Ashleigh Barty, Garbine Muguruza, and Elina Svitolina will start their run in Madrid on Thursday, while Naomi Osaka will compete on Friday.
Barty has a tough 1st round since she will be opposed to American player Shelby Roger, who can beat anyone on tour. However, the world number 1 is in a fine form. She has just won the title in Stuttgart, so to consolidate her number 1 rank.
Garbine Muguruza also has a tough first round since she will be opposed to Sloane Stephens. The American player is quite erratic and you never know who is going to turn up at her matches. Sloane has the potential to win any tournament coming from nowhere even if she has not been playing at her very best recently.
Elina Svitolina has arguably an easier match against Jil Teichmann. Naomi Osaka will face her compatriot Misaki Doi in her opening match on Friday.
Ashleigh Barty in 2021
Now the world no.1, Barty played her last match on the 25th of April when she defeated world no.7 Aryna Sabalenka 3-6 6-0 6-3 in the final in Stuttgart to win her 11th career title.
During this season the Australian has achieved a composed 20-3 match record. The Australian clinched 3 titles in 2021 in Melbourne, in Miami and in Stuttgart.
Garbine Muguruza in 2021
Ranked no.13, the Spaniard played her last match on the 8th of April when she had to retire when playing against world no.30 Yulia Putintseva in the 3rd round and the scoreline was 0-6 2-2 .
Until now, during this year Garbine has achieved a 21-6 record. The Spaniard has won 1 title in Dubai. The Spaniard was the finalist in Melbourne and in Doha.
Ashleigh Barty and Garbine Muguruza faced off 4 times. Their actual record is 3-1 for Barty. Previously, the last time they locked horns, Ashleigh Barty won 7-6(3) 6-4 in the final in Melbourne (Yarra Valley Classic) on the 7th of February 2021.
You can see them in action in the following highlights.
Elina Svitolina in 2021
Currently ranked no.5, Svitolina played her last match on the 24th of April when she capitulated to world no.1 Ashleigh Barty 4-6 7-6(5) 6-2 in the semifinal in Stuttgart (draw).
This season Elina has a 17-7 record. Elina Svitolina’s most significant performance of the current year was reaching the semifinal in Miami and Stuttgart.
Naomi Osaka in 2021
Ranked world no.2, Naomi played her last match on the 31st of March when she lost to world no.19 Maria Sakkari 6-0 6-4 in the quarter in Miami (draw).
This season the Japanese has a 12-1 match record. Naomi clinched 1 title at the Australian Open.
Elina Svitolina and Naomi Osaka played each other 6 times. The head to head is 3-3. The last time they played each other, Naomi Osaka won 6-4 6-1 in the quarter in Melbourne (Australian Open) in January 2019.
In the following video you can watch the key moments of their match.
