A Russian against a former Russian!

Samsonova dispatched Ann Li 6-4 6-3 yesterday in two clean sets. Just one break conceded over the whole match, 64% return points won on the opponent’s second serve, 69% of points won on serve. She was never in danger, she dominated the key rallies and finished the match by taking 6 of the last 10 points. The legs are fresh, the serve is solid, and the second-serve return is the weapon that’s going to directly target Potapova’s weakness this morning.

Potapova arrives here after four matches and ten sets played since the qualifiers. The run is spectacular: Begu, Bartůnková in three sets, Galfi in three sets, Muchová yesterday 6-3 6-2, but the Rome stats tell the story of an inconsistent player. Against Bartůnková she hit 8 double faults and saved only 6 break points out of 10. Against Galfi she won 52% of the total points against a player ranked 119th in the world. Against Muchová, her cleanest performance, but against an opponent who was only winning 39% of points on second serve. Samsonova, for her part, wins 64%.