French Open 2022: Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick | Roland Garros
Match Details
Fixture: (13) Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet
Tournament: French Open 2022
Date: 26 May 2022
Round: Second round (Round of 64)
Venue: Paris, France
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Outdoor clay
Prize money: €21,256,800
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel, NBC Sports and Peacock TV | Canada - TSN | UK - Eurosport | India - Sony Ten.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet preview
Jelena Ostapenko, the 2017 Roland Garros champion, will square off against home favorite Alize Cornet in the second round of the 2022 French Open on Thursday.
Ostapenko arrived in Paris with concerns over her form as she was on a five-match losing streak. Moreover, she had made it past the first round of the French Open just twice in her career. Hence, another opening-round loss wouldn't have been surprising.
Ostapenko took on Lucia Bronzetti in the first round. The opening set was dominated by the Latvian as she needed just 24 minutes to win it 6-1. The former French Open champion continued to steamroll her opponent, racing to a 3-0 lead in the second.
But Ostapenko committed a flurry of errors before losing serve for the first time in the match. Fortunately for her, it was only a minor stumble as she went on to win 6-1, 6-4 to end her losing skid.
Level 🆙
2017 champion @JelenaOstapenk8 will meet Cornet or Doi in the second round.
#RolandGarros https://t.co/EOorZdFuKu
Alize Cornet also arrived in Paris on a four-match losing streak. Her only wins on clay had come at the Charleston Open against Alycia Parks and Hailey Baptiste.
Le 18ème commence bien 🙂💪
A jeudi pour la suite de l'aventure @rolandgarros 🧡
Good day at the office 🙂💪
See you on thursday for the 2nd round ! #RG2022 https://t.co/bdLGoOaeaa
However, she produced a dominant display to oust Misaki Doi in the first round in Paris. The 32-year-old claimed an early break to lead 4-1 and broke again to claim the set. Cornet upped her level in the second set and dished out a bagel to win the match 6-2, 6-0. A commanding win was exactly what she needed to boost her confidence after going through a rough patch.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet head-to-head
The two have faced off four times previously, with the head-to-head deadlocked at 2-2. Ostapenko won their most recent encounter at the 2021 Luxembourg Open in straight sets in the quarter-finals. This will be their first meeting on clay.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet odds
All odds are sourced from BetMGM.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Alize Cornet prediction
Both players ended their respective losing streaks with first-round victories in Paris and will be eager to get some more wins under their belt. Cornet played one of the best matches of her career against Doi, while Ostapenko also operated at a high level.
Striking 38 winners across two sets is something only Ostapenko is capable of. Her error count was 23, so the ratio was well balanced. However, her serving woes resurfaced once again as she threw in six double faults.
Cornet was simply crushing it on return during her first-round contest and if the Latvian doesn't improve her serve, she could face the brunt of the Frenchwoman's wrath.
Cornet will look to frustrate Ostapenko by engaging her in long rallies. The former Roland Garros champion is known to be impatient and pull the trigger too soon, causing her game to fall apart at times.
But when she's firing, Ostapenko is hard to keep up with. She has the ability to hit winners from any part of the court and is undeterred by unforced errors. Her aggression was rewarded with a French Open title in 2017, and at the very least could win her yet another match in Paris.
Pick: Jelena Ostapenko to win in three sets.