With the coronavirus pandemic having played havoc with the tennis calendar, the WTA Ostrava Open is in the unusual position of being the penultimate tournament of the WTA season, with the only event to follow the Upper Austria Ladies Linz. Fortunately, that has seen a strong field arrive in the Czech Republic for this WTA Premier event. But who will advance on day two?
WTA Ostrava Open Day Two Predictions
Donna Vekic vs Veronika Kudermetova
Head-to-head: Vekic 2-0 Kudermetova
It has been an undeniably disappointing season for Croatia’s Donna Vekic, who has signally failed to make good on the impressive gains she made in 2019. The 24-year-old has won just three matches since the season resumed in August and crashed out in the first round at the French Open, losing to Irina Bara in straight-sets. She will therefore surely be desperate for a strong showing at the WTA Ostrava Open, where she opens her campaign against Veronika Kudermetova.
Vekic may well take confidence from the fact that she has beaten Kudermetova in their two previous meetings, both of which came on the indoor hard courts in St Petersburg. However, Kudermetova looked sharp in coming through the qualifying in Ostrava, beating Stefanie Voegele and Arantxa Rus without dropping a set. She should be match sharp and acclimatised to the conditions in Ostrava as a result, which could give her a decisive edge over Vekic, who has not played competitively in nearly a month.
Prediction: Kudermetova in 3
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Elena Rybakina vs Daria Kasatkina
Head-to-head: first meeting
Neither Elena Rybakina nor Daria Kasatkina are bywords for consistency, although it is the Kazakh Rybakina who has enjoyed the better season, by a distance. That said, Kasatkina impressed in battling through the qualifying, beating Bethanie Mattek-Sands, 6-2 6-4, and Marie Bouzkova, 6-4 5-7 6-4, and that match practice could give her an advantage heading into this contest. But the powerful Rybakina has a game well-suited to indoor tennis and, despite her inconsistency, she has played at a higher-level than Kasatkina this season. Expect her to hit through the Russian and into the second round in Ostrava, although it would not be a surprise to see this match go the distance.
Prediction: Rybakina in 3
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Dayana Yastremska vs Jennifer Brady
Head-to-head: first meeting
Jennifer Brady proved unable to convert her superb form on the hard courts in the USA, with the American winning her first tour-level title in Lexington before reaching the semifinals at the US Open, into success on the European clay. But despite losing in the first round at Roland Garros, the only clay-court event she elected to play, she will surely arrive at the WTA Ostrava Open confident about her chances of putting together another good run.
It is hard to imagine that Dayana Yastremska will be in similarly good spirits. The Ukrainian’s recent struggles should not be overstated, with her run of results far from disastrous, particularly for a player who is still yet to celebrate her 21st birthday. But there is no escaping the reality that she has not kicked on since the season resumed, having won back-to-back matches just twice since August. There will be better days to come for Yastremska, but expect Brady to come out on top here.
Prediction: Brady in 2
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Katerina Siniakova vs Cori Gauff
Head-to-head: first meeting
Like any 16-year-old, Cori Gauff remains vulnerable to inconsistency. She demonstrated as much at the French Open, where a superb win over 2019 semifinalist Johanna Konta was followed by a disappointing defeat at the hands of Martina Trevisan, although that blow was perhaps softened by the Italian’s subsequent run to the quarterfinals. Regardless, Gauff has rebounded impressively, storming through the qualifying at the WTA Ostrava Open with straight-set wins over Jana Cepelova and Irina-Camelia Begu.
However, she may need to be at something close to her best up against home hope Katerina Siniakova. The big-hitting Czech had been struggling in singles since the season resumed in August, but found some form on the clay at Roland Garros, reaching the third round. But she has always been far more at home on the clay than on indoor hard courts whereas, unfortunately for her chances, the reverse is true of Gauff, who has thrived indoors thus far in her fledgling career.
Prediction: Gauff in 2
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