The tennis world is full of must-see action across a variety of tournaments being held in Australia this week. The WTA Melbourne Summer Set 2 event is no different and Wednesday’s action features some big names in the women’s game. Chief among them is former Grand Slam finalist Madison Keys. How will the American fair, and who else might we see in action on Thursday? We discuss exactly that in our WTA Melbourne Summer Set 2 day 2 predictions.
WTA Melbourne Summer Set 2 Day 2 Predictions
Lin Zhu vs Samantha Stosur
Head-to-head: First meeting
Lin Zhu is in a purple patch at the moment and comes into this match on a six win streak. However, she faces the unenviable task of taking on a fired up Samantha Stosur. The legendary Aussie has announced that the Australian Open will be her final Grand Slam as a singles player. Stosur will surely want to go out with a bang and that kind of energy will be hard to deny. The Aussie might not be the player she once was, but I think we can expect a few brilliant performances from the Aussie in the coming weeks. She should be the better player here and get the win relatively comfortably.
Prediction: Stosur in 2
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Aliaksandra Sasnovich vs Xinyu Wang
Head-to-head: First meeting
Aliaksandra Sasnovich is in trouble here. The Belarusian continues to lack the consistency needed to climb back up the ranks in the women’s game. Ordinarily, a first round draw against a lucky loser would normally represent a great chance to start fixing that. However, Xinyu Wang is a talented young player with a big game who is now playing with house money in that she shouldn’t even be in the main draw really. That makes for a dangerous combination and I suspect it spells an early exit here for Sasnovich. this may go the distance, but I think Wang edges it in the end.
Prediction: Wang in 3
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Marta Kostyuk vs Claire Liu
Head-to-head: First meeting
Both of these players are young and talented and this should make for an intriguing matchup. Claire Liu may well be a future star in the women’s game and will be one to watch this year. However, Marta Kostyuk has already proven she has what it takes to mix it with the best of the best in the women’s game. Injuries at unfortunate times meant 2021 wasn’t quite as good as it could have been for the young Ukrainian. Still, it was a breakout year for her and she should kick on this year and keep climbing the ranks. This should be a close contest, but I expect Kostyuk to come through it in the end.
Prediction: Kostyuk in 2
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Madison Keys vs Harriet Dart
Head-to-head: First meeting
Keys will have this match entirely on her racket. Harriet Dart is a decent if unspectacular tennis player who has been inside the top 150 since 2018. However, she has never managed to crack the top 100 at year end. By comparison Keys is a top 10 talent when at her best, her only issue is how inconsistent she is. The American can blow anyone off the court just as easily as she can hit 50 unforced errors in a match she has no business losing. Which version of Keys we see on Wednesday will determine who wins this and because the match is on her racket, I have to back the American to come out on top here.
Prediction: Keys in 2
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