Just like the (gruesome) saying “there's more than one way to skin a cat,” there is also more than one way to win a tennis match.  That will be on full display in Saturday's third-round encounter between Roberta Vinci and Coco Vandeweghe.  But while they may go about their business in different manners, they both have the same goal:  to reach the second week of Wimbledon.

Vinci is a name that should be familiar to dedicated tennis fans.  She is probably best known for her doubles prowess, where she finished three seasons ranked No. 1. She has proved to be pretty decent in singles as well, spending extended stretches of time as a top-20 player.  She arguably gained her greatest fame, though, last season in the semifinals of the US Open.  It was Vinci who ended Serena Williams' bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam in stunning fashion.  Buoyed by that result, she now finds herself ranked No. 7 and would dearly love to extend her run of good fortune here.

To get to the fourth round, Vinci will first have to go through Vandeweghe, and that may prove to be no mean feat.  Fans have been waiting for Vandeweghe to have a breakthrough for the last few seasons, but she has often struggled with her match fitness and consistency.  It has only been in the last couple of years that she has begun to hit her stride and stake a claim inside the top 40.  Following her successful stint on the grass tune-ups heading into Wimbledon, she now finds herself ranked No. 30 and is just itching to build on her momentum heading into the American hard-court summer.

The good news for Vandeweghe is that she is in a favorable position to make her own luck.  She is a powerful ball-striker who unabashedly goes for her shots from both wings.  She gets plenty of juice on her serve, and as evidenced by her top-20 doubles ranking, she knows a thing or two about getting the job done at the net.  Given that her superior firepower should allow her to enjoy the better court positioning, she is apt to have more than her share of opportunities to finish in the forecourt.

This is not to say that Vinci is without weapons, however.  The sixth seed possesses exceptionally deft touch at the net and is certainly the better mover.  She is also good at keeping the ball slow with her cutting slice. But despite her higher seeding, Vinci is potentially the one who may have to come out of her comfort zone.  She has enjoyed success on grass, but the bulk of her joy has come on the clay, where she has more time for her loopy groundstrokes.  The quick grass is also going to make it difficult for her to test the consistency of the American and keep Vandeweghe off balance. 

Aside from the differences in their respective games, Vinci has a disadvantage in that Vandeweghe is likely the more confident of the pair at the moment.  It is not that Vinci herself is lacking in belief.  She has a plethora of experience and has won a title on grass in the past.  But she also knows that Vandeweghe has the freedom of being the underdog and mentally is in a better place right now.  The American comes in having successfully defended her title at 's-Hertogenbosch and backed that up with a run to the semifinals of Birmingham.  She also won her last meeting against the Italian, and having made the last eight of Wimbledon last season, she knows there is no reason she cannot do so again.

This is not the most high-profile third-round encounter, but it is still one to watch.  It is located in a very workable section of the draw of which each woman would love to take advantage.  Which woman that is depends on Vandeweghe.  Vinci is crafty and has proven that she can defeat anyone on any day.  But Vandeweghe is the one who will control the tempo of this match, and if she continues to play as she has the rest of this grass season, she is going to find herself back in the second week of Wimbledon.

So much in sports is about seizing opportunities.  Whether it is to accomplish that initial breakthrough, cement a place in history, or return to the winning path, it all comes down to making the most of the situation.  Dominika Cibulkova and Eugenie Bouchard are two women looking to work their way back up to the top of the game, but only one of them will have the chance to use a run to the second week of Wimbledon as part of that process.

For her own part, Cibulkova has done a good job of making headway in her ascent back up the rankings.  The former Australian Open finalist spent a chunk of last year sidelined with an Achilles injury and struggled thereafter to tap into her best form.  Things have been different in 2016, however.  She began to string together wins that have resulted in finalist appearances at Acapulco and Madrid, as well as title runs at Katowice and last week in Eastbourne.  Cibulkova is back up at No. 18 in the rankings and is keen to continuing moving upward.

The Slovak's opponent, Bouchard, has a much murkier path to redemption.  After a phenomenal 2014, her 2015 season turned into a nightmare that she would rather forget.  She endured the proverbial sophomore slump as she struggled to cope with the weight of expectations, and her woes were only further compounded by a forearm injury and freak concussion accident suffered at the US Open.  Looking to turn over a new leaf, things have been kinder to her in 2016.  Bouchard managed to reach the finals of both Hobart and Kuala Lumpur, and while the results are still not where she wants them, the victories are starting to come on a more regular basis.  She would love to add a second-week finish at Wimbledon to her list of achievements this season and put herself in the best position possible moving into the summer hard-court season.

But Bouchard will have her work cut out for her if she is to upset the 19th seed.  Like the Canadian, Cibulkova is happy to bash it out from the baseline.  She packs a solid punch, contrary to her size, and typically does an equally good job changing the direction of the ball.  Her favorite shot is the swinging volley, so she will not hesitate to move forward and rob her opponent of precious time.  And lastly, what she lacks in size she often makes up for with her speedy set of wheels that allows her to play great defense, even on grass.  Of course, Bouchard is a decent mover herself, and with an extra seven inches on the Slovak, she enjoys more reach.  Her height advantage also favors her not only on serve but also in her return games.  All told, a portion of the outcome comes down to which player can most consistently stay up on the baseline to control the rallies and consistently change the direction of the ball without donating numerous unforced errors.

The other portion of the end result comes down to who handles the moment better.  On one hand, Bouchard is a former finalist here.  She has been to the semifinals of both the Australian Open and Roland Garros as well, and she has won both of her prior meetings against the Slovak, including last year at the US Open.  On the other hand, Cibulkova has enjoyed more overall success of late.  She arrived at Wimbledon hot on the heels of her victory in Eastbourne, and with her wedding just around the corner, it is hard to imagine her in a better place mentally.

A strong case can be made for either combatant in this encounter.  They have both come through some noteworthy matches to reach this point and have done enough in the past to warrant faith in their ability to advance.  It could and should be a close one, but the edge goes to the feisty Cibulkova to rise to the occasion and notch her first victory over the Canadian.