Damien Kayat previews the clashes between Karolina Pliskova and Dominika Cibulkova as well as Kristina Mlandenovic and Naomi Osaka at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Karolina Pliskova 3/10 | Dominika Cibulkova 9/4
Karolina Pliskova returns to the court following her cancellation in Doha last week. This will of course be her first appearance since that heart-breaking semi-final defeat to Naomi Osaka in Melbourne. Pliskova- a former World Number One- is a player whose progress has really gone under the radar over the last year. The emergence of Naomi Osaka and Simona Halep’s maiden Grand Slam title were probably more compelling narratives. But the Czech star has been extremely consistent over the last year. The 2016 US Open finalist won the Stuttgart and Pan Pacific Open events last season. She also opened the year in spectacular fashion by claiming the Brisbane crown. She reached the quarterfinals in a slew of major events and remains an exceptionally dangerous player in the women’s game. She does enjoy these conditions, reaching the final here in 2015.
Dominika Cibulkova came through a tough three-setter against Arruabarrena to set up this clash. The 29-year-old Slovakian is perhaps one of the most consistently underrated players of her era. The 2014 Aussie Open finalist also claimed the WTA Tour Finals title in 2016. The powerful Slovakian has always possessed the capacity to beat any top player on their day. This was evident when she conquered Wimbledon Champion Angelique Kerber in last year’s US Open. She enjoyed quite a rollercoaster campaign last year. She reached slightly lower profile finals in Hungary and Strasbourg prior to an excellent run to the quarter-finals in Wimbledon. She had a solid end to the season, with back-to-back quarter-finals at Wuhan and China. Cibulkova is a seasoned spoiler who very few players will want to face in the early stages of an event.
This should make for a fascinating encounter, as both Pliskova and Cibulkova belong to that almost extinct group of players who tend to frequent the net. Pliskova may be the favourite here, but it is Cibulkova who actually leads their head-to-head. She leads 3-1, with Pliskova claiming their last encounter in 2017. I have to say that Cibulkova makes for an extremely enticing outsider here at 9/4.
Naomi Osaka 1/10 | Kristina Mlandenovic 9/2
It’s been a rather turbulent six months for the newly minted World Number One: Naomi Osaka. Yes, it all really started for Osaka at last year’s Indian Wells event. That shock title really announced her amazing potential. But outside of that amazing performance, Osaka was fairly muted leading up to Flushing Meadows. That controversial victory over Serena Williams thrust Osaka into the spotlight in a way she wouldn’t have experienced before. She started the year with a semi-final in Brisbane prior to her herculean exploits in Melbourne. She claimed her second consecutive Grand Slam in amazing fashion, proving all the lingering doubters wrong. It then came as a seismic shock that she split from her coach Sascha Bajin. He helped her move from 68 to number 1 in the space of a year. So it will be interesting to see how Osaka is able to zone in post-Bajin.
25-year-old Frenchwoman Kristina Mlandenovic has clearly focused more on doubles over the past few seasons. It’s easy to forget that she did once reach the top ten rankings in singles. Mladenovic won the 2017 Hopman Cup with France, which led to a solid period in singles, culminating in the 2017 St Petersburg Ladies Trophy title. She would once again reach the final of that event in 2018, only to lose to Petra Kvitova. Mladenovic has two Grand Slam doubles titles to her name and hasn’t been able to come close to ever replicating that single’s success. At over six-feet tall, Maldenovic is a powerful server who always stands a chance should her first serve operate. Her second serve is appreciatively slower and can become a real liability.
This will be the second meeting between the two, with Osaka unsurprisingly holding the advantage. Perhaps more telling is that her victory over Mlandenovic came in this very event last year. Osaka thrashed the then eighth seed Mladenovic in straight sets. So clearly the smart money is on the Japanese starlet. But perhaps there would be some value in Mladenovic pinching a set, particularly in the aftermath of Bajin’s contentious sacking. Osaka to win 2-1 at 3/1.
