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Match details
Fixture: (3) Elena Rybakina vs (Q) Varvara Gracheva.
Date: 9 February 2022.
Tournament: St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Round: First round (Round of 32).
Venue: St. Petersburg, Russia.
Category: WTA 500.
Surface: Indoor Hardcourt.
Prize money: $703,580.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Elena Rybakina vs Varvara Gracheva preview
Third seed Elena Rybakina will open her campaign against Russian qualifier Varvara Gracheva at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy on Wednesday.
The 12th-ranked Kazakh made a fabulous start to the season, finishing as the runner-up to World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty in Adelaide. However, a thigh injury halted her progress in Sydney and the Australian Open, robbing the 22-year-old of a chance to build on her fine start.
Having regained full fitness, the youngster will now look to produce some of her best tennis in St. Petersburg, where she made the final in 2020.
21-year-old Varvara Gracheva, meanwhile, has been steadily moving up the rankings in recent times. The young Russian made the semifinals in Chicago and the quarterfinals in Astana last year, which propelled her ranking to a career-high 77th in September.
Gracheva ended the 2021 season with a run to the last four in the Open BLS de Limoges, a WTA 125 tournament. However, she hasn't had a great start to 2022.
Gracheva suffered a first-round exit in both the Melbourne Summer Set 2 and the Australian Open. She arrived in St. Petersburg with the intention of bouncing back and has done well so far by winning three rounds in qualifying.
But the World No. 81 will face her sternest challenge yet of the week when she takes on Rybakina in the first round of the main draw.
Elena Rybakina vs Varvara Gracheva head-to-head
Rybakina and Gracheva have never crossed paths on the tour before, so their head-to-head is currently tied at 0-0.
Elena Rybakina vs Varvara Gracheva prediction
Varvara Gracheva has been solid in the qualifying rounds, winning all three of her matches in straight sets. That would give her the confidence and energy needed to battle it out with Elena Rybakina.
Gracheva will look to put up an aggressive display right from the start to keep Rybakina on the backfoot. The Kazakh is returning to action after a break and could take a few games to find her rhythm. But once she does, the World No. 12 will certainly be dangerous..
The fast indoor conditions in St. Petersburg perfectly suit Rybakina, who likes to take the ball early and hit flat off both wings. The 22-year-old also has a good serve with which she would like to win some free points.
It is imperative for Gracheva to serve well and keep her errors to a minimum if she wants to put Rybakina in a spot of bother. But it could be challenging for her to do it consistently, given the gulf in their experience.
Once the Kazakh starts dictating play, the match could be over in a flash.
Prediction: Elena Rybakina to win in straight sets.
