The second round of the French Open wraps up on Day 5. Thursday will see 16 women’s matches, and we’re here at LWOT to predict all of them for you. Who will win? We look at all 16 matches across four articles. The other three articles headline Karolina Pliskova vs Jelena Ostapenko, Petra Kvitova vs Jasmine Paolini, and Sofia Kenin vs Ana Bogdan. Predicting this set of matches are Jim Smith, Damian Kust, and Sean Judge.
French Open Day 5 Predictions
Sloane Stephens vs Paula Badosa Gibert
Jim:
Stephens arrived in Paris in no kind of form, but she made a good start to her French Open campaign, dismissing Vitalia Diatchenko for the loss of only four games. One suspects, however, that Badosa Gibert will put up rather sterner resistance. But, the conditions should suit Stephens, who has a rare blend of athleticism and power. If she is focused, she should be able to score what would be a big win.
Prediction: Stephens in 3
Damian:
Stephens always ups her game in Slams but she was in pretty dreadful form recently. The Spaniard is definitely good enough to capitalize if that’s still the case and she played well to reach the semifinals at Istanbul recently.
Prediction: Badosa in 3
Sean:
Sloane Stephens played a fantastic match at the US Open against Serena Williams but hasn’t been able to backup this result with a good performance elsewhere. In her first round she passed an erratic Diatchenko 6-2 6-2 in a bid to get herself into better form. Her opponent, Badosa, has been playing some decent tennis on the clay after posting a semi-final result in Istanbul. She won her first match against Kozlova in three sets with an incredible 41 winners to just 15 unforced errors. This match really depends on Stephens’ level but I think the Spaniard could get an unexpected victory.
Prediction: Badosa in 3
Irina Bara vs Alison Van Uytvanck
Jim:
Bara has enjoyed an excellent week so far in Paris, coming through the qualifying before upsetting the struggling 26th seed Donna Vekic in the first round. That has opened up her section of the draw and up against Van Uytvanck in the second round, who is hardly a clay-court specialist, it would be a real surprise if the Romanian failed to take advantage.
Prediction: Bara in 2
Damian:
Van Uytvanck may be one of the players who find the way to benefit from these conditions. Her powerful, flatter hitting should be too much for the Romanian qualifier.
Prediction: Van Uytvanck in 2
Sean:
Qualifier Irina Bara is yet to drop a set at this year’s French Open after defeating an out of sorts Donna Vekic in Round 1. She played a solid match, hitting 18 winners to just 11 unforced errors to get past her higher ranked opponent. Van Uytvanck has been far from her best form since the resumption of the tour, winning just one match before Roland Garros. In round one she come from a set down to beat Rebecca Peterson and enter the second round. This could go either way but the Romania has had more match play and looks the stronger of the two.
Prediction: Bara in 3
Fiona Ferro vs Elena Rybakina
Jim:
This might well be one the matches of the day in Paris. Ferro has now won her last six matches, whilst Rybakina arrived in Paris fresh from reaching the final in Strasbourg. It has, however, been a broadly disappointing year for the Kazakh at the Majors, with her best effort a third-round showing in Melbourne. But with Ferro perhaps not back to her best, having missed around six weeks with a rib injury, this is surely an excellent opportunity for Rybakina.
Prediction: Rybakina in 3
Damian:
Ferro picked up an injury after winning her maiden WTA title in Palermo but she appears to be back in great shape. Rybakina is also in amazing form, having finished runner-up last week in Strasbourg. This should be a great match but Rybakina has the advantage of having played a lot more tennis recently.
Prediction: Rybakina in 3
Sean:
One of the matches of the day comes between Elena Rybakina and Fiona Ferro. Both players are coming into the tournament with some positive results. Ferro won in Palmero and is on a sixteen match win streak including exhibition matches. Rybakina reached the final in Strasbourg and has already had a good 2020 season. Ferro played a great first round match to beat Watson in straight sets. Rybakina was also solid in her first round match beating Cirstea 6-0 6-3 to continue her good form. This is tough to call as both players are playing great tennis.
Prediction: Ferro in 3
Garbine Muguruza vs Kristyna Pliskova
Jim:
Muguruza was not at her best in the first round, but she managed to avoid being upset, eventually edging out Tamara Zidansek 8-6 in the third. She will need to improve on that against Pliskova, who opened her tournament with a 6-1 6-2 win over Veronika Kudermetova. But after her narrow escape in the first round, it would be a real surprise if Muguruza did not make those improvements.
Prediction: Muguruza in 3
Damian:
Muguruza’s win over Tamara Zidansek was all but easy but she should be picking up rhythm with each match. This should be mostly on her performance and I expect her to raise her level when required.
Prediction: Muguruza in 2
Sean:
Garbine Muguruza played an excellent tournament in Rome and nearly won the title against Simona Halep. This incredible run nearly cost her a second round spot at this year’s French Open after beating Tamara Zidansek 8-6 in the third set. Kristyna Pliskova continued her solid form on the clay with a straight forward victory over Kuzmova, 6-1 6/2. She has had very convincing stats in this match with seven aces, 24 winners, and just six unforced errors throughout the entire match. This could be a difficult hurdle for the former French Open champion but she should be able to progress to the third round.
Prediction: Muguruza in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
