Azarenka’s aggression to see her past Radwanska at Australian Open
Published:The latest meetings between Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska have tended to be close and things are not expected to be much different when they clash in the quarter finals of the Australian Open.
Both players arrive on the back of dominant victories in the fourth round, with Azarenka dropping just four games against Iveta Benesova and Radwanska doing even better when thumping Julia Goerges 6-1, 6-1.
All of their last three meetings have gone to a deciding third set and of their ten meetings in total, seven have needed over 20 games to find a winner.
It is 5/6 that over 20.5 games are played in the Australian Open, while punters may even want to take a slightly larger risk on the 11/8 that a minimum of 23 games are required to find a semi finalist.
In terms of picking a winner, Azarenka is the favourite in the Australian Open odds at 2/5 and this seems justified that she leads the head-to-head record 7-3.
She certainly holds a major advantage in terms of power and aggression and if her radar is working, Azarenka will definitely prevail.
The biggest factor in the game could prove Radwanska’s first-serve percentage, given that her weak second serve is likely to be pounced upon by Azarenka.
If Radwanska is to triumph then not only will she need to serve well and mix up the speed of rallies, but frustrate Azarenka into pushing too hard and making countless mistakes.
Radwanska made just three unforced Goerges and her ability to keep the ball in play will be vital in wearing down the Belarussian.
If she can get Azarenka frustrated, Radwanska is not without a chance at 2/1 to triumph and the 11/8 that the encounter goes to three sets also seems reasonable value.
