There should be plenty of entertaining action on day one at the WTA Madrid Open, with 16 first-round matches on the slate. As ever, we here at LWOT will be offering our predictions for every match on the schedule, including Ash Barty vs Shelby Rogers, Garbine Muguruza vs Sloane Stephens, and Alison Riske vs Iga Swiatek. But who will book their place in the second round in the Spanish capital?
WTA Madrid Open Day 1 Predictions
Kiki Bertens vs Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva
Head-to-head: first meeting
On the surface, there is little reason to expect this to be a competitive match. After all, the 15-year-old Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva has never been ranked inside the top 900. Kiki Bertens, in contrast, has been as high as world #4 and is currently ranked 10th in the world. The difference in experience between the two is stark, with Bertens having won ten titles and 442 singles matches, whilst Jimenez has just seven wins to her name in total.
But the Andorran teenager can play freely here, whereas Bertens is in desperate need of a win, with her only victory so far in 2021 coming in the Billie Jean King Cup playoffs. That being said, whilst the Dutchwoman is struggling, she is at her best on the clay and made the fourth round at the French Open last October. Jimenez Kasintseva doubtless has a bright future, but this will almost certainly be a step too soon too far for the 15-year-old.
Prediction: Bertens in 2
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Paula Badosa vs Barbora Krejcikova
Head-to-head: first meeting
Barbora Krejcikova enjoyed an excellent week in Dubai earlier in the season, reaching the final where she lost to Garbine Muguruza, but she has struggled to make a similar impact elsewhere. Her clay-court season did not get off to the most assured of starts, with the Czech crashing out in the second round at the WTA Istanbul Championship at the hands of Ana Bogdan. That is concerning ahead of this clash with Paula Badosa, who is generally an excellent clay-courter.
The Spaniard made the semifinals in Istanbul last season, as well as the fourth round at the French Open. She backed that up by reaching the semifinals on the green clay in Charleston, beating Ashleigh Barty in the last eight. Expectations are understandably high, all the more so because she will be playing on home turf. The conditions in Madrid will suit Krejcikova better than most clay courts, but the Spaniard should still have the edge here.
Prediction: Badosa in 3
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Laura Siegemund vs Katerina Kozlova
Head-to-head: Siegemund 3-1 Kozlova
Laura Siegemund may well be glad to be back on the clay after an indifferent start to the season. Her best on the hard courts was a run through the qualifying to the last 16 in Doha, but on her preferred red clay she has looked sharp. Last week, she made the second round in Stuttgart, before coming up against an inspired Ashleigh Barty, who beat her 6-0 7-5. However, the German will surely like her chances better against Katerina Kozlova. She has won their last three matches and handily too. She is also the better clay-courter of the two.
Prediction: Siegemund in 2
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Ana Bogdan vs Anastasija Sevastova
Head-to-head: Bogdan 2-1 Sevastova
This might well prove to be one of the most watchable matches on day one at the WTA Madrid Open. Especially if their last two clashes are anything to go by. Both went the distance, with Anastasija Sevastova coming out on top in Bucharest in 2019, a defeat Bogdan avenged earlier this season at a Melbourne warm-up event. She may like her chances of beating the Latvian again, having arrived in the Spanish capital after an encouraging week in Istanbul and then negotiated the qualifying.
She made the quarterfinals, dismissing Nao Hibino and Krejcikova before losing narrowly to Veronika Kudermetova. Sevastova, meanwhile, enjoyed something of a resurgence in Miami, reaching the last eight, but she has struggled otherwise for much of the last two years. This does look likely to be another competitive encounter, but it is hard to ignore their contrasting fortunes of late. Expect Bogdan to be the player to reach the second round.
Prediction: Bogdan in 3
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