Wednesday at the Morocco Open is full of second-round matches. Who will advance to the quarterfinals? Some of the tournament’s biggest names will compete for their spot.
WTA Rabat Day 3 Predictions
Lara Arruabarrena vs Su-Wei Hsieh
Head to Head: 4-0 Hsieh
Hsieh has continued her impressive form over the last year or two and is arguably the favorite to win this tournament. Arruabarrena has had a tough year, but plays her best on clay like most Spaniards, as shown by her increase in form over the past few weeks. However, two of their four meetings have come on clay, both straight set wins by Hsieh. Hsieh will once again fight and grind out another win and reach the quarterfinals.
Prediction: Hsieh in 2
Isabella Shinikova vs Maria Sakkari
Head to Head: 1-1
Sakkari has been playing great tennis recently and is one of the young future WTA stars. Shinikova generally plays lower level events and got into the tournament as a wild card. Both players have strong records on clay in futures and lower level events, but minimal experience in tour level tournaments. Sakkari has the better game and has played more higher level matches, and will cruise to a convincing victory.
Prediction: Sakkari in 3
Varvara Lepchenko vs Alison Van Uytvanck
Head to Head: 3-0 Lepchenko
Lepchenko has seen her ranking fall as she has passed her prime, but she has looked very strong this week, not dropping a set in her three qualifying matches or her first round match. Van Uytvanck has rebounded after a not great 2018 and has played much better this year. Lepchenko won all three of their meetings, but that should be taken lightly because none of them were on clay. This match should be one of the more competitive on the day, with Lepchenko continuing her hot week and getting the victory.
Prediction: Lepchenko in 3
Timea Bacsinszky vs Ajla Tomljanovic
Head to Head: First meeting
This will be a great matchup between the veteran Bacsinszky and the young upstart Tomljanovic. Tomljanovic has had a really strong run and jumped from outside the top 100 to #40. Bacsinszky has been OK this season, but she is back on clay which is her favorite surface. This match could truly go either way, but Bacsinszky has the slight edge with her experience and skill on the surface.
Prediction: Bacsinszky in 3
Main Photo from Getty
