Maria Sakkari and Paula Badosa both prevailed in straight sets on Thursday, and either could secure a spot in the semifinals with a straight-set win on Saturday. This will be their first-career meeting, just as it will be for Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek in Day 4’s other singles matchup. And doubles action will also see a first-time meeting, between what are arguably the two best teams of 2021.
Round robin play will continue in singles and doubles for the first six days of the tournament, with the semifinals to begin on Tuesday, November 16th, and the championship matches on Wednesday, November 17th.
Each day, this preview will analyze the most intriguing matchup, while highlighting the other matches on the schedule. Saturday’s play gets underway at 2:00pm local time
Maria Sakkari (4) vs. Paula Badosa (7) – 2:00pm
Sakkari only has one WTA title in her career, and that was nearly three years ago at a small event in Morocco. And she’s only reached three finals, one of which was this year in Ostrava. So it’s quite remarkable she’s on the verge of a top five debut, a credit to her consistency through the season. But currently, the hottest player on the WTA tour not named Anett Kontaveit is Paula Badosa. The Indian Wells champion is on a seven-match win streak, which includes five top 20 victories. And she’s been so clutch during the past month. In the Indian Wells final, she won both tiebreaks contested against another clutch player, Victoria Azarenka. And on Thursday, she saved six of seven break points against another Belarusian in Sabalenka. Badosa will celebrate her 24th birthday on Monday, and based on her recent form, she may also be celebrating a berth in the semifinals. After four days of play, it may be the two lowest-ranked players who remain undefeated.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Aryna Sabalenka (1) vs. Iga Swiatek (5) – To be blunt, neither of these players performed well in the altitude of Guadalajara on Thursday. Sabalenka struck 31 unforced errors, and lost the last 10 games of the match, while Swiatek looked completely out of sorts for much of her match. Another loss on Saturday could eliminate either competitor from semifinal contention.
Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova (1) vs. Su-Wei Hsieh and Elise Mertens (3) – Both teams won their opening contests in straight sets, setting up what could be the best and most important round robin match in doubles. At the Australian Open this past February, Mertens and then-partner Sabalenka defeated Krejcikova and Siniakova in the championship match.
Alexa Guarachi and Desirae Krawczyk (6) vs. Sharon Fichman and Giuliana Olmos (8) – Both of these partnerships have now lost four of their last five matches.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
