Ekaterina Alexandrova vs Elina Svitolina: Will game practice win out over experience?

In the round of 16 of the women’s tournament in Berlin, Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova will face Elina Svitolina, Ukraine’s No. 1 and world No. 6. The girls have met each other three times on the tour, while Alexandrova has won just one set against Elina.

Ekaterina has been quite a prominent athlet of the clay part of the season. The Russian has taken part in Stuttgart, Madrid, Rome, Strasbourg and at Roland Garros. In Stuttgart, Rome and Strasbourg Ekaterina reached the third round, and at Roland Garros, she beat Venus Williams but lost in the second round to Barbora Krejcikova, who eventually won the Grand Slam Tournament. Alexandrova was unlucky with the draw. Alexandrova has already played one match in Berlin, beating compatriot Kalinskaya 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and four minutes in two sets.

Alexandrova and Svitolina could have faced each other in the third round of Roland Garros if Ekaterina had beaten Krejcikova in the second round. But Alexandrova lost to Barbora, and already in the third round, Krejcikova lost to Svitolina in two sets as well. Before facing the Czech, the Ukrainian had knocked out Babel and Li from the Roland Garros draw. Svitolina has played in almost all the tournaments of the clay part of the season in which Alexandrova has also participated. Only in Strasbourg, just before the Roland Garros, the Ukrainian did not play. For a sixth-ranked player, Elina had a slightly below-average performance on the clay court this season: a semifinal in Stuttgart, a quarterfinal in beloved Rome and an elimination from the Madrid tournament after the first match against Teichmann. It should be noted that for Elina, the upcoming meeting against Alexandrova will be the first on grass.

Svitolina has a tangible advantage over Alexandrova in head-to-head encounters. However, the Russian and Ukrainian have not yet played on grass. Let’s not forget that Svitolina does not have a single title on grass, just like Alexandrova. Anyway, Alexandrova has an advantage in game practice, as Ekaterina has already played a single game on grass. In this match, we suggest the following options: W1 for 2.06, Total Over 21.5 for 1.85.