By Ros Satar
- Katie Boulter [WC] def. Clara Burel 7-5 6-3
- Faces Karolina Pliskova for the second time on the grass this season
LONDON, UK – Wildcard Katie Boulter will face last year’s finalist Karolina Pliskova as she bids for a place in the third round for the first time.
[table “ADPDAll” not found /]
Katie Boulter [WC] def. Clara Burel 7-5 6-3
Wildcard Katie Boulter reached the second round for a third straight time after defeating Clara Burel in straight sets, but not without a fight. The Frenchwoman started quickly, jumping out to a 3-0 lead. Boulter regrouped, easing herself back into the match by breaking back and breaking Burel and serving out for the first set.
It was two breaks that made the difference in a closely fought second set, with Boulter striking a blow twice at the end of the set.
She said, after the match:
“I feel like I’ve shown in some of the matches recently some of the stuff that I’m capable of. It’s just doing it day in, day out. For me, that is the toughest challenge. Of course, I’ve got so much to work on in my game. I really feel like I can push on. But I do feel like I can compete with a lot of the best players in the world.”
Katie Boulter [WC] v Karolina Pliskova [6] | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Katie Boulter [WC] v Karolina Pliskova [6] | H2H: First Meeting |
| Wimbledon | London, UK |
| Grass (O) | Prize Money: £78,000 |
| First on Centre Court, at 1:30pm | BBC Sport |
Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2022)
| H2H: | Katie Boulter (WR 118) | Karolina Pliskova (WR7) |
| Tournament Previous Best | R2 (2018, 2021) | Final (2021) |
| 1st Serve Return Points Won % | 34.8 | 14.2 |
| Return Points Won % | 42.7 | 32.5 |
| Break Point Conversion % | 41.8 | 52.6 |
| Break Points Saved % | 58.2 | 72.9 |
| Total Points Won % | 50.7 | 48.1 |
While the British players took every advantage of all the grass court events in the summer, Karolina Pliskova started well enough in Berlin with a run to the quarter-final but crashed out of Estbourne in the first round – at the hands of Boulter
Playing Styles & Prediction
It feels as though the big serving Czech is still trying to find her feet after a freak injury at the gym kept her off the tour for over two months, with her first back-to-back wins only coming in May. Boulter has battled with injury and illness and every time it has seemed as though she is on the way up, something has knocked her back, so it would be good to see her push on – something that is very much her goal, especially given the upcoming match-up:
“Getting my first top-10 win last week showed me that and it proved to me I’m there and thereabouts, I’ve just got to stay fit.
“When I was playing Pliskova last week, it did make a difference to me because I know I can be in those places. Over the past few years, I’ve had a lot of close matches with very, very good players, but I could never quite get over the line. I feel like I now have the belief to be able to do that. Hopefully I can produce that more and more.”
If she can get on those returns from the Czech and stay aggressive she can certainly give Pliskova a run for her money.
Prediction: Pliskova in three sets.
How to Watch/Follow Wimbledon 2022
| TV | Across BBC Channels & Red Button |
| Live Stream | BBC Sport |
| Live Scores | Live Scores from Wimbledon |
 |
|---|
| Follow Britwatch - Sport in General, Brits in Particular! | |
|---|---|
| Soundcloud | |
| YouTube | |
| We may receive compensation for products purchased via affiliate links on this website | |