Thailand Open 2023: Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick

Fixture: (1) Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova

Tournament:Thailand Open 2023.

Round: Second round (Round of 16).

Venue: True Arena Hua Hin, Thailand.

Date: February 2, 2023.

Surface: Outdoor Hardcourt.

Prize money: $259,303.

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.

Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova preview

Top seed Bianca Andreescu will face Anastasia Zakharova in the second round of the Lyon Open.

Andreescu started the 2023 season at the Adelaide International 1 with a 0-6, 7-6(3), 6-1 win over Garbine Muguruza. She then suffered a 6-4, 6-0 second-round defeat to Veronika Kudermetova.

The Canadian competed at the Australian Open and reached the second round after beating 25th seed Marie Bouzkova 6-2, 6-4. However, she lost 2-6, 7-6(7), and 6-4 to Cristina Bucsa. Andreescu then entered the Thailand Open as the top seed and booked her place in the second round, following a 6-3, 6-4 win over Harriet Dart.

Anastasia Zakharova, on the other hand, started the 2023 season in the qualifiers of the Australian Open but lost her opening match 6-3, 7-5 against Lucrezia Stefanini.

The Russian then competed at the Thailand Open and faced Anna Karolina Schmeidlova. The Slovak won the opening set 6-3 and was serving for the second set. However, Zakharova bounced back and won the set 7-5 before taking the third 6-3 to book her place in the second round of the tournament.

Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova head-to-head

The head-to-head between the two players is 0-0 as they haven't locked horns before.

Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova odds

All odds are sourced from BETMGM.

Bianca Andreescu vs Anastasia Zakharova prediction

Andreescu will enter the match as the favorite to win and will be eager to book her place in the quarter-finals of the Thailand Open.

The Canadian was very strong on her first serve in her previous match against Harriet Dart, winning 26 out of 43. However, her second serve wasn't as good as she won only seven out of 15 points.

Andreescu will look to make the most out of her variety and will be eager to mix her effective groundstrokes with slices and drop shots.

Zakharova, meanwhile, was strong on her first serve in her opening-round match against Anna Karolina Schmeidlova, serving four aces and winning 42 out of 65 points. The Russian also served six aces and will have to be careful not to serve as many against Andreescu.

The Canadian is the superior player out of the two and should be able to have only a little trouble beating Zakharova and reaching the quarter-finals.

Pick: Andreescu to win in straight sets.