Paula Badosa (L) and Veronika Kudermetova
Match details
Fixture: (2) Paula Badosa vs Veronika Kudermetova
Tournament: Madrid Open 2022
Round: First round (Round of 64)
Venue: Madrid, Spain
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Clay
Prize money: $6,575,560
Live telecast: USA – Tennis Channel | UK – Amazon Prime Video
Paula Badosa vs Veronika Kudermetova preview
Badosa at the 2022 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart
World No. 2 Paula Badosa will take on Veronika Kudermetova in the first round of the 2022 Madrid Open on Thursday.
Badosa commenced her clay season at the Charleston Open a few weeks ago. She started off with an easy win against Anna Bondar, but had to dig deep to come through against Claire Liu in three sets. She lost to eventual champion Belinda Bencic in the quarterfinals.
Badosa’s next tournament was the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart. After a first-round bye, she defeated Elena Rybakina in three sets. The Spaniard was once again pushed to three sets by Ons Jabeur in the quarterfinals, but prevailed 7-6(9), 1-6, 6-3. She went down to Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals in straight sets.
Last year’s Madrid Open marked a breakthrough for Badosa, as it was the first time she had reached the semifinals of a WTA 1000 event. She’ll be aiming to better her previous result this time around.
Veronika Kudermetova at the 2022 Miami Open
Veronika Kudermetova was supposed to start her clay season at the Charleston Open, but withdrew from the tournament due to illness. It was a disappointment for the 25-year-old as she was the defending champion after winning her maiden singles title in Charleston last year.
Kudermetova returned to action at the Istanbul Cup and made the final after knocking out defending champion Sorana Cirstea in straight sets. She was the favorite to win the title, but lost 6-3, 6-1 to compatriot Anastasia Potapova. She has now lost in three finals this season.
Paula Badosa vs Veronika Kudermetova head-to-head
Kudermetova leads Badosa 3-1 in the head-to-head. But the Spaniard won their most recent encounter in straight sets at the 2022 Indian Wells Open.
Paula Badosa vs Veronika Kudermetova odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Paula Badosa vs Veronika Kudermetova prediction
Paula Badosa at the 2022 Miami Open
Both Bodosa and Kudermetova have played extremely well this year, but the World No. 2’s results have been far more consistent than the Russian’s. Both players performed very well on clay last season and have posted strong results on the surface this year as well.
Kudermetova’s serve was completely ripped apart in the Istanbul final; she won a measely 36% of her first serve points. These numbers simply will not cut it against an opponent of Badosa’s caliber. The Spaniard has had her issues on serve as well, coughing up seven double faults in her previous match.
The conditions in Madrid generally take some time to get used to, so players might find it difficult to get going right from the start. Kudermetova will have to rein in her unforced errors if she’s to have a shot at winning.
Badosa is a better mover on clay, which could tilt things in her favor. While both players hit their groundstrokes with considerable power, the Spaniard has added other dimensions to her game over the past few seasons.
Badosa is a highly intelligent player and if she has overcome her fatigue from last week, she should have no problem ousting Kudermetova.
Pick: Paula Badosa to win in straight sets.
