Brisbane International 2024: Jelena Ostapenko vs Karolina Pliskova preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (3) Jelena Ostapenko vs (16) Karolina Pliskova
Date: January 4, 2024
Tournament: Brisbane International 2024
Round: Round of 16
Venue: Queensland Tennis Centre, Brisbane, Australia
Category: WTA 500
Surface: Outdoor hard
Prize money: $1,736,763
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Sky Sports
Jelena Ostapenko vs Karolina Pliskova preview
Third seed Jelena Ostapenko will lock horns with two-time defending champion Karolina Pliskova on Thursday for a place in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Brisbane International.
Ostapenko, a former French Open champion, has arrived Down Under on the back of an inconsistent season that included her sixth career title win at Birmingham. Other than that, she achieved personal milestones by reaching the quarterfinals of both the Australian Open and the US Open for the very first time in her career.
The Latvian also had a notable result on clay by reaching the last four at the Italian Open, her first semifinal on the surface since winning the 2017 Roland Garros title.
During the fall, the world No. 12 made it to the last eight of the China Open, a WTA 1000 event. Her season, however, ended with two losses in her last three matches.
Ostapenko will be eager to draw inspiration from her last year's sizzling run at Melbourne Park and make a statement once again in Australia. She certainly seemed to be doing so as she thrashed the dangerous Camila Giorgi 6-1, 6-4 on Wednesday to begin her Brisbane campaign on a thunderous note.
Former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, meanwhile, has been struggling for form for some time now. Currently placed at the 39th rung, the Czech comes into this tournament having tasted glory here in 2017, 2019 and 2020.
Last year, the former US Open runner-up showed glimpses of her champion self with a dash to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. However, she failed to build on it, making the last eight just twice more in 2023 at Dubai and Stuttgart.
The 31-year-old had a tricky draw this time to get her Brisbane title defense underway as she came up against the returning Naomi Osaka in her first match. In a thrilling battle between two former world No. 1s on Wednesday, the Czech lost the first set but bounced back to secure a narrow 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4 victory.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Karolina Pliskova head-to-head
Ostapenko and Karolina Pliskova have a close rivalry, as evident from their 5-5 head-to-head record. They met twice last year, at Adelaide 1 and Cincinnati, with Ostapenko coming out victorious on both occasions.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Karolina Pliskova odds
(Odds sourced by oddschecker)
Jelena Ostapenko vs Karolina Pliskova prediction
With the two having bagged five wins each, another enthralling tussle is on the cards in Brisbane.
Although the surface and conditions at this tournament suit the lanky Czech player, her once-potent serve seems to have lost its edge now. Even against Osaka, she coughed up 11 double faults to neutralize the advantage she had with her 16 aces.
Ostapenko, on the other hand, had a far better serving display in her match against Giorgi with nine aces and four double faults. Her first-strike tennis was right on the money, claiming 89 percent of the first-serve points.
Ground-game wise, Ostapenko has an edge over Pliskova whose on-court movement isn't one of the best. The Latvian is one of the hardest hitters on the tour and could be unstoppable when she is on song.
Besides, the former French Open winner has had Pliskova's number the last two times they met. If the defending champion's serve lets her down, the rest of her game could likely crumble down as well.
Pick: Jelena Ostapenko to win in straight sets