🎾 WTA Rome: Peyton Stearns vs Anna Kalinskaya

🎾 WTA Rome: Peyton Stearns vs Anna Kalinskaya – Match Preview

🧠 Form & Context

🇷🇺 Anna Kalinskaya

• Rough start to 2025: Opened the season with five first-round losses in six events, only salvaged by a semifinal run in Singapore.
• Clay comfort building: Quarterfinalist in Charleston and reached R3 in Madrid—her best stretch of results this season.
• Rome regular: Has reached the third round here two years in a row, showing that the Italian clay suits her attacking game style.

🇺🇸 Peyton Stearns

• Momentum builder: Broke through with a Round of 16 appearance in Madrid and looked sharp in her Rome opener, defeating Brancaccio 6-3, 6-2 without facing a breakpoint.
• Power game rising: Her heavy forehand and improved serve are proving effective even on slower surfaces.
• Clay confidence growing: Although this is her WTA 1000 main-draw debut on clay, her recent results indicate growing adaptability and composure.

🔍 Match Breakdown

This is a compelling matchup of attacking styles. Stearns brings raw power and a fast-start mentality, while Kalinskaya is more balanced and able to redirect pace and construct points with patience.

Kalinskaya's prior experience in Rome and ability to remain stable in longer exchanges could give her the edge on slower clay. However, Stearns is coming off her best two-week stretch as a pro and playing with freedom and aggression.

The match may hinge on who handles momentum shifts better—Stearns has shown new resilience in third sets, while Kalinskaya has had lapses under scoreboard pressure.

🔮 Prediction

Prediction: Anna Kalinskaya in 3 sets. Stearns has momentum and firepower, but Kalinskaya’s court sense and Rome track record should help her edge a tightly contested battle.