Some of the qualifying matches had to be played indoors due to rain delays but otherwise, we arrive on the second day of main draw action at WTA Lexington according to plan. The top-seed, Serena Williams, will open her campaign against fellow American Bernarda Pera. What can we expect from the 23-time Grand Slam champion after a five-month-break? We also have predictions for the rest of Tuesday’s matches including Serena’s sister, Venus, taking on Victoria Azarenka.
Cori Gauff vs Caroline Dolehide
Head-to-head: First meeting
It’s hard to estimate just how much of an advantage more match rhythm will be here. Dolehide stayed active during the break and has already played two matches in Lexington, qualifying with wins over Katerina Bondarenko and Jamie Loeb. In Palermo last week, 4 of the 5 players who played qualies advanced to the second round. The general trend should be similar at the Top Seed Open, but maybe not in this matchup. Expect the extremely talented prodigy to shake off the rust in time.
Prediction: Gauff in 3
Anna Kalinskaya vs Jill Teichmann
Head-to-head: First meeting
Another matchup where we need to judge how much of an advantage having played two matches already in Lexington will be. Kalinskaya has been on court for three hours already, which should allow her to shake off the rust quicker than her opponent. However, in what we’ve seen of Teichmann in exhibition tennis lately her standard of play was rather high. The big-hitting leftie should have enough game for Kalinskaya’s more match rhythm not to matter.
Prediction: Teichmann in 2
Kristie Ahn – Anna Blinkova
Head-to-head: First meeting
Kristie Ahn’s qualifying campaign was a nightmare. First down 2-4 in the decider against Gabriela Talaba, she later came back from a set and a break deficit against Jovana Jovic. The perseverance should pay off as she will now come into this game more match ready than Blinkova. Having come through two such stinkers can also be a huge boost to one’s confidence, especially when it’s early on after the restart of the season and no one is hundred percent ready for the competition yet.
Prediction: Ahn in 3
Amanda Anisimova vs Catherine Bellis
Head-to-head: First meeting
The next American prodigy will meet her a couple of years older counterpart, who got stopped in her tracks by a series of injuries that saw her miss 18 months of play. Just as Bellis was slowly getting ready for what seemed to be an inevitable rise back to the top, the pandemic forced her off the court for yet another five months. Both she and Anisimova played a couple of exhibition matches over a month ago and it’s fair to expect that both youngsters will arrive in Lexington rather undercooked. Maybe after all the breaks, Bellis has already gotten used to the rust? She was the better player in the first two months of the 2020 season and surely has enough game to at least put up a fight here. Anisimova might end up as the bigger prospect in the long run but for now, it’s a great chance for Bellis to pull off a confidence-building win.
Prediction: Bellis in 3
Serena Williams vs Bernarda Pera
Head-to-head: First meeting
What to expect from the 23-time Grand Slam champion? The only information we got from her camp during the pandemic was that she was training hard for the season restart. Bernarda Pera has played nine games in the WorldTeamTennis exhibition, losing just three (to Sofia Kenin, Kim Clijsters, and Caty McNally). Serena can be slightly rustier but it is hard to expect anything else than a straightforward victory here. She had a lot of time to prepare for this and will be very motivated to start well what can be a warm-up to yet another final push for the 24th Slam at the US Open.
Prediction: Williams in 2
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