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Fixture: (7) Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini.
Tournament: Italian Open 2023.
Round: Second Round (Round of 64).
Venue: Foro Italico, Rome, Italy.
Category: WTA 1000.
Surface: Outdoor clay.
Prize money: €3,572,618.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini preview
Reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina will face off against home favorite Jasmine Paolini in the second round of the 2023 Italian Open.
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Rybakina posted some stunning results prior to the clay swing. She won the BNP Paribas Open and reached the finals of the Australian Open and the Miami Open. She started her clay season in Stuttgart by competing in the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
Rybakina defeated Jule Niemeier in straight sets in the first round. Up against Beatriz Haddad Maia in the second round, she trailed by a set and a break but was forced to retire due to an injury. The Kazakh's campaign in Madrid didn't go as planned either.
Following a first-round bye, Rybakina took on Anna Kalinskaya in the second round. The 23-year-old fought hard, but she ended up losing the match in three sets. She received a first-round bye in Rome as well due to her status as a seeded player.
Paolini took on Wang Xinyu in the first round here. A single break of serve towards the end of the first set sealed the deal in the Italian's favor. Wang was off to a fast start as she jumped to a 4-0 lead in the second set.
Paolini fought back by reeling off the next five games to get back on serve. She even had three match points on her opponent's serve at 6-5, but failed to wrap up the proceedings. Wang made the most of the reprieve offered to her as she went on to claim the set by coming out on top in the tie-break.
The deciding set wasn't as competitive with Paolini managing to remain on top of things right from the start. She broke Wang's serve twice to win the match 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-2.
Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini head-to-head
This will be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini prediction
Paolini's opening-round win over Wang marked her first main draw victory since February. While she failed to close out the match in the second set, she managed to get back on track quite easily in the third set to emerge victorious.
Rybakina's clay swing hasn't been too productive thus far, mainly due to not being fully fit due to an injury. Paolini is a pretty good player on clay, so despite her string of poor results, the Kazakh has her task cut out for her.
Paolini's counterpunching skills are well-suited for clay and coupled with her footwork, she can be a nightmare for players to deal with. Rybakina will find it tough to blow her off the court with her groundstrokes. Keeping the points short is likely to benefit the Kazakh.
Rybakina's serve is also a huge weapon, so if it's firing on all cylinders, she should have the upper hand in this contest. Paolini has it in her to make this a competitive contest, but the reigning Wimbledon champion should be able to keep the Italian at bay.
Pick: Elena Rybakina to win in three sets.
