Aryna Sabalenka vs Liudmila Samsonova Tips, Prediction & Live Stream - Sabalenka set for 19th straight Wuhan win

Andrew Hendrie

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Last updated: Wed 08 Oct 2025 23:33

Andrew Hendrie 08 Oct 2025

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Aryna Sabalenka vs Liudmila Samsonova predictions for Thursday's WTA Wuhan R16
Sabalenka has won the last two meetings between the pair
Nineteen of Sabalenka's last 20 wins have seen Over 18.5 total games
Sabalenka is 18-0 lifetime in Wuhan
The match is scheduled to start around 4.00pm AEDT on Thursday October 9

Expired

Aryna Sabalenka (Photo by Getty Images)

Aryna Sabalenka vs Liudmila Samsonova Tips, Prediction & Live Stream

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka aims for a return to the Wuhan Open quarter-finals when she comes up against Liudmila Samsonova on Thursday.

Aryna Sabalenka vs Liudmila Samsonova Tips, Prediction & Live Stream
Head To Head
Aryna Sabalenka Form
Liudmila Samsonova Form
Live Stream

Sabalenka is a three-time champion in Wuhan and has won her last 18 consecutive matches at the tournament, beating Qinwen Zheng for the title last year - one of five top 10 scalps she's earned in the Chinese city across the course of her career. Sabalenka got off to a slow start in her Wuhan opener, which was understandable after not playing since defending her US Open title last month, but she finished strongly and will now be fully focused on making it four successive Wuhan titles.

Samsonova is always a dangerous threat and she's beaten Sabalenka twice before, so the Russian will certainly be no pushover here. Couple that with the fact that 19 of Sabalenka's last 20 wins dating back to Roland Garros have seen Over 18.5 total games and we should see a relatively competitive match here. But the top seed should take it.

Head To Head

Sabalenka leads 3-2. Samsonova won two of the first three meetings between the pair, but Sabalenka has prevailed in the last two - including a most-recent 6-2 6-3 victory in the Indian Wells quarter-finals earlier this season.

Aryna Sabalenka Form

Sabalenka has registered a 57-10 record on the season, which is the most victories she's earned in a single year in her career.

It's obviously been another stellar season for Sabalenka - she added a fourth Grand Slam title to her collection at the US Open, while she was also runner-up at the Australian Open and Roland Garros.

The 27-year-old has also picked up silverware in Brisbane, Miami and Madrid, along with reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals.

Sabalenka arrived in Wuhan to play her first match since beating Amanda Anisimova in the US Open final and she was unsurprisingly rusty in the opening set against Rebecca Sramkova.

However, it didn't take long for Sabalenka to find her groove and from there she only dropped four more games for the match, coming away with a 4-6 6-3 6-1 victory, improving her Wuhan record to a flawless 18-0.

Liudmila Samsonova Form

Samsonova comes into this contest with a 29-21 record for the season, dropping slightly from her career-high ranking of No. 12 to a current mark of No. 20.

As is usually the case with Samsonova, it's been a bit of a hit-or-miss season - she's only won back-to-back matches at eight tournaments, but she's also made six quarter-finals, including big tournaments at Wimbledon and Indian Wells.

The 26-year-old hasn't been in great form lately, losing in the second round of the US Open to Priscilla Hon and opening round of Beijing to Lois Boisson.

However, Samsonova has started to gather some momentum in Wuhan, beating Emiliana Arango 6-1 7-5 in her first round before recovering from a set down against former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin to prevail 3-6 6-3 6-1.

Live Stream

Watch and bet on Aryna Sabalenka vs Liudmila Samsonova live Wuhan Open tennis from Wuhan.

You can watch and bet on the match live at Unibet > Tennis > WTA Wuhan with the action available to stream on desktop and mobile.

Geo-restrictions apply, you'll need a funded account or to have placed a bet in the last 24 hours to gain access. 18+ terms and conditions apply.

Verdict

Aryna Sabalenka v Liudmila Samsonova

Have to keep riding the 'Sabalenka Win & Over 18.5 Games' bandwagon here. It just keeps landing over the course of the last five months and Samsonova should provide a stern enough test to make this Wuhan clash relatively competitive.