US Open 2021: Karolina Pliskova vs Amanda Anisimova preview, head-to-head & prediction
Match details
Fixture: (4) Karolina Pliskova vs Amanda Anisimova
Date: 2 September 2021
Tournament: US Open 2021
Round: Second round (Round of 64)
Venue: New York, United States
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize money: $40,560,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | UK - BBC TV & Radio | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP
Karolina Pliskova vs Amanda Anisimova preview
Fourth seed Karolina Pliskova takes on America's Amanda Anisimova in the second round of the 2021 US Open on Thursday.
Pliskova is one of the most in-form players on tour at the moment. Despite a slow start to the year, the Czech reached the second Grand Slam final of her career at Wimbledon.
She defeated World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinal at SW19, before bowing out to Ashleigh Barty in three sets in the final.
Pliskova came into New York on the back of a solid American hardcourt series too. The 29-year-old reached the final in Montreal and semifinal in Cincinnati, defeating the likes of Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula along the way.
Anisimova, on the other hand, is in a patchy run of form at the moment. The American has a win-loss record of 14-13 for the year, and has fallen as low as 75th in the WTA rankings. She is yet to make it past the quarterfinal at any event in 2021.
The 20-year-old set up the second-round match against Pliskova with a straight-sets victory over Zarina Diyas on Tuesday.
Karolina Pliskova vs Amanda Anisimova head-to-head
The second-round encounter at the US Open is the fourth match between the two players, and Karolina Pliskova currently leads the head-to-head 3-0 over Amanda Anisimova.
Pliskova, in fact, is yet to drop a set against the American. The Czech defeated Anisimova at Montreal earlier this year, at Wuhan in 2019, and at Indian Wells in 2018.
Karolina Pliskova vs Amanda Anisimova prediction
Given her superior ranking and form, Karolina Pliskova comes into the second round match as the overwhelming favorite.
The Czech's attacking style of play is based around her big serve, which would be a particularly useful weapon on the faster courts in New York this year. She uses her tall frame to hammer down aces regularly, and backs them up with some powerful groundstrokes.
To make an impression in this match, Amanda Anisimova would have to test her opponent's movement and defence. Similar to her opponent, Anisimova is also able to generate a lot of pace from the baseline, and is comfortable on either wing.
The American has, however, struggled to find consistency over the last year or so. If Pliskova can keep her error-count low and find her footing on serve, she should move into the next round comfortably.
Prediction: Karolina Pliskova to win in straight sets.