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Match Details
Fixture: (1/WC) Anett Kontaveit vs Irina Bara.
Date: July 19, 2022.
Tournament: Hamburg European Open.
Round: First round (Round of 32).
Venue: Hamburg, Germany.
Category: WTA 250.
Surface: Clay.
Prize money: $251,750.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Anett Kontaveit vs Irina Bara preview
Top seed Anett Kontaveit will square off against World No. 125 Irina Bara in the first round of the 2022 Hamburg European Open on Tuesday.
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Kontaveit enjoyed a highly successful 2021, winning four titles and finishing as the runner-up at the WTA Finals. However, she has been rather inconsistent this year, posting some good results along with a few early exits.
The Estonian contracted COVID-19 in April, and has suffered a spate of early losses since then due to struggles with her fitness.
Kontaveit's best result during the clay season was a quarterfinal showing at the Stuttgart Open. She failed to win a match at the Italian Open and the French Open.
After a second-round loss at Wimbledon, she took a wildcard to compete in Hamburg. The World No. 2 is in dire need of some wins to boost her confidence and will be hoping for some solid displays in the German city.
Irina Bara mainly competes on the Challenger and ITF circuits. However, this year she has taken a big leap by making her debut at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. While she lost in the first round in Melbourne, she made it to the second round at the All England Club.
Bara won her fourth title at the Challenger level this year. Teaming up with Ekaterine Gorgodze, the duo won the title in Marbella. At the WTA level, her main-draw record for the year is 3-5, with a quarterfinal showing at the Copa Colsanitas in Bogota being her best result.
Bara has already made a winning start in Hamburg. She won her first-round doubles contest alongside compatriot Monica Niculescu on Sunday.
Anett Kontaveit vs Irina Bara head-to-head
Kontaveit and Bara haven't clashed on the tour prior to this, so the head-to-head is 0-0 at present.
Anett Kontaveit vs Irina Bara odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Anett Kontaveit vs Irina Bara prediction
On paper, Kontaveit is the firm favorite to win this contest. But given her recent struggles, partly due to her health, she might have her hands full with Bara.
The Estonian's results on clay have gotten progressively worse over the years. After winning a total of 22 matches on the surface across 2017 and 2018, Kontaveit has won a total of 16 matches over the last four years.
If she is back to her best, this could be an opportunity for her to make a deep run in a clay event. Bara isn't too experienced at the WTA level, and has lost her previous couple of matches against top 10 players.
Kontaveit's power-packed game could prove to be quite overwhelming for the Romanian to handle. Bara lacks firepower in her groundstrokes and will aim to counter the World No. 2 with some finesse and consistent shotmaking.
Kontaveit has a lot of points to defend in the coming months, so doing well here will certainly take some pressure off her shoulders. The Estonian could be off to a slow start, but should eventually be able to overcome her opponent and advance further.
Pick: Anett Kontaveit to win in straight sets.
