Sloane Stephens and Victoria Azarenka will meet in the second round of the 2023 WTA Rome Open on Thursday, May 11. Get the predictions and odds of this Victoria Azarenka v Sloane Stephens match, along with its preview, head-to-head, and tips, here.
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Victoria Azarenka v Sloane Stephens Head to Head
The two ladies share quite a rivalry; it is 4-4 at the moment with Azarenka beating Stephens as recently as the Charleston 2023 in three sets.
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Stephens Scripting Comeback
Sloane Stephens, former World No. 3 and a two-time Grand Slam finalist, finds herself with a bit of momentum after going through a massive slump.
The American has not been in the best of form for quite some time. Since her glory days in 2017 and 2018, Sloane has won just two titles – the 2022 Abierto Zapopan and the Saint-Malo Challenger last week.
The five wins she bagged there have now put her year-to-date record to 11-9.
Building on that rhythm, Stephens dismissed Nadia Podorosoka in the Italian Open first round on Wednesday 6-4, 6-1.
Whether she can go further is anyone’s guess. The current #36 has seen a lot of downs in 2023, with many losses coming at the hands of lower-ranked players such as Lauren Davis, Rebeka Masarova, Jaqueline Cristian, and Shelby Rogers.
Of course, she does have a lot of experience and a decent pedigree to tap into – but so does Azarenka.
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Azarenka Starts with a Bye
Victoria Azarenka, seeded 14th in Rome, has enjoyed a bye into round two.
As a former #1 player, the 33-year-old Belarusian has got quite a bit of history in the competition. She was the runner-up in 2013 and is also a four-time quarterfinalist. On the doubles side of things, she bagged the title in 2019.
Speaking of doubles, Azarenka recently won the Madrid Open with Beatriz Haddad Maia to add to her clay form.
In the singles department, the World No. 17 is 12-9 – which includes her shocking early-round defeats in Madrid and Charleston – respectively to Alycia Parks and Anna Kalinskaya.
It was a similar story through the Middle East swing and Sunshine Doubles. Vika’s best run of the year came at the Australian Open, where she was a semifinalist.
Azarenka v Stephens Prediction and Tip
We are in for an entertaining match. Their previous encounters have been thrilling, to say the least – and this one promises to be just the same. Azarenka starts as the odds-on favourite but Stephens is capable of turning it around quickly.
Tips:
- Low-Risk Tip: Azarenka to win: 1/2
- Moderate Risk Tip: Over 20.5 games in the match: 5/6
The 2023 WTA Rome Open will be played from May 9 to 21. You can get all the tennis betting news with our tennis betting blog here. Also, get the rest of the tennis match previews here.
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