Another rainy day is forecasted today here at the WTA Hiroshima Open. Day 4 will feature some top Japanese players such as Kurumi Nara and Misaki Doi. Both names will be a delight for Japanese tennis enthusiasts to watch.
WTA Hiroshima Open Day 4 Predictions
Mihaela Buzarnescu vs Kurumi Nara
Head-to-head: First meeting
Buzarnescu has struggled for the majority of the 2019 season. The 31-year-old Romanian has a 11-26 win-loss record this year and has not won back-to-back matches since Rome in May.
Nara has mostly competed mostly on the ITF circuit this year but has been consistent in terms of results. With Buzarnescu struggling with her game right now, the favourite will be Nara. With the Japanese support, she should get through this match.
Prediction: Nara in 3
Misaki Doi vs Zoe Hives
Head-to-head: First meeting
22-year-old Zoe Hives has come from qualifying to reach this stage here of the competition. The Australian world No. 163 has mainly competed on the ITF circuit this year due to a low ranking, but she seems to be adapting to the WTA matches (which are more difficult) and has been impressive all week.
Doi has been a hit and miss all season. Sometimes she plays well; sometimes she doesn’t. But even though Doi will get the Japanese home crowd support, Hives has been playing well from qualifying to now and will be full of confidence when she walks on court to take on Doi.
Prediction: Hives in 2
Sara Sorribes Tormo vs Varvara Flink
Head-to-head: Sorribes Tormo leads 1-0
A close match should be expected in this one. Both players have been in similar form and their ranking are arguably similar. Sorribes Tormo is ranked 84th in the world, whereas Flink is just outside the Top 150 at No. 153 in the world.
Even though the Spaniard, Sorribes Tormo, leads their head-to-head 1-0, their meeting was on clay earlier this year. With this match being played on a hard court, the pendulum could swing to Flink’s favour as Sorribes Tormo is a clay-court specialist.
Prediction: Flink in 3
Alison van Uytvanck vs Kirsten Flipkens
Head-to-head: 2-2 tied
Both players are great friends as they are sometimes each other’s doubles partners in some tournaments.
However, van Uytvanck will be coming into this match in better form as she has a 22-19 win-loss record this year. Whereas, Flipkens, is on a 13-19 deficit win-loss this year. Also, their recent meeting was in St. Petersburg on a hard court, where van Uytvanck won comfortably. This could be a repeat of what happened in St. Petersburg.
Prediction: van Uytvanck in 2
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
