The fourth day of the French Open is here, which means the start of the second round. This half of the draw saw some big upsets in Round 1, so Round 2 will present big opportunities for those remaining. Predicting the five best Day 4 matches today are writers Vithun Illankovan and Jay Sandhu, along with editors Steen Kirby and Yesh Ginsburg.
French Open Predictions Day 4 Women’s Matches
Magdalena Frech vs Sloane Stephens
Vithun:
Stephens is very hit and miss, but looked very impressive in her first match this year, dropping just two games. Therefore, I think she will beat Frech, a 20-year-old Polish qualifier who may be starting to feel the mental fatigue having played four matches already.
Prediction: Stephens in 2
Jay:
Stephens looked so impressive in her first round and cruised past Rus, so this match looks quite easy for her. If Frech struggled to beat Alexandrova then she will struggle even more against Stephens, in what looks like a very one sided match.
Prediction: Stephens in 2
Steen:
The American is more accomplished and should win this one.
Prediction: Stephens in 2
Yesh:
Don’t overlook this match. Stephens has been incredibly inconsistent since her US Open win, and this is absolutely the type of match she has a tendency to get complacent in. Frech is rising and can play much better than her ranking indicates. It’s too much of a stretch to safely call this upset, but watch out for this match.
Prediction: Stephens in 3
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Maria Sakkari vs Carla Suarez Navarro
Vithun:
Sakkari came into the French Open in relatively good form, having beaten Karolina Pliskova in Rome in THAT match. However, Suarez Navarro has quietly been having a pretty good year and cruised through her 1st Round match in under an hour. Therefore, I think the Spaniard will make a potentially difficult match look quite routine.
Prediction: Suarez Navarro in 2
Jay:
Sakkari seems to be having the year of her life and has managed to tame some her previously erratic shots. Suarez Navarro has had mixed results throughout the year, but hasn’t had the best of clay seasons. However, the Spaniard is a fighter and should make this one a close match, but I doubt she can win it.
Prediction: Sakkari in 3
Steen:
Suarez Navarro is better on clay and should grind to a win.
Prediction: Suarez Navarro in 2
Yesh:
Sakkari is coming off a big week in Rome. Suarez Navarro has had her struggles in big matches over the years. I think Sakkari makes headlines for another upset this week–this time hopefully without anyone smashing a racket against the umpire’s chair.
Prediction: Sakkari in 3
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Petra Kvitova vs Lara Arruabarrena
Vithun:
I really do not understand why so many people think Kvitova is one of the favourites for the title, and her narrow escape in the 1st Round showed that she shouldn’t be. In addition, her now 12 match win streak is bound to come to a calamitous end pretty soon, as she is a WTA player not named Serena or Azarenka. However, as this was Arruabarrena’s first ever French Open win, I think Kvitova may be able to escape defeat again.
Prediction: Kvitova in 3
Jay:
Arruabarrena has had a year of mixed results and has achieved some good wins, but doesn’t have many weapons to upset Kvitova. The Czech has all the shot making opportunities and should overpower her opponent quite easily.
Prediction: Kvitova in 2
Steen:
Kvitova is facing a tricky opponent but she’ll survive.
Prediction: Kvitova in 3
Yesh:
Fair or not, journalists all over the world are going to be rooting for Kvitova to win easily in this match, just so they won’t have to worry about spelling Arruabarrena’s name. Kvitova struggled in her opening match, and she’ll struggle here again. Kvitova should be the favorite here, but expect another tough match.
Prediction: Kvitova in 3
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Viktoria Kuzmova vs Elina Svitolina
Vithun:
I was surprised that Kuzmova managed to beat Schiavone in the 1st Round, as the 2010 Champion was in very good form in the qualifying. However, even though I think Svitolina is just a B+ player who succeeds in B+ tournaments, this should be more than enough for the World No. 4 to beat the 20-year-old.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
Jay:
This match should be easy enough for Svitolina. She won’t thrash Kuzmova, but the Slovak can find it difficult to keep her aggressive ground strokes in court on any day, and playing a defensive opponent just makes it seem harder for her to win.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
Steen:
Kuzmova is playing well but Svitolina is just too strong right now.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
Yesh:
People might be tempted to pick an upset here because of Kuzmova’s current form and her win over Francesca Schiavone. Those people would be wrong. Svitolina is one of the best on tour right now, and she should be expected to win every match until she starts struggling.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
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Caroline Wozniacki vs Georgina Garcia Perez
Vithun:
Only two of the last seven Australian Open champions have reached the quarterfinals of the French Open that same year. This, coupled with Wozniacki’s disappointing record at this Major, suggests that an upset is approaching soon. However, luckily for the Dane, her opponent is very inexperienced and so she should win this comfortably especially if she plays as well as she did against Danielle Collins in Round 1.
Prediction: Wozniacki in 2
Jay:
Garcia Perez has played well so far; she has fought her way through qualifying and eased through Jakupovic in round one. Despite this, Wozniacki will clearly be a step too far for her as she has never faced a player ranked so high and will struggle.
Prediction: Wozniacki in 2
Steen:
Wozniacki has a real chance at a Major here. She won’t slip up this early.
Prediction: Wozniacki in 2
Yesh:
Wozniacki struggled a bit against Danielle Collins in the opening round. The scoreline doesn’t really show it, but Wozniacki was pushed to her limit, especially in the first set. This does not bode well for the Dane, whose only time ever looking comfortable on the Parisian clay was last year. I expect her to struggle again, and possibly even lose a set.
Prediction: Wozniacki in 2
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