Preview: ASB Classic: Elina Svitolina vs. Sonay Kartal - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

Aiming to avenge her fallen compatriot, Great Britain's Sonay Kartal squares up to top seed Elina Svitolina in the quarter-finals of the ASB Classic on Friday.

The world number 68 dropped just four games in her emphatic second-round win over Ella Seidel, while the Ukrainian battled past Katie Boulter to reach the last eight.

Match preview

The one to watch in British women's tennis for 2026, Kartal is potentially just two sets away from achieving something she failed to do in the entirety of the 2025 WTA season - reach a top-level semi-final.

The 24-year-old memorably collected her maiden WTA Tour title in Tunisia in 2024, but despite 2025 being a breakthrough year on the Grand Slam front - reaching the last 16 at Wimbledon - she failed to progress beyond a single quarter-final.

Kartal has therefore already matched her best tournament result from last year in her opening outing of 2026, courtesy of a battling first-set win over Janice Tjen and straightforward second-round success over Seidel Down Under.

The world number 68 needed just 66 minutes to overcome the latter 6-3 6-1 last time out, despite losing both of her opening service games and falling 3-1 behind to the German, whom she subsequently found a devastating second wind against.

Kartal won 12 of the final 13 games in the match to storm into the quarter-finals, converting six of the eight break points she brought up on Seidel's serve to earn a blockbuster date with the top seed.

As defending champion Clara Tauson is competing in Brisbane rather than Auckland, and second seed Emma Navarro suffered a shock first-round elimination to GB's Francesca Jones, Svitolina is the heavy favourite for ASB Classic stardom.

The three-time Grand Slam semi-finalist did not conquer a hard court in 2025 - winning her only title of the year on clay at the Open de Rouen - but she has seen off two tricky foes in straight sets to reach the Auckland quarters this time around.

A 6-3 6-1 first-round win over Varvara Gracheva preceded a more difficult assignment against Katie Boulter - even if the ex-British number one has now slipped out of the top 100 - but she got the job done courtesy of a 7-5 6-4 victory in just over two hours.

Svitolina spoke of regaining her "spirit" and "fighting experience" after eliminating Boulter in the second round, where she converted six of her 11 break points and did not falter after losing serve while serving for the match, claiming a final break in the next game to see off her challenger.

Now bidding for a second ASB Classic final appearance in three years - after losing to Coco Gauff in the showpiece at the 2024 edition - Svitolina will take on either Iva Jovic or Sofia Costoulas in the semi-finals if she can maintain her 100% Kartal record.

Tournament so far

Elina Svitolina:

First round: vs. Varvara Gracheva 6-3 6-1

Second round: vs. Katie Boulter 7-5 6-4

Sonay Kartal:

First round: Janice Tjen 6-1 6-7[4] 6-3

Second round: vs. Ella Seidel 6-3 6-1

Head To Head

Madrid Open (2025) - Second round: Svitolina wins 6-3 6-1

The first and only meeting to date between Kartal and Svitolina came at last year's Madrid Open, which is perhaps best remembered for the extraordinary power outage across Spain and Portugal that ground the tournament to a halt.

When electricity was flowing, Svitolina eased past Kartal 6-3 6-1 in the second round; an eerie coincidence given both players have already won a match by that exact scoreline at the ASB Classic.

The Ukrainian needed just 53 minutes to take care of business, converting five of the six break points she fashioned, while Kartal won just 45% of her first-serve points.

We say: Svitolina to win in three sets

Svitolina vs. Kartal was a mismatch in Madrid several months ago, but the Briton's game has come on leaps and bounds just since then, and there should be no repeat of her clay crushing in the Spanish capital.

It is not impossible to envisage the powerful Kartal taking a set off of Svitolina, but the Ukrainian's experience and exceptional defence should carry her through to the semis.