US Open 2021: Petra Kvitova vs Maria Sakkari preview, head-to-head & prediction

Match details

Fixture: (10) Petra Kvitova vs (17) Maria Sakkari

Date: 4 September 2021

Tournament: US Open 2021

Round: Third round (Round of 32)

Venue: New York, United States

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Outdoor hardcourt

Prize money: $40,560,000

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | UK - BBC TV & Radio | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP

Petra Kvitova vs Maria Sakkari preview

Petra Kvitova will take on familiar foe Maria Sakkari in an exciting third-round encounter at the 2021 US Open on Saturday.

Playing on Louis Armstrong Stadium, Kvitova produced a serving masterclass in her second-round match against fellow southpaw Kristyna Pliskova. The 10th seed won 80% of her first-serve points and fired nine aces en route to the 7-6(4), 6-2 victory.

Kvitova, who has made early exits at all the other Grand Slams this year, will now be eyeing a deep run at Flushing Meadows.

Maria Sakkari has cruised through the opening couple of rounds.

Sakkari, on her part, has also notched up a couple of easy-looking wins over quality opponents. She opened her campaign with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Marta Kostyuk, and backed that up with a similar performance against Katerina Siniakova on Thursday.

The Greek did not have the best tune-up to the US Open this year, suffering early exits in both Montreal and Cincinnati. But her matches this week would have given her some much-needed confidence.

Petra Kvitova vs Maria Sakkari head-to-head

Petra Kvitova leads Maria Sakkari in their current head-to-head with a slender 3-2 margin. The Czech needed three sets to close out their most recent meeting, which came on the claycourts of Stuttgart earlier this year.

Petra Kvitova vs Maria Sakkari prediction

Petra Kvitova will look to dictate play using her groundstrokes

Petra Kvitova has looked in complete control of her power-packed game during her two matches this week. She finished both encounters with a positive winner-to-error ratio, and a performance similar to that could prove to be a formidable challenge for Maria Sakkari on Saturday.

Sakkari herself has produced a couple of solid performances so far, but she has not looked the most convincing on serve. The 25-year-old conceded quite a few break points against Kostyuk and struggled to win points when she missed the first serve.

While Sakkari did turn in a marginally-improved performance against Sinakova last night, the problem could again come to the fore against an aggressive returner like Kvitova.

Sakkari is a fierce competitor, and she is unlikely to give her opponent any easy points. But if Kvitova can stay strong behind her serve and continue to strike the ball as cleanly as she has done in her last two matches, she should be able to power past the Greek.

Prediction: Petra Kvitova to win in two tight sets.