Damien Kayat previews selected round of 16 matches of the Mubadala Citi Open as Liudmila Samsonova faces Sorana Cirstea and Caroline Garcia takes on Marta Kostyuk on the 2nd of August 2023.
2023 WTA Tour
WTA 500
Mubadala Citi Open
William H.G. Fitzgerald Tennis Centre (Outdoor Hardcourt)
Selected Round of 16 Matches – 2nd – 3rd August
August 2
Liudmila Samsonova 57/100 | Sorana Cirstea 27/20
24-year-old Russian Liudmila Samsonova has endured a pretty dismal campaign. To put it into context- Samsonova closed 2022 with an impressive 30-17 win-loss record. The big-serving Russian currently owns a 17-16 record for the year.
Her season has been in veritable freefall since she lost to Belinda Bencic in the Abu Dhabi final. But perhaps this tournament will ignite something in the four-time WTA Tour winner. Lest we forget, she is the defending champion this week and will be looking to protect some serious ranking point.
And she started her title defence brilliantly, easily dispatching American Danielle Collins in straight-sets. It was the type of dominant, serve-orientated performance that was a staple for the Russian last season.
That win stretched her current Washington win-streak to six matches and showcased the value of pure power on these brisk surfaces.
World No.37 Sorna Cirstea will be looking to pick up where she left off on hardcourts earlier this year. The Romanian was absolutely sensational during the ‘Sunshine Double’, reaching the quarterfinals at Indian Wells and the semi-finals in Miami.
During that fortnight she beat the likes of Keys, Garcia (twice), Vondrousova, Muchova and Sabalenka. That semi-final run in Miami marked the first time since 2013 that she reached the last four of a WTA 1000 event. The aggressive baseliner just opened up her shoulders and really went for her shots during that fertile little period.
She endured a torrid clay-court swing while her grass-court campaign ended in a decent 3rd round showing at Wimbledon. She hasn’t played since SW19 and must have been feeling pretty rusty going into her first-round match with plucky Czech operator Petra Martic.
But the Romanian embraced the return to hardcourts and eased past the Czech in a straight-sets.
Verdict: Samsonova to win in straight-sets at 13/10
This will be the first career meeting between these two. You could probably make a decent argument for either side of this encounter. I just think the quicker surfaces will suit the younger, more aggressive Russian. Cirstea’s hardcourt success from earlier this season came on the notoriously slow ‘Sunshine Double’ hardcourts.
These courts are brisk and really give value to the Russian’s brutal groundstrokes. I also expect Samsonova’s serve to prove decisive in her quest to extend her Washington winning streak to seven matches.
August 3
Caroline Garcia 59/100 | Marta Kostyuk 13/10
2nd seed Caroline Garcia will be looking to emulate the amazing form that catapulted her up the rankings during last year’s North American hardcourt swing. She won the Cincinnati Open and would ultimately triumph in the WTA Finals to cap an excellent comeback campaign.
This season has been a bit more hit-and-miss for the big-hitting Frenchwoman. She is currently 29-15 for the season. But that win-loss ratio is a bit skewed by two finals in fairly weak WTA 250 events (Lyon and Monterrey). She has lost quite a few matches to lower-ranked opponents in a year of inconsistency.
She enjoyed a decent grass-court campaign that saw her reach quarterfinals in Berlin and Eastbourne. She will look to dominate on serve and use her characteristically aggressive returning game to suffocate opponents on these quick surfaces.
Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk is currently enjoying a breakthrough season that has taken her to the cusp of breaking into the world’s top 30. She won her maiden WTA Tour title at the inaugural ATX Open (highlighting her ability on outdoor American hardcourts).
She also won the doubles’ title in Birmingham alongside Barbora Krejcikova. And she is fresh off a creditable run to the 3rd round of the Wimbledon Championships (she lost to Grand Slam specialist Madison Keys in the final 32). She is coming off a marathon three-set victory against former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu.
The Ukrainian struggled on serve throughout the match but she forced the Canadian into making far too many unforced errors. She is going to need that type of dogged determination against the powerful Garcia.
Verdict: Garcia to win in three sets at 32/10
The Frenchwoman leads the head-to-head rivalry 2-0, last beating Kostyuk in the 2019 Strasbourg quarterfinal. Kostyuk is an arch-competitor who has shown a penchant for this type of surface this year.
But I think she will ultimately lose this match on her own delivery. Garcia is known for her ultra-aggressive returning style, often stepping well inside the service line (even on her opponent’s first delivery).
Kostyuk looked vulnerable on serve against Andreescu. Still, the Ukrainian is a doughty competitor and I can see her nicking a set.
