We begin the second round on Wednesday, Day 4 of the French Open. There will be 16 women’s matches, and we’re predicting every one of them. We’ll be looking at four matches in this article, but we will also have three more sets of articles. One set features Bernarda Pera vs Amanda Anisimova, the next headlines Coco Gauff vs Martina Trevisan, and the final features Simona Halep vs Irina-Camelia Begu. Predicting these matches today are Andrew Watson, Damian Kust, and myself (Yesh Ginsburg).
French Open Day 4 Predictions
Sara Errani vs Kiki Bertens
Andrew:
Errani has played four matches now in the French Open and hasn’t dropped a set. Bertens looked all over like leaving early but somehow managed to turn her match around and managed to look convincing by the end of it. That makes it a tough match to call because it depends on Bertens’ fitness. If she is close to 100% then I would pick her to win this. However, there are too many doubts so I will pick the form player in Errani.
Prediction: Errani in 2
Damian:
Is it a crazy upset pick? When Bertens is in form then yeah. But with the Dutchwoman lacking fitness and rhythm, I fancy Errani’s grit and will to fight to see her through.
Prediction: Errani in 3
Yesh:
Errani has been playing well this past week, but Bertens is just a much better player at this stage in their careers. It’s very difficult to see anything other than the Dutchwoman winning.
Prediction: Bertens in 2
Kamilla Rakhimova vs Maria Sakkari
Andrew:
The young Russian made a lot of people sit up and take notice when dispatching the US Open quarterfinalist Shelby Rogers in straight sets in Round 1. Sakkari was equally dismissive of Alja Tomljanovic though and the Greek is a tough customer. Her competitive spirit means that she will not take Rakhimova lightly so expect her to start well and progress through to the third round.
Prediction: Sakkari in 2
Damian:
The Russian is an interesting prospect and she was amazing in the upset win over Shelby Rogers. This could be tougher than it seems for Sakkari, but I’ll stick with the seed to go through as she’s been looking very motivated lately.
Prediction: Sakkari in 3
Yesh:
Sakkari is the much better player and in better form right now. Don’t let one surprising upset fool you. Anything other than the Greek winning easily would be a shock.
Prediction: Sakkari in 2
Nadia Podoroska vs Yulia Putintseva
Andrew:
So, here’s a fact. If you take the last 20 matches played between these two the record would be won 18, lost 2. Podoroska is currently on a ten-match winning streak, the only problem is that none of those players were ranked inside the top 100 in the world. Putintseva has been excellent for a couple of months now and may well be at her peak in her career so far. The Kazakh should snap the Argentine’s winning streak here but it could be a sneakily high quality encounter.
Prediction: Putintseva in 2
Damian:
Putinsteva is one of the trickiest opponents to face on the tour, especially for someone with little big stage experience. The Kazakh has all the tools to disrupt the qualifier.
Prediction: Putintseva in 2
Yesh:
Podoroska is impressing, winning match after match against lesser opponents. She definitely has a future towards the top of this game, though she’s not quite there yet. Expect a bit of a talent shock when she meets someone who’s actually towards the top of the game right now.
Prediction: Putintseva in 2
Serena Williams vs Tsvetana Pironkova
Andrew:
Now where have I seen this before? Ah yes, three weeks ago. The Bulgarian had the great one on the ropes in their US Open quarterfinal when she was a set up, but Williams progressed with a very strong comeback. Williams got stronger throughout her opening round contest but she will want to start a bit quicker against a better opponent. I expect this to be close again but in the end the extra quality that Williams showed in their previous encounter will probably win out again.
Prediction: Williams in 3
Damian:
It was very close at the US Open and it’s safe to say it won’t be a walk in the park for Serena again. Pironkova would rather meet her on a faster surface though, one where she could utilize her artfulness better.
Prediction: Williams in 3
Yesh:
I have a rule. It’s not a very complicated rule, and I do break it once in a long while. But the rule is simple: Never pick against Serena Williams. That’s it. That’s the rule. Follow that rule–even when you think she’s in real danger of losing–and you’ll be right the vast majority of the time.
Prediction: Williams in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
