Damien Kayat previews Aryna Sabalenka vs Sorana Cirstea in the Selected Round of 64 matches of the Madrid Open on 27 April 2023
2023 WTA/ATP Tour
WTA 1000/ATP 1000
Madrid Open
La Caja Magica (Outdoor Clay)
Selected Round of 64 Matches-27th April
Aryna Sabalenka 1/5 | Sorana Cirstea 3/1
This is set up to be an intriguing potential banana peel for World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka. The Belarusian obviously started the season in sensational fashion (winning in Adelaide before tasting the ultimate success at the Aussie Open).
This used to be the period of the year where Sabalenka would struggle. But Sabalenka has really evolved on these surfaces over the past few years. She actually won the title here in 2021. And she enjoyed an extremely consistent clay-court campaign last year, reaching the final in Stuttgart and the semi’s in Rome.
And she is fresh off another excellent showing in Stuttgart, going down to clay-court nemesis Iga Swiatek in the final. A lot has been made of her obvious improvement in service motion. But I think her improved mobility has been equally crucial to her rise in the rankings.
But next up for Sabalenka is someone who shocked her on her favored hardcourts just a few months ago: Sorana Cirstea.
33-year-old Sorana Cirseta has always lived in the shadow of fellow countrywoman Simona Halep. But people tend to forget how promising the start to her career was. She reached the quarterfinals of Roland Garros as a 19-year-old. She reached the final of the Canadian Open in 2013 (losing empathically to Serena Williams). That performance in particular seemed to place her on the precipice of a promising career.
But poor form and injuries have held her back from realizing her potential. But the Romanian came out of nowhere to produce one of the most surprising ‘Sunshine Double’ performances in recent years. She reached the quarterfinals at Indian Wells and the semi-finals in Miami. In fact, she became the first player ranked outside the top 50 to win nine Sunshine Doubles matches in a year.
So, she comes into this match with some added confidence. And she has some clay-court nous to her game. She won the Istanbul Cup in 2021 and also reached the Strasbourg final that year. She also reached her maiden WTA 1000 quarterfinal here back in 2016. More importantly, she just picked up the biggest win of her career against a certain Belarusian.
The Verdict: Sabalenka to win in three at 5/2
Cirstea leads the head-to-head 1-0. She brushed aside the towering Sabalenka in straight sets at this year’s Miami Open. Her aggressive, free-swinging style worked to perfection as she secured the biggest win of her career.
She had to pull on all her energy reserves to overcome Lauren Davies in her first-round match. Could she possibly down Sabalenka again? I think the smart money is on Sabalenka to exact revenge.
However, the Belarusian does have the tendency to carry war wounds. And perhaps Cirstea’s aggressive approach could result in some serving jitters.
