Sydney Tennis Classic 2022: Paula Badosa vs Jelena Ostapenko preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match details

Fixture: (4) Paula Badosa vs Jelena Ostapenko

Date: 10 January 2021

Tournament: Sydney Tennis Classic 2022

Round: Round of 32 (first round)

Venue: Sydney, Australia

Category: WTA 500

Surface: Outdoor hardcourt

Prize money: $703,580

Match timing: 11 a.m. local time, 12:00 a.m. GMT, 5:30 a.m. IST

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video

Paula Badosa vs Jelena Ostapenko preview

Fourth seed Paula Badosa will lock horns with former Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko in the first round of the 2022 Sydney Tennis Classic on Monday.

Badosa started her season with a 6-3, 6-2 opening-round loss to Victoria Azarenka at the Adelaide International last week. In a rematch of their 2021 Indian Wells final, the Spaniard was completely outclassed by the former World No. 1.

With the Australian Open right around the corner, Badosa will look to get her season back on track with a good showing in Sydney.

Jelena Ostapenko at the 2021 BNP Paribas Open

Jelena Ostapenko enjoyed considerable success last year, winning her first title since 2019 at the 2021 Eastbourne International. She also reached the final at the Luxembourg Open. Ostapenko concluded her season with a semifinal showing at Indian Wells and a first-round loss at the Kremlin Cup, though she retired from the match in the third set due to injury.

Playing in her first tournament of the year, Ostapenko will look to gather some momentum in the lead-up to the Australian Open.

Paula Badosa vs Jelena Ostapenko head-to-head

Badosa and Ostapenko have played against each other twice before, with the head-to-head tied at 1-1. Ostapenko won their most recent encounter 6-2, 6-2 at the 2021 St. Petersburg Open.

Paula Badosa vs Jelena Ostapenko prediction

Both players like to play aggressively as they look to dictate rallies with powerful groundstrokes. However, Badosa possesses a much better serve than Ostapenko, which gives her a significant edge going into this contest.

Badosa also knows when to dial down the intensity and play with caution. She possesses a solid defense and covers the court well, although on her day, Ostapenko can hit her off the court.

Given their style of play, it's going to boil down to which player better reigns in those unforced errors, with Badosa being the most likely candidate to do so.

Prediction: Paula Badosa to win in three sets.

About the author

Rohit is a journalist at Sportskeeda who specializes in covering tennis. Having been with the company for three years, he has proven himself as a formidable force in the field. With a Master's degree in law, Rohit brings his analytical and research skills to the forefront as a journalist. He stays on top of the game by using social media platforms and never misses a match for on-court insights. He values giving credit where it's due, keeping his reporting fair and accurate.

At the outset of his career, Rohit found his niche in writing previews and SEO pieces and it's this expertise that continues to define his role at Sportskeeda. He is particularly proud of one article that garnered an impressive 750k views and surpassed his "wildest dreams." Rohit is not particularly fond of (GOAT) debates and it is one of the reasons why he left the legal world behind. He prefers to view players in "tiers," where they're all esteemed to an extent. However, if pressed to name favorites, he would choose Serena and Venus Williams. The Williams sisters' journey from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of tennis has been his greatest source of inspiration.

When he isn't busy making spot-on predictions about match outcomes, Rohit likes reading, particularly fantasy, sci-fi, and comics. As an X-Men fanatic, he's also passionate about board games and enjoys watching movies in his spare time. And don't be surprised if you catch him silently wishing to the tennis gods for the removal of ad scoring from doubles.

Know More

Edited by Nihal Taraporvala