The big draw in at the WTA Miami Open continues to whittle out its early protagonists before the big guns enter in the next round. There are some intriguing and closely matched ties on Day 2, and we preview four of them in this article.
We also have predictions for the rest of the Day 2 matches, across four other articles. One features Sloane Stephens vs Oceane Dodin, the second headlines Fiona Ferro vs Saisai Zheng, the third features Heather Watson vs Nina Stojanovic, and the fourth highlights Kristina Mladenovic vs Danielle Collins.
WTA Miami Open Day 2 Predictions
Jelena Ostapenko vs Xiyu Wang
The Chinese wild card has lost her last five whilst the 2017 French Open champion has shown a little bit of recent form. The Latvian has only lost once in the opening round in her last eight tournaments. It would be a surprise if the world #134 was the one to break that streak. Ostapenko will have the firepower and enough consistency to be able to break the serve of the Chinese player regularly, I expect this to be done in straight sets.
Prediction: Ostapenko in 2
Olga Danilovic vs Anastasija Sevastova
When these players met in the Fed Cup it was a huge shock as the then #305 ranked Danilovic beat #15 Sevastova in straight sets. The left-handed Serb will be more fancied on this occasion though having qualified well. Sevastova is in poor form and seems to be in general decline. The Latvian has lost nine of her last ten at this level and though she still possesses her fighting ability her movement and shots just seem to be letting her down recently. Danilovic should be in good enough form to win this one.
Prediction: Danilovic in 2
Camila Giorgi vs Ludmilla Samsonova
Despite the pedigree and better ranking of the Italian, I expect the Russian to progress from this match. Giorgi’s form on hard court has been hit and miss for a long time now and Samsonova has a good winning record on the surface. Yes, often those matches are at a lower level, but winning tennis matches is great for confidence. Expect to see some big blows in this match though as both women hit a big ball, but expect the Russian to have the greater consistency to scrape through in three sets.
Prediction: Samsonova in 3
Katerina Siniakova vs Ana Konjuh
There are a lot of similarities between these two women. There’s only one year between their ages, they are the same height and they were both discussed as big prospects in the game a couple of years ago.
Since then it is fair to say that neither player has fulfilled their potential, but for very different reasons. The Croatian has suffered terrible injury problems and is languishing down at #350 in the rankings. Accepting a wildcard into this event gives her a great chance to rise up to where her ability belongs. Siniakova though is suffering a really difficult run of form and from the edge of the top 30, she is sliding towards the edge of the Top 100.
Neither player is in sparkling form coming into this match in truth. Konjuh will surely want to grasp this opportunity with both hands though with so many ranking points available here. The Croatian did win their previous meeting, albeit five years ago when both were teenage prospects. This one could go the distance but I’m taking Konjuh to win that final set to progress to the next round.
Prediction: Konjuh in 3
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