There should be plenty of entertaining action in the WTA San Jose Classic final with both Daria Kasatkina and Danielle Collins no doubt desperate to lay their hands on the trophy, particularly with the US Open looming large on the horizon. But who will come out on top?
WTA San Jose Final Prediction
Daria Kasatkina vs Danielle Collins
Head-to-head: Kasatkina 2-0 Collins
Kasatkina has put together an impressive season, with the 24-year-old arriving at the WTA San Jose Classic with a 27-12 record for the year. That includes a run to the final at the WTA Birmingham Classic and a triumphant week in St Petersburg. She has maintained that good form so far in California. She opened her campaign by rallying from a set down to beat Caroline Garcia and she backed that win up with a 6-4 3-6 6-4 victory over Magda Linette.
That set up a semifinal clash with the top seed Elise Mertens. The Belgian had impressed in beating Kristina Mladenovic and Yulia Putintseva to reach the last four, but she was swept aside by Kasatkina, who lost just four games in a comprehensive 6-3 6-2 win. Collins, meanwhile, begun her week at the WTA San Jose Classic with a 6-3 6-4 win over her compatriot Shelby Rogers. She then came back from a set down to beat Sloane Stephens before edging out Elena Rybakina in two tiebreak sets.
Collins then hammered Ana Konjuh 6-0 6-2 to reach her second consecutive final. She won the first, beating Elena Gabriela Ruse 6-2 6-4 in Palermo. But she may find things less straightforward up against Kasatkina. For one thing, the Russian has won both of their previous meetings, including a 6-2 6-7 6-1 win earlier this season in Melbourne at one of the Australian Open warm-up events. Still, there are reasons to be confident in Collins’ chances.
The American has been in excellent form of late, reaching the semifinals in Budapest (where she was forced to retire with injury) before winning the title in Palermo as mentioned above. She was also in a particularly destructive mood against Konjuh. But Kasatkina will doubtless look to disrupt Collins’ rhythm, with the 24-year-old invariably a difficult opponent to play. If she can keep Collins from dictating from the baseline, expect Kasatkina to claim her second title of the season.
Prediction: Kasatkina in 2
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