Maria Sakkari is facing a major challenge and a historic advancement to the Round of 16 at Wimbledon!

The Greek tennis player will face off against Jasmine Paolini on Saturday afternoon (sport-fm.gr, Novasports Start, after 3:30 p.m.) against Jasmine Paolini on Court No. 3 of the British Grand Slam for the third round of the tournament.

The 30-year-old champion, who is having a very strong tournament, advanced to this stage after 2-0 set victories over Clara Tauson (No. 25) and then a 2-1 set victory over Kamila Rakhimova (No. 70). Maria’s performance so far in the premier grass-court tournament has earned her a six-spot jump in the world rankings, as she is now No. 37 in the world!

On the other hand, the 30-year-old Italian (No. 17) made it this far after hard-fought victories over Montgomery (2-1 in sets) and Golubic (2-0 in sets). These were her first wins since late May.

Beyond the significance of a potential victory for Sakkari over Paolini, tonight’s match takes on historic significance for Maria, as she aims to reach the fourth round of Wimbledon for the first time in her career!

The… omens are in the Greek tennis player’s favor, since in their five previous head-to-head matches, Sakkari has won three of them.

*photo source: AP