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Fixture: (1) Iga Swiatek vs (27) Petra Martic.
Date: May 3, 2023.
Tournament: Mutua Madrid Open 2023.
Round: Quarterfinal.
Venue: Caja Magica, Madrid, Spain.
Category: WTA 1000.
Surface: Outdoor clay.
Prize money: €7,652,174.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Iga Swiatek vs Petra Martic preview
Three-time Major champion Iga Swiatek will square off against World No. 33 Petra Martic in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Madrid Open on Wednesday.
Swiatek knocked out Julia Grabher and Bernarda Pera in straight sets to set up a fourth-round date against Ekaterina Alexandrova. The World No. 1 fell behind 2-0 in the opening set, but recovered well by bagging five of the last six games to take the set.
An early break of serve put Swiatek in the driver's seat in the second set. She stepped up to serve for the match at 5-3, but Alexandrova broke her serve to stay in contention. The Russian then saved a match point in the following game and went on to win the ensuing tie-break as well to level the proceedings.
Swiatek regained control of the match in the third set, breaking Alexandrova's serve twice to win 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-3. She has now made it to the quarterfinals in Madrid for the first time.
Martic, meanwhile, defeated Laura Siegemund and Anna Kalinskaya to make it to the fourth round, where she faced Barbora Krejcikova. The Croat jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first set, but her opponent negated her advantage and managed to get back on serve.
Martic then secured another break of serve to go 5-3 up and then served out the set with ease in the next game. She led 2-0 in the second set, but Krejcikova managed to level the score down the line to make it 3-3.
Martic claimed the next couple of games to go 5-3 up. She then served to close out the contest and even held a couple of match points, but Krejcikova broke back to keep her hopes afloat.
Martic then saved four set points to take the set into a tie-break, in which she played quite well to win the match 6-3, 7-6 (1). She has now reached the last eight at a WTA 1000 event for the first time in over a year.
Iga Swiatek vs Petra Martic head-to-head
Swiatek leads Martic 1-0 in the head-to-head. She won their previous encounter at the 2021 BNP Paribas Open in straight sets.
Iga Swiatek vs Petra Martic odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Iga Swiatek vs Petra Martic prediction
Petra Martic almost let the match slip out of her hands but got things under control quickly to defeat Barbara Krejcikova. After ousting one French Open champion, the Croat will have to face another in the next round.
Iga Swiatek played a rather messy match by her standards, but managed to get over the finish line against Ekaterina Alexandrova. She raised her level when it got down to crunch time and that's why she remains a formidable force on the tour.
Martic has a well-rounded game and almost all of her tactics, from her serve to her net game, came together in the previous round. She'll need to maintain a similar level against Swiatek and unlike her match against Krejcikova, she cannot afford to lose focus even for a second.
Martic has the tools to give Swiatek a tough time, but the World No. 1 should be able to subdue the Croat to make the semifinals.
Pick: Iga Swiatek to win in straight sets.
