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Match details
Fixture: Petra Martic vs Veronika Kudermetova
Date: 1 October 2020
Tournament: Roland Garros 2020
Round: Second round (Round of 64)
Venue: Paris, France
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Red clay
Prize money: Approx. €38,000,000
Match timing: Approx. 4 pm CEST, 7.30 pm IST
Live telecast: USA - NBC Sports / Tennis Channel | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP
Petra Martic vs Veronika Kudermetova preview
13th seed Petra Martic will take on Russia's Veronika Kudermetova in the second round of the 2020 French Open on Thursday.
Martic played back-to-back weeks in Palermo and Prague to get in some claycourt form after the tour resumption, but missed the subsequent Western & Southern Open. Seeded 8th at the US Open, the World No. 14 was expected to reach the semifinals with the top seed Karolina Pliskova's early exit. But Martic fell to Kazakhastan's Yulia Putintseva in the fourth round, in what was a disappointing end to her fortnight.
Martic lost to Putintseva again at her next tournament - the Italian Open in Rome - extending the up-and-down nature of her season. While she did make the semifinals at Dubai and Palermo, Martic has largely underperformed at the big tournaments this year.
The Croat seems ready to make amends in Paris though, as seen in her clutch win over the tricky Misaki Doi in the first round. Martic hit 31 winners past her opponent to eke out a victory in two tight sets.
Veronika Kudermetova, on the other hand, is still looking for her Grand Slam breakthrough. She doesn't have the experience of Martic at the Majors, and that could hurt her in this matchup.
Moreover, Kudermetova's performances this year have been far from impressive. The World No. 42 has lost four of her last seven matches on the tour.
Petra Martic vs Veronika Kudermetova head-to-head
Petra Martic leads Veronika Kudermetova by a margin of 1-0 in their head-to-head meetings. Their only encounter took place at Wuhan last year, where Martic beat Kudermetova in straight sets.
Petra Martic vs Veronika Kudermetova prediction
Petra Martic had been carrying an injury prior to the US Open, but has now fully recovered from it. Standing 181 cm tall, the 29-year-old will likely use her strong serve and aggressive all-court game to her advantage. The Croat also possesses a lot of variety in her groundstrokes, with an efficient slice to boot.
Veronika Kudermetova doesn't have a game as versatile as her second-round opponent, but she does enjoy playing from the back of the court with her solid baseline game. The Russian reached the third round in Paris last year, and she could be helped by the slower than usual courts this year.
Prediction: Petra Martic to win in three sets.
