After what has been a week of thrilling tennis and plenty of upsets, no seeded players have reached the semifinals at the WTA Lexington, the first tournament of this abridged North American summer hard-court swing. But who will reach the final at the inaugural Top Seed Open in Kentucky?
WTA Lexington Semifinal Predictions
Jil Teichmann vs Shelby Rogers
Head-to-head: first meeting
Shelby Rogers comes into this semifinal after beating the great Serena Williams in what was surely the best win of her career. It was a close contest, but Rogers hung tough to win in a third-set tiebreak to claim only the third top-ten win of her career. However, the going will not necessarily get easier for Rogers in the semifinals where she will face the in-form Jil Teichmann. The Swiss has enjoyed most of her success on the clay, but looks to have used the break to improve game on hard courts.
She has lost only seventeen games in reaching the semifinals, with her 6-2 6-4 quarterfinal win over the American young gun CiCi Bellis perhaps her most impressive win of the week so far. But with both players in excellent form, this looks certain to be a close contest and if Rogers can serve as well as she did against Williams, she will be in with a chance. Ultimately, however, Teichmann has been that much more impressive than the American and should have just enough to reach the final.
Prediction: Teichmann in 3
Embed from Getty Images
Jennifer Brady vs Cori Gauff
Head-to-head: first meeting
Jennifer Brady has also played some excellent tennis so far in Lexington. The 25-year-old American, currently just four spots down from her career-high ranking of world #45, has been firing on all cylinders, with her powerful forehand the pick of her shots. Her opponents have been entirely unable to live with her, with Brady dismissing Heather Watson, Magda Linette and Marie Bouzkova, who last year reached the semifinals at the Rogers Cup, in straight-sets to storm into the semifinals.
Cori Gauff’s progress into the last four has not been quite so straightforward. She has faced an arguably tougher draw, but there have nonetheless been stretches in matches where her play has been rather sub-standard. Equally, however, Gauff has excelled under pressure, once again demonstrating a maturity beyond her years. Her battling second-round win over world #11 and second seed Aryna Sabalenka was particularly impressive.
But for all her quality, Gauff’s game is not without weaknesses. The 16-year-old defends superbly out of the backhand corner, but she can struggle with pace into her forehand, which the hard-hitting Brady will surely target. She has also played significantly more tennis than Brady so far in Lexington. With this her first competitive tournament since the Australian Open in January, the resulting fatigue may prove hard to overcome. Expect Brady to prove too strong as a result.
Prediction: Brady in 2
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
