Sevastova has the form to thwart Sharapova

Tournament preview

Maria Sharapova lifted her first title in more than two years by beating Aryna Sabalenka 7-5 7-6 in Sunday's Tianjin Open final and she goes off as favourite to win the Kremlin Cup despite never having got past the quarter-finals in three visits.

A follow-up victory for Sharapova cannot be discounted but she had a fairly easy ride at Tianjin with top seed Caroline Garcia withdrawing and second seed Petra Kvitova losing in the first round.

The Kremlin Cup looks more competitive and there may be an opportunity for fourth seed Anastasija Sevastova, who has played Sharapova twice recently – beating her 5-7 6-4 6-2 at the US Open and losing 7-6 5-7 7-6 in Beijing.

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A Sevastova
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