The Hopman Cup champion, Australian Daria Gavrilova will play against Lucie Hradecka in the first night session match on the Margaret Court Arena this Monday. This match can get really entertaining and it is really interesting to see who will come out on top.
Their 2016 stories so far...
Gavrilova has not taken part in a single official match in 2016 so far as she played the Hopman Cup in Perth for the first week before withdrawing from Sydney, citing an abdominal injury. However, if one takes into account the Hopman Cup, one can definitely say that the Aussie youngster had a great start of the year as she was the champion in Perth along with Nick Kyrgios. She had some really good matches there with her forehand being solid and her magnificent footwork on display. She beat Elina Svitolina and Sabine Lisicki but she also lost to Heather Watson and Caroline Garcia in really close three-set battles. After withdrawing from Sydney, she went straight to Melbourne. She said to the press that she withdrew from Sydney to take precautions, while she also mentioned that she feels really confident.
On the contrary, Lucie Hradecka has yet to win a single WTA main draw win so far in 2016, failing in the first round of Auckland to Julia Goerges and in the first round of Sydney to Ekaterina Makarova. However, she scored three wins to qualify for the Sydney main draw, defeating Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, Laura Siegemund and Magda Linette. In general, her start in 2016 has not been that great; at least not comparable with her start last year.
Thoughts on their upcoming battle.
Dasha, as Gavrilova is often referred to, is entering as the favourite in this match. She had a couple of good matches in the Hopman Cup, while she has the crowd support with her. However, Lucie is never an opponent that should be underestimated. She has some great weapons, especially her serve and volley as she is a renowned doubles player. The Czech will for sure be the aggressor here. Even though Gavrilova can play some pretty aggressive tennis, she is no match for her opponent's power. Additionally, the Australian has a lot better footwork, variety and in general, she is a more "energetic" player. In terms of the court and the "surroundings", the quick court - as well as the conditions - favor the powerful Czech who has proven that she loves playing in Melbourne, upsetting Ana Ivanovic here last year. By her side, the Hopman Cup champion will have the crowd support and her passion for playing in her home country, as she has had some of her best matches in Australia.
Keys to the match will be first of all Gavrilova's serve. If Daria manages to hold comfortably and in general have a good serve day, she will probably not face much trouble. As Hradecka's serve is powerful, Gavrilova will have the chance to get in front only in her own serve, which if not on a good day, can be exploited by her counterpart. Moreover, the Australian should try to mix things up and try to move Lucie around, punishing her footwork which is admittedly not the best on tour. If Gavrilova manages to serve well and be able to employ her variety on full scale, it will probably be an easy day at the office, though it's not out of context that Hradecka can give her some trouble.
Prediction: Daria Gavrilova d. Lucie Hradecka in 3 sets.