The third seed Agnieszka Radwanska will play Monica Niculescu in the third round of the Premier 5 level Qatar Total Open, played on hard courts in Doha.

Recent Results

Since the beginning of the Asian swing last September, Radwanska has been on fire. The Pole has won four tournaments since then, including her biggest to date at the WTA Finals in Singapore and Shenzhen at the beginning of this year. As expected, Radwanska also made the semifinals of the Australian Open before bowing out to world number one Serena Williams.

Having withdrew from Dubai due to a left leg injury, the 26-year-old benefited from a first round bye here before handling both her opponent, Kateryna Bondarenko and the wind to progress 6-4, 6-4. Radwanska will be looking to go much further at this event, given that she has reached the semifinals on four previous occasions in 2008, 2012, 2013 and 2014. In Doha last year, Radwanska was beaten in a three set quarter final by Venus Williams.

Niculescu finds herself beyond the second round of an event for the first time this year, having lost at that stage four times to date. The Romanian's best win of the year came during the Fed Cup against the then ranked number nine Petra Kvitova, whom she defeated in straight sets.

It hasn't been easy for the 28-year-old this week either as she's had to beat former Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki and former world number one Jelena Jankovic, eventually closing the Serb out 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 having originally led 5-2 in the decider. By virtue of this win, she's into the third round here for the third time, at best reaching the quarterfinals back in 2012 before losing to Samantha Stosur.

Niculescu and her infamous sliced forehand. Source: Getty Images/Jack Thomas

Past Experience

A former Wimbledon finalist and world number two in 2012, Radwanska is one of the most consistent players on the tour. A winner of 18 career WTA titles, the current world number three handles the pressure of performing on a weekly basis in a way that only Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova can replicate, rarely losing before the quarter finals or to much lower ranked players when she's confident.

Though ranked down at number 37 currently, Niculescu has been as high as 28 back in 2012 and has won two WTA titles. Though she hasn't come close to experiencing the sort of success of her opponent, she has beaten a number of highly ranked players, including the likes of two-time Grand Slam champion Li Na before her opponent's home crowd in Beijing 2011; the year the Chinese player had won the French Open.

Head-to-Head

The two are tied at 1-1 in their head-to-head, Niculescu winning their last meeting in the semi finals at Nottingham 2015. In a strange, fluctuating match, Niculescu recovered to win 5-7, 6-4, 6-0. It's worth pointing out that Radwanska was struggling for confidence at the time having fallen outside of the world's top ten. Radwanska's solitary victory came way back in Linz 2009 and is therefore of little consequence to the outcome of the upcoming match.

The match will be a battle of attrition, comprised of exhausting, long rallies and plenty of all court tennis. Radwanska must look to use her recently improved first serve and forehand to play as aggressively as possible, moving forward to attack the net and utilise her volleying skills. She must be careful not to become lulled into Niculescu's extraordinary game of drop shots and slices or else she could be in trouble.

Niculescu is renowned for being one of the most unorthodox players on the circuit due to her at times double handed but mostly sliced forehand. The Romanian looks to destroy any rhythm her opponent has before injecting sudden and unpredictable pace into her shots and is a doughty fighter.

For Radwanska, it could be a long day at the office to certainly try her patience. Providing that she steps up and attacks the shorter balls and doesn't become too passive given the general lack of pace she's given, she should progress considering she's rarely beaten at her own game.

Prediction: Radwanska in three sets

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Jake Fletcher
Tennis enthusiast!