Italian Open 2024: Maria Sakkari vs Victoria Azarenka; Preview, Head-to-Head, Prediction

The Italian Open has reached the round of 16 and is ready to give us one of the biggest matches of the tournament. Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sakkari will trade blows as they aim to show a good performance on clay. Azarenka’s best run this season came in the Miami Open when she ran to the semifinal. However, she is yet to show a good form on clay. Sakkari is in a similar boat as Azarenka, as the Indian Wells Masters showed her best run in 2024, as she entered the finals. She is showing a good hold on clay with a semifinal run in the Charleston Open.

Maria Sakkari vs Victoria Azarenka: Preview

Maria Sakkari has beaten Varvara Gracheva 6-2, 6-2 and Anhelina Kalinina 7-6, 6-0 in the Italian Open so far. She has hit 6 aces and 6 double faults against her opponents. She accomplished an 86% win on the first serve and 38% on the second serve against Kalinina. The World No. 8 took 4 break points and had her serve broken once after 6 chances, showing she had the rhythm over Kalinina. Sakkari also had a good hold of Kalinina’s serve as she managed 33 receiving points out of the 77 points she won in the match. 

One the other hand, Victoria Azarenka defeated Magda Linette 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 and Mayar Sherif 6-2, 6-7, 6-3 in Rome. She has hit 1 ace and 16 double faults, which doesn’t bode well for her service game. She won 58% of points on her first serve and 42% on the second serve against Sherif. Azarenka won an astounding 10 out of 17 break points but also gave away 7 out of 10 break points. She won 58 receiving points out of 114 total. Her performance against both players is a mixed bag.

Sakkari vs Azarenka: Head-to-Head

Maria Sakkari and Victoria Azarenka have played against each other twice on the WTA Tour. Their first match took place in the now-cancelled Ostrava Open semifinal in 2020. Azarenka was the victor of the bout, 6-1, 6-3. They then met one year later in the round of 16 of the Canadian Open, where Azarenka would once again be the victor, but this time with some difficulty as Sakkari pushed her to three sets, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6.  

Prediction: Sakkari to move past Azarenka and into the quarterfinals

Both have struggles in the clay court swing, but Sakkari has found it a breeze to move past her opponents. On the other hand, Azarenka had to give intense fights to both of her opponents in the first two matches. While Sakkari’s serve is not usually the weapon it is, her serve is far better than Azarenka’s, who has also had difficulty with convincing returns. 

With Azarenka’s serve faltering against both opponents and Sakkari’s return out of the world at the moment, Azarenka does not stand much of a chance against her Greek opponent. Azarenka can give some competition to Sakkari, as she has shown she can come back after losing sets. However, Victoria Azarenka’s last victory against a top-10 ranked opponent on clay came in 2020. This long gap puts Maria Sakkari in a strong position to claim her first win over the former World No. 1.