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Match details
Fixture: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Karolina Muchova
Date: 5 May 2021
Tournament: Mutua Madrid Open 2021
Round: Quarterfinals
Venue: Madrid, Spain
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Red clay
Prize money: €2,549,105
Match timing: Not before 3.30 pm local time, 7 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Karolina Muchova preview
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has continued her surge at the 2021 Mutua Madrid Open, taking out 11th seed Jennifer Brady to book her spot in the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 event.
The Russian, who held a poor 5-8 win-loss record for the year prior to this tournament, had already scored a huge upset win over Karolina Pliskova in the second round. The triumph over another big name in Brady would have further bolstered her confidence.
Awaiting Pavlyuchenkova in the last eight is Karolina Muchova, who came through a hard-fought three-set win over Maria Sakkari late on Tuesday night.
Playing in just her second tournament since the Australian Open, the Czech looks to have found her stride right off the bat. In addition to taking out Sakkari, Muchova has also scored big wins over the likes of second seed Naomi Osaka and Wang Qiang this week.
The 24-year-old will now be looking to carry her momentum further into the tournament.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Karolina Muchova head-to-head
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova leads Karolina Muchova in the duo's current head-to-head with a slender 1-0 margin. That said, the Czech did trouble Pavlyucvhenkova, who needed three sets to close out the win.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Karolina Muchova prediction
Difficult draws and a slight slump had been contributing factors to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova's uncharacteristically rough start to the season. But the Russian did look solid even in some of her losses, and now she finally looks to have turned over a new leaf.
Pavlyuchenkova has put up a strong serving performance here in Madrid. That has helped her get out of some tight situations, something she struggled with in her earlier matches of the year.
If the 29-year-old can continue winning a few free points behind serve, that will help ease the pressure and allow her to play with even more freedom on her groundstrokes. And that's when Pavlyuchenkova is really dangerous; she can generate power off of both wings, and has one of the strongest front court games on tour.
Muchova has a similarly well-rounded game, which has been on full display in her last few matches. That said, she has spent a significant amount of time on court already, and fatigue could well be setting in.
A straight-sets win is the best bet for the Czech, who would not want to engage in another marathon duel against a big-hitting opponent such as Pavlyuchenkova. The longer the match goes on, the more it will favor the Russian.
Prediction: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to win in three sets.
