Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya Australian Open Prediction 1/24/2026 Today’s Tennis Picks

World No. 2 Iga Swiatek will face World No. 33 Anna Kalinskaya in the third round of the 2026 Australian Open on Saturday, January 24. Here’s our Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya prediction. This preview will also include an Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya pick.

Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya Preview

Iga Swiatek is coming off a straight-sets win over World No. 44 Marie Bouzkova. Their second round match took 17 games to decide. Swiatek took 38 minutes to wrap up the opening set, which featured four breaks of serve, and it was Swiatek who garnered two more than Bouzkova to win it.

Bouzkova briefly led in the second set after breaking Swiatek and consolidating for a 3-1 advantage. But the Pole broke back in the sixth game, and after holding serve for 4-3, she broke Bouzkova to move to within a game of victory.

On her first attempt, Swiatek clinched victory on her third match point. Swiatek has only failed to reach the last 16 twice in her last seven Australian Open main draws. Before this, she beat Yuan Yue in straight sets. Swiatek is chasing the career Grand Slam. The Australian Open is the only major title missing from her impressive resume and she was a semifinalist in this tournament last season, where she lost to eventual champion Madison Keys from match point up. Swiatek is now 5-2 for the season in singles and has not a set this week.

Anna Kalinskaya is through to the third round of the Australian Open for a second time in her career. The Russian had recorded a string of first-round losses in Melbourne in the past, but she beat Austria’s Julia Grabher in straight sets in the second round quite convincingly. The match took 18 games to decide and lasted an hour and 14 minutes. Kalinskaya recovered from an early break in the first set to lead the set 6-3.

The two players exchanged breaks twice at the start of the second set, before Kalinskaya finished strongly with two late breaks to win the set 6-3. Kalinskaya hit 13 winners and 18 unforced errors. That included 3 aces and 3 double faults. Kalinskaya landed 63% of first serves in play and won 66% of first serve points (21/32).

Kalinskaya won 53% of second serve points (10/19) and saved two of five break points. Kalinskaya is competing in her first Australian Open since 2024, where she achieved her best result at the event (quarterfinalist). Kalinskaya had beaten Great Britain’s Sonay Kartal in the opening round and has not lost a set this week. She is currently 4-2 for the season.

Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya Head-To-Head

Swiatek and Kalinskaya have met three times in the past. Kalinskaya stunned the Pole in their first match at the 2024 Dubai Championships. Kalinskaya went on to make the finals, losing to Jasmine Paolini.

Swiatek now leads the head-to-head 2-1. She turned around a losing deficit by winning both of their meetings in 2025 at the Cincinnati Open and US Open in straight sets.

Iga Swiatek vs Anna Kalinskaya Prediction

Swiatek felt the pressure playing for her country at the United Cup and in matches where she was desperate to win, she lost both against her direct rivals. The World No. 2 has calmed down expectations in this tournament and we’ve seen her come back from a losing deficit in the set in the previous match against Bouzkova. Maybe that kind of attitude will work in her favor this time. Kalinskaya will be a significant upgrade without a doubt, but I trust Swiatek to prevail in two sets.

Nur Said's Pick: Iga Swiatek in straight sets