The semifinals are set at the Mallorca Open with three of the top four seeds still in contention for the title. But, after a thrilling week of tennis so far in the Balearic Isles, who will book their place in Sunday’s final?
Mallorca Open Semifinal Predictions
Sofia Kenin vs Anastasija Sevastova
Head-to-head: first meeting
Sofia Kenin battled for over two hours to claim her spot in the semifinals. Her quarterfinal opponent, Elise Mertens, had easily taken the first set 6-1 and it looked like the Belgian would make light work of Kenin. But the American was at her competitive best. In the second set, Mertens’ domination on return was replaced by some powerful and accurate Kenin serving. That, combined with her aggressive play off the ground clinched the comeback victory for the in-form American.
But Kenin’s next test may prove much harder as she faces Anastasija Sevastova, who hasn’t yielded a set thus far, despite averaging just 50% first serves made. That should have given Wang ample opportunity, but the Latvian defended her second delivery superbly, winning 64% of the points behind it. But, to get past Kenin, the second seed will need to improve from the line. Kenin is an aggressive returner, well capable of firing winners when receiving. That makes this a dangerous match for Sevastova and expect Kenin to capitalize on the second seed’s weakness.
Prediction: Kenin in three.
Embed from Getty Images
Angelique Kerber vs Belinda Bencic
Head-to-head: Kerber 4-3 Bencic
Belinda Bencic is one of the form players on the WTA tour. She seems to be able land knockout blows against even the giants of the game with relative ease. Thanks to her exceptional variety and impressive tactical nous, this is definitely a winnable match for the Swiss. After all, it took her only slightly more than an hour to dismiss Amanda Anisimova, who had looked a formidable foe indeed on paper. If every part of the Bencic game is on point, it will surely be the Swiss who will appear in the 2019 Mallorca Open final.
That said, Angelique Kerber is a phenomenal grass courter. Not for nothing is she the reigning Wimbledon champion. But, it hasn’t been a good year for the German, who is still looking for her first title of 2019. In her defence, her clay-court season was hampered by an ankle injury, which fortunately has looked to be behind her in Mallorca. Her 6-3 7-6 quarterfinal win over Caroline Garcia was one of her best performances of the year, as she struck 23 winners against just 13 unforced errors. But her serve has remained inconsistency and Bencic has the quality to punish any lapses from Kerber.
Prediction: Bencic in three.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
