Defending champion Maria Sharapova eased into the third round of the 2015 French Open with a comfortable straight-sets victory over Vitalia Diatchenko. She will look to extend her winning streak to eight matches when she squares off with Samantha Stosur in a mouth-watering round-of-32 clash.
Read on below for a complete preview of this blockbuster matchup. You can also check out the men’s side of the draw with our preview of Federer vs. Dzumhur.
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Maria Sharapova vs. Samantha Stosur Betting Preview
Maria Sharapova’s quest for a second successive French Open triumph is still very much alive after a straightforward 6-3, 6-1 win over Vitalia Diatchenko on Wednesday. It was a solid performance from the world No. 2 who needed just one hour and 21 minutes to oust her Russian compatriot.
[sc:Other240banner ]Sharapova has been superb in the tournament thus far, dropping a total of just 10 games in her first two matches. Key to her strong play has been her highly-efficient attack. She committed just eight unforced errors in the second round as opposed to her opponent’s 26. She also had more winners (24-18) against Diatchenko in this match.
Up next for Sharapova is the ever-dangerous Sam Stosur. The 28-year-old has fared extremely well in her past meetings with Stosur, winning 14 of their 16 previous matches. In their last meeting, Sharapova knocked Stosur out in the fourth round of the 2014 French Open, winning 3-6, 6-4, 6-0.
For Sharapova to continue her dominance against Stosur, she needs to continue her excellent return play. She won 53% of her receiving points against Diatchenko in the second round with Sharapova converting five of her 13 break point chances.
Sharapova is 9-1 in her last 10 matches.
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Betting on Samantha Stosur
Samantha Stosur stormed into the third round of the 2015 French Open with a resounding 6-0, 6-1 win over Amandine Hesse. It was a dominant showing from Stosur who needed just 54 minutes to record the straight-sets victory.
Stosur has been in phenomenal form thus far in the tournament, dropping a total of just five games in her first two matches. Things are bound to get tougher, though, for Stosur as standing in her way in the next round is the red-hot Sharapova. The Russian star has won 22 of her last 23 matches here at Roland Garros.
With that being said, Stosur will fancy her chances of scoring a major upset against Sharapova this coming Friday. She loves playing on clay, reaching the French Open final in 2010 and the semis back in 2009 and 2012. She’s also in a rich vein of form now after starting the season slowly. She has won her last seven matches including the Strasbourg Open last week.
For Stosur to record the giant upset, she needs to continue her strong return play and put pressure on Sharapova’s serve. Stosur won 62% of her receiving points against Hesse with the Australian converting five of her eight break point chances. In this tournament thus far, Stosur has converted 10 of her 18 break point opportunities for an incredible 55.6% success rate.
She will be licking her chops at the prospect of facing a Sharapova serve that was somewhat shaky in the second round. Sharapova put just 60% of her first serves in play against Diatchenko.
Stosur is 8-2 in her last 10 matches.
Writer’s Prediction
Sharapova (-450) edges past Stosur in three tough sets.
