During her career, the Belgian has mostly plied her trade on the ITF circuit, winning 11 titles at the level. That said, she did impress fans with her performance at last year's US Open.
Minnen ousted seven-time Major winner Venus Williams in the latter's return to the Grand Slam level in the first round at Flushing Meadows. The 26-year-old was eventually defeated by 13th-seeded Daria Kasatkina in the third round. Since then, she has climbed to 86th in the WTA rankings.
Elena Rybakina vs Greet Minnen head-to-head
Rybakina leads Minnen by a margin of 2-0 in their head-to-head meetings on the WTA Tour. The Kazakh defeated the Belgian in their only claycourt encounter at the 2020 Internationaux de Strasbourg in straight sets.
Elena Rybakina vs Greet Minnen odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Elena Rybakina vs Greet Minnen prediction
Rybakina has shown a steady improvement in her game over the last few years. While the fourth seed previously depended on her big and accurate first serve, she now possesses solid groundstrokes off both wings. She comes into this year's Roland Garros as one of the outside favorites to go all the way.
Minnen doesn't possess the power of her younger opponent. However, the Belgian has a stable backhand, with which she can redirect shots from the baseline. She has an underpowered serve, though, making her easy pickings for more powerful adversaries.
Rybakina will look for opportunities to unload on Minnen's underwhelming first delivery when they meet in the first round of the French Open. The World No. 4 is expected to win their encounter with little to no trouble next week on the terre battue.
Pick: Elena Rybakina in straight sets.
