WTA Dubai Open: Karolina Pliskova vs Anastasija Sevastova 3/9/2021 Tennis Prediction

Second seeded Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic faces Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia in the Second Round of the 2021 Dubai Open WTA Event. The match is scheduled to be played on Tuesday March 9th, 2021. They have played each other three times throughout their careers with Sevastova leading the head to head series 2-1. 

Will she extend that head to head lead by upsetting the second seed here in Dubai? 

Karolina Pliskova is currently ranked #6 in the world and is a former world number one. She has started the 2021 season poorly, compiling a modest 5-4 record thus far and will be eager to get her season back on track with a strong showing here in Dubai. She has struggled mightily with consistency over the past few years, mixing in tournament wins with early round losses which has been a trend for a while. She is clearly one of the best players in the world when she is focused and in form but it is difficult to tell when that will happen. She possesses a very strong all around game without any weaknesses. Despite her slow start to the year she enters this match as the firm favorite and is one of the top contenders for the title here. 

Anastasija Sevastova is the world number 55 but has been as high as #11 a few seasons ago. Like her opponent she has gotten off to a slow start this year, with one good result being a Quarter-Final showing in Adelaide. While she does not have the weapons that Pliskova does she is a crafty veteran with lots of experience. She also has had some match practice here in Dubai, winning her Opening Round match against Bernarda Pera comfortably while Pliskova had a bye. This coupled with her strong showing in Adelaide last week means that she has built up some momentum which makes her dangerous here. 

Normally I would predict an easy win for Karolina Pliskova but based on her form over the last few months, this will be anything but. Sevastova has been poor this season but is coming off a good week last week and has already played a match here allowing her to become comfortable with the conditions and the court. I think this will be a tough match for Karolina Pliskova but I expect her to come through, likely in three sets.