Linz Open: Sakkari vs Parrizas-Diaz Tennis Prediction & Pick

TennisSection previews the 2023 Linz Open as Maria Sakkari takes on Nuria Parrizas-Diaz in the first round on Tuesday, February 7, 2023.

Will Maria Sakkari put her Australian Open disappointment behind her at the Linz Open? The Greek No. 1 will face stiff competition as she plots to win her first-round match against Nuria Parrizas-Diaz. Who will prevail?

Following Zhu Lin’s maiden WTA title win in Hua Hin, a lot of people are now acknowledging how tough a competitor the Chinese woman is. Lin shocked Maria Sakkari in the third round of the Australian Open last month, extending Sakkari’s woes at Grand Slam level in which she hasn’t reached the second week for a fourth Major in a row. What is even more perplexing is that the Greek has one WTA title on her resume despite spending over a year in the WTA’s top 10. Can she change the latter at this week’s Linz Open?

Nuria Parrizas-Diaz will be Maria Sakkari’s first-round opponent at the Linz Open. The Spaniard is not to be underestimated here, having scored some belting wins at the Australian Open. She knocked out Brazil’s No. 14 seed at the tournament in straight sets and then tamed the power-hitting Anastasia Potapotva routinely. Like Sakkari, her AO campaign ended at the third hurdle, when she lost to Donna Vekic.

Maria Sakkari and Nuria Parrizas-Diaz have not played each other on the WTA Tour. However, on the ITF level, the Spaniard leads the h2h 2-1. By dint of ranking, Sakkari comes in as the favorite. She is an athletically gifted baseliner and I expect her to bounce back at the Linz Open. A routine win is what we will get here.