Karolina Pliskova vs Elena Rybakina Prediction & Betting Tips - WTA Rome

Prediction published on 10/05/2026, 22:11  by Daniel Ngulu | Modified on 11/05/2026 at 16:00 in Tennis Predictions

Karolina Pliskova is through to the fourth round at the Italian Open, where she will take on second seed Elena Rybakina. Their fifth career meeting comes two seasons after the last and our prediction is for Rybakina winning the match.

Pliskova defeated Laura Siegemund in straight sets in the last round. It was her first 2-0 win of the week after her opening two fixtures went the full distance. A former world number one, Pliskova lost in the Rome final five seasons ago.

This year’s event is the first time since that run that she has qualified for the second week of competition. The 34-year-old has won 13 of 18 matches and is 9-2 on clay. Advancing to this round has catapulted her 22 places to 108th in the live ranking.

Elena Rybakina has won all four previous times that she has been paired up against Pliskova. All duels were on hard courts, with the most recent being in 2024.

As a clay court specialist and former Rome champion, the world number two will be confident of another victory. Rybakina, who has yet to lose a set in this year’s event, defeated Alexandra Eala in the last round.

That win saw her eclipse her shock third-round exit last season as the defending champion. Rybakina has been one of the top performers this season and, with 29 wins, has won two titles, including the Australian Open.