Two-time champion Serena Williams survived a major scare on Thursday, edging past unheralded Anna-Lena Friedsam to advance to the third round of the 2015 French Open. There she will meet the ever-dangerous Victoria Azarenka who booked a place in the round-of-32 with a straight-sets win over Lucie Hradecka.
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 previews of Murray vs. Kyrgios and Nadal vs. Kuznetsov.
[sc:TennisArticles ]Serena Williams vs. Victoria Azarenka Betting Preview
Where: Roland Garros, Paris
When: Saturday, May 30, 4:00 AM ET
Line: Serena Williams (-280) vs. Victoria Azarenka (+210) – view all French Open lines
Betting on Serena Williams
Serena Williams came perilously close to exiting in the second round of the French Open for the second consecutive year, narrowly beating Anna-Lena Friedsam on Court Suzanne Lenglen on Thursday. Williams came back from a set down to prevail 5-7, 6-3, 6-3, against the World No. 105.
[sc:Other240banner ]It was a sluggish performance from Williams, who dropped a set to a player outside the top 100 for the first time in three years. Williams, who’s nursing a sore right elbow, committed eight double faults (five in the first set) against Friedsam and made a whopping 52 unforced errors, 21 of which came in the opening set.
Up next for Williams is a third-round clash with Victoria Azarenka. The 33-year-old has fared extremely well in her past meetings with Azarenka, winning 15 of their previous 18 matches. In their last meeting in Madrid earlier this month, Williams edged past Azarenka in three tough sets, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6.
For Williams to continue her dominance against Azarenka, she needs to improve on her first serve percentage. She converted just 63% of her first serves in her opening two matches against Andrea Hlavackova and Friedsam. That will be trouble against Azarenka who converted six of her eight break point opportunities against Lucie Hradecka in the second round.
Williams is 8-2 in her last 10 matches.
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Betting on Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka barged into the third round of the 2015 French Open with an emphatic 6-2, 6-3 win over Lucie Hradecka. It was a fantastic performance from Azarenka who needed just 62 minutes to record the straight-sets victory.
Azarenka has been in fine form in this competition, dropping a total of just eight games in her first two matches. Things are bound to get tougher, though, for the 25-year-old as standing in her way in the round of 32 is the 19-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.
But Azarenka will not be fazed by that matchup one bit. Although she is 3-15 lifetime against Williams, Azarenka has done well against Serena recently, winning two of their last six matches. She will also take heart in the fact that she pushed Williams to the brink in their last meeting on clay at Madrid earlier this month. Williams needed two tie-breaker wins in that match to seal the victory.
For Azarenka to pull off the upset, she needs to continue her highly-efficient play. She has recorded a total of just 17 unforced errors in her first two matches here. That’s a far cry from Williams who has committed an astounding 69 unforced errors in the first two rounds. If that remains the case this coming Saturday, a major shock is surely in the cards in the women’s draw.
Azarenka is 8-2 in her last 10 matches.
Writer’s Prediction
Azarenka (+210) stuns Williams in three nail-biting sets.
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