Tennis

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa Prediction and Odds: Australian Open

In a week that has seen almost as many seeds fall out of the Australian Open as there are koalas in Australia, there is one constant in tennis: Iga Swiatek. The 21-year-old Pole has motored through her first two matches for the loss of just 14 games, and will fancy spending an equally brief amount of time on court against Cristina Bucsa in their third round encounter on Friday.

Can the 25-year-old Spaniard halt the unstoppable force of women’s tennis that is Swiatek? We preview the match and offer our expert picks ahead of the first ball being served.

These odds from Ladbrokes were correct at the time of writing.

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa – Match Prediction

Here are our tennis predictions for this third round match between Iga Swiatek and Cristina Bucsa.

Under 17.5 Games @ 4/5 (1.80)

Over the past year, Iga Swiatek has been a notoriously ruthless front runner. Not only has she won more matches than any other woman, but here manner of victory has been particularly brutal, often dispatching her opponents in less than an hour.

Swiatek’s first two matches have been straight forward, but she’s leaked a few more games than usual, averaging seven lost games per match. We expect she’ll step things up a gear here against the World No.102, and look for a quick win to get into the second week of the Australian Open.

Swiatek to Win Match and First Set 6-0 @ 7/1 (8.00)

Last year, while she was busy terrorising women’s tennis with her 37 match winning streak that took her to World No.1, Swiatek did something that only Serena Williams has done before. She won 22 sets 6-0.

This year, Swiatek has played 12 sets already, without serving up a bagel. The time is fast approaching, and we say it will be in the first set against Cristina Bucsa. Bucsa has been a classically slow starter in her first two matches in the Australian Open 2023, dropping both of her opening sets 6-2. On the biggest stage of her life, against the World No.1, this is a recipe for a quick 6-0.

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa Preview

Here’s a look at the background of each of these players ahead of their third round encounter on Friday.

Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek has been the hottest thing in women’s tennis the past 12 months, stepping into the void left by Ash Barty when she retired this time last year. After going on a 37-match winning streak, the World No.1 claimed seven titles total in 2022, including two of the four Grand Slams. This year, she’s been uncharacteristically slow out of the blocks, losing in straight sets to Jessica Pegula at the United Cup last week.

Cristina Bucsa

Bucsa is playing her best tennis currently, having just cracked the world’s Top 100 in early 2023. The Spaniard has largely been playing ITF tournaments, but did make the second round of the US Open last year, her deepest run in a Grand Slam.

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa Head to Head

This will be the first meeting between the two women.

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa Match Details

Iga Swiatek vs Cristina Bucsa

  • When will the match start? The match will start at approximately 4:00 AM GMT on the 20th of January.
  • On which court will the match be played? The match will be played on Margaret Court Arena.
  • Where to watch AO 2023 in UK? You can watch Australian Open on Eurosport broadcast and online, or stream it on Discovery.


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