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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Iga Swiatek vs Jule Niemeier.
Date: 16 January 2023.
Tournament: Australian Open 2023.
Round: First round (Round of 128).
Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia.
Category: Grand Slam.
Surface: Hard.
Prize Money: A$76,500,000.
Live telecast: USA - ESPN | UK - Eurosport | India - Sony Six, Sony Ten & Sony Liv.
Iga Swiatek vs Jule Niemeier preview
Top seed Iga Swiatek will take on World No. 68 Jule Niemeier in the first round of the 2023 Australian Open on Monday.
Swiatek was the outright best player on the WTA tour last year. She won the French Open and the US Open, along with six more titles. She clinched the No. 1 ranking for the first time, went on a 37-match winning streak and concluded the year with a 67-9 win-loss record.
Swiatek commenced her 2023 season at the United Cup. She defeated Yulia Putintseva and Belinda Bencic in the group stage, followed by a win over Martina Trevisan in the city finals. She was up against Jessica Pegula in the semifinals, but surprisingly lost to her in straight sets. A semifinalist in Melbourne last year, she will be aiming to go all the way this time around.
Niemeier enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2022. She made it to the quarterfinals of Wimbledon, her first at a Grand Slam, and the fourth round of the US Open. The German also made it to the last eight of a couple of WTA 250 events.
However, Niemeier has started the new season on a less-than-positive note. She lost both of her singles matches at the United Cup as Germany failed to advance beyond the group stage. She then competed at the Adelaide International 2, but fell to Karolina Pliskova in the first round of qualifying. She'll now be making her debut at the Australian Open.
Iga Swiatek vs Jule Niemeier head-to-head
Swiatek leads Niemeier 1-0 in the head-to-head. She won their previous encounter at the 2022 US Open in three sets.
Iga Swiatek vs Jule Niemeier odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Iga Swiatek vs Jule Niemeier prediction
Swiatek has cemented herself as the most dominant player on the women's tour, whereas Niemeier is still making her presence felt. While the World No. 1 was uncharacteristically off during her loss to Pegula, expect her to come back stronger than ever before.
Swiatek was quite solid at the United Cup otherwise. Her serve looked slightly better than last year and she was hitting her groundstrokes with ferocity. However, she did pick up a minor injury during the tournament, which forced to skip the event in Adelaide as a preventive measure.
Niemeier is still looking for her first win of the season and it's going to be an uphill battle for her to claim it against Swiatek. The German is also in the midst of changing her service motion with a view to improving it. That'll make things even more challenging for her.
Niemeier claimed the first set during their previous meeting at last year's US Open, but was unable to maintain the momentum. Swiatek bounced back strongly, handing her a bagel in the third set. It's likely to be a one-sided affair this time, with the Pole winning comfortably.
Pick: Iga Swiatek to win in straight sets.
