It doesn’t get any better than this. Two of tennis’ most popular stars renew their rivalry on the hard courts of Melbourne as Maria Sharapova and Eugenie Bouchard square off in the quarterfinals of the 2015 Australian Open. Both players recorded contrasting victories Sunday to set up their first meeting since their epic three-set showdown at Roland Garros last year.
Can Sharapova continue her dominance of Bouchard and reach her sixth Australian Open semifinal? Or will Bouchard finally notch her first-ever victory against the five-time grand slam champion?
Read on for a complete preview of this mouth-watering matchup and while you’re at it, you can check out our preview of the quarterfinal match between Australian phenom Nick Kyrgios and British star Andy Murray here.
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Maria Sharapova vs. Eugenie Bouchard Betting Preview
Maria Sharapova blasted her way into the quarterfinals of the 2015 Australian Open with a commanding 6-3, 6-0 victory over Peng Shuai Sunday. Sharapova needed just 75 minutes to dispatch the Chinese star and clinch her seventh quarterfinal appearance in the Aussie Open.
[sc:Other240banner ]Ever since escaping two match points in a tough three-set victory over No. 150-ranked Alexandra Panova in the second round, the second-seeded Russian has been in a class of her own, losing a total of just five games in her last two matches.
She has racked up a total of 49 winners in her previous two outings, hitting 27 of those against the hapless Peng. Sharapova took complete advantage of Peng’s 29 unforced errors which was nearly twice what she had in the entire match (15).
Sharapova was so dominant against Peng that she won the last eight games of the match. The extra rest from the quick match will serve her well ahead of her quarterfinal showdown with Canadian sensation Eugenie Bouchard.
The five-time grand slam winner will fancy her chances against Bouchard as she has yet to lose to the Canadian in three career meetings thus far. Their last meeting came in the semifinals of the French Open last year where Sharapova came back from a set down to win the match in three grueling sets, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.
With that being said, there’s still plenty of room for improvement with regards to Sharapova’s game, particularly her service game. In her fourth-round clash with Peng, Sharapova connected on just 45 percent of her first serves. Fortunately for Sharapova, she won 18 of her 27 second-service points against Peng.
Hitting only 45 percent of your first serves simply won’t be enough agianst a player as talented as Bouchard. It’s paramount that Sharapova gets majority of her first serves in so that she can attack Bouchard right from the get-go and put those easy points on the board.
Although Sharapova and Bouchard have met each other three times already, they have faced each other just once on a hard surface. Sharapova emerged triumphant in that lone clash, trouncing Bouchard in the 2013 Miami Masters in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0.
Eugenie Bouchard survived a major scare Sunday as she edged past Irina-Camelia Begu in three tough sets to reach her second-straight Australian Open quarterfinal. Bouchard bucked a mid-match collapse to pull off a nerve-wracking 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 victory in a match that lasted two hours and six minutes.
That sets her up with another grand slam showdown with Maria Sharapova. If Bouchard is to grab her first-ever victory against the Russian star, she needs to limit her unforced errors that plagued her in her match against Begu.
Bouchard committed a total of 42 unforced errors against Begu which was the main reason behind her stunning second-set meltdown. What made her collapse so shocking was that she seemed to be in perfect control of the match, winning nine of the first 10 games.
Bouchard knows perfectly well the importance of limiting your unforced errors as that proved to be her downfall in her last meeting with Sharapova. In their French Open semifinal clash last year, Bouchard committed a total of 48 unforced errors en route to a tough three-set defeat.
Still, Bouchard left that match with her head unbowed as that was the first time she grabbed a set against one of the best female tennis players in the world. Bouchard alluded to that fact in an interview after her match with Bega saying, “I think I was close. It was just a tough battle. But I think I’ve progressed a lot since then, and I definitely want to keep playing my game no matter what. Really kind of take it to her, go for my shots.”
The key for Bouchard in this match is to attack Sharapova’s service game. If Sharapova struggles with her serve once again, that gives Bouchard the perfect opportunity to pounce on the Russian’s second serve and grab some early break-point chances.
Bouchard has been quite efficient in her break chances in this tournament, converting 24 of 44 break point opportunities for an impressive 54.5 percent clip.
Writer’s Prediction
Bouchard edges past Sharapova in three nail-biting sets.
