Kristina Mladenovic of France, the world number 52, will play Jessica Pegula of the USA, world number 64, in the third round of the 2021 Australian Open on Saturday, February 13 with the match likely to begin at around 1 pm local time. Check all the live streaming options of this Kristina Mladenovic v Jessica Pegula match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Kristina Mladenovic v Jessica Pegula Head to Head
The pair have met once before, and that was less than two weeks ago in the Yarra Valley Classic. Pegula won that match in straight sets, 6 -4, 6 -1.
Maldenovic, a Doubles Champ Doing Well in the Singles
Mladenovic has twice won the doubles in Melbourne and also been a beaten finalist with long-term partner Timea Babos, but, in terms of singles, this is the first time she has reached the third round since 2016.
She pulled off a big surprise in the first round, beating the number 20 seed, Maria Sakkari of Greece, in three sets, despite conceding the second set to love.
That earned her a second round tie against Nao Hibbino of Japan, the world number 76.
The first set was scrappy, with both women struggling to hold their serve. And it was Mladenovic who cracked first, dropping her serve in the eighth game. But serving for the set, Hibino could not take advantage and gave the break straight back. And then Hibino dropped her serve once more to give the Frenchwoman the set.
That seemed to sap the resistance of the Japanese player, and she was to win just one more game as Mladenovic wrapped-up what proved to be a comfortable win in the end.
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Pegula, a Conqueror of Grand Slam Champions
Pegula is into the third round in Melbourne, where she has never won a match in the main draw before, And, in doing so, she has matched her previous best at a Grand Slam event, which came at the US Open last September.
She has progressed thus far by defeating two former Grand Slam champions beginning with twice winner of the Championship here, Victoria Azarenka, although she was aided by the fact that the former world number one was struggling with breathing difficulties towards the end of their match.
There was nothing fortunate though about the way she thrashed the Australian veteran Samantha Stosur in their match on Thursday night. It was staged in the Margaret Court Arena, but, in truth, it offered little entertainment to the thousands watching in the stands or the TV viewers at home.
The tone was set when Stosur dropped her serve in the opening game, and two games later she was broken once more as Pegula dominated the return. In no time at all, Pegula took the set to love,
The Stosur serve was broken once more at the start of the second serve, and, although she did at least win one game to save her blushes completely, the entire match was over in 52 minutes. Not once was the Pegula serve threatened.
Mladenovic v Pegula Prediction and Tip
In this case, there is a very recent form guide to help determine who is the favourite for this match. The pair met barely two weeks ago at the same venue and Pegula won easily. She is tipped to do so again.
Tip: Pegula to win in straight sets: 11/10 (bet365)
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The 2021 Australian Open will be played from February 8 to 21. You can watch & bet on these matches here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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