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Match details
Fixture: (6) Caroline Garcia vs Sloane Stephens
Tournament: Western & Southern Open 2023
Round: Second round (Round of 32)
Venue: Cincinnati, US
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $2,788,468
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Caroline Garcia vs Sloane Stephens preview
After a first-round bye, Caroline Garcia will commence her title defense against Sloane Stephens in the second round of the 2023 Western & Southern Open.
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Garcia performed quite well during the early hardcourt phase of the year. She reached the quarterfinals in Adelaide and Doha, with a fourth-round finish at the Australian Open in between.
Garcia also reached a couple of finals but lost those to Alycia Parks and Donna Vekic in Lyon and Monterrey, respectively. Following a fourth-round exit from the Indian Wells Open, she bowed out of the Miami Open without winning a match. Her clay swing was rather underwhelming, but her results on grass were decent.
Garcia then participated in the Citi Open but lost her opener against Marta Kostyuk in straight sets. Her Canadian Open campaign also concluded sans a victory. As such, she's now on a three-match losing streak.
Stephens faced Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the first round here. The American dropped her serve twice in the first set to trail 5-2. She then turned the tables on her opponent by bagging the next five games to snatch the set.
Stephens was in total control of the second set and raced to a 3-0 lead. She broke Cocciaretto's serve one last time in the final game of the match to win 7-5, 6-2.
Caroline Garcia vs Sloane Stephens head-to-head
Garcia leads Stephens 4-2 in the head-to-head. The latter won their previous encounter at the 2022 Guadalajara Open in two tight sets.
Caroline Garcia vs Sloane Stephens odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Caroline Garcia vs Sloane Stephens prediction
Stephens looked dead in the water in the first set but kicked things up a notch to change the course of the match completely. She started playing more aggressively and worked her forehand beautifully to win the match.
Garcia emerged triumphant in Cincinnati last year and even won the title as a qualifier. She became the first player to win a WTA 1000 title by coming through the qualifying rounds. While she arrived at the tournament in good form last year, it's a different story this time around.
Garcia's all-out aggressive play has hurt her by a fair margin in her last few matches. She has a winning record against Stephens, but the latter is a tough prospect to face early on. If the American plays some focused tennis, like she did in the previous round, she could send the defending champion packing.
Pick: Sloane Stephens to win in three sets.
