The second round of the French Open begins on Day 4 in Paris. 32 women will try to advance to Friday’s third round. As always, we here at LWOT are going to share our thoughts on the matches for you. We split the 16 matches between four articles. In addition to this one, we have articles featuring Victoria Azarenka vs Andrea Petkovic, Sloane Stephens vs Sorana Cirstea, and Coco Gauff vs Alison Van Uytvanck. Predicting today’s matches are Jim Smith, Jakub Bobro, and Damian Kust.
French Open Day 4 Women’s Predictions
Elise Mertens vs Marie Bouzkova
Jim:
This is a match that Mertens should win, but that does not necessarily mean she will win it. Bouzkova is not a particularly consistent performer, but she has shown an appetite for performing on the big stage in the past and she looked sharp in beating lucky loser Anastasia Gasanova in the first round. Still, Mertens should have just about too much for the Czech.
Prediction: Mertens in 3
Jakub:
After a shaky season, Mertens came out with an easy win over Elena Gabriela Ruse to start her French Open campaign and is still in the running to keep her impressive third-round streak alive in Paris for the sixth year running. Bouzkova won her first match at Roland Garros in her fourth main draw appearance here and will certainly be a tougher opponent than the Romanian judging by her disposal of Anastasia Gasanova. I see the Czech pulling off the upset here but it should be a close, high-quality affair.
Prediction: Bouzkova in 3
Damian:
Elise Mertens’s streak of consecutive third-round appearances at the Slams might be coming to an end. The Belgian hasn’t played much recently due to health issues. Meanwhile, Marie Bouzkova looked great in Madrid, before very comfortably dispatching Anastasia Gasanova in Round 1.
Prediction: Bouzkova in 3
Kaia Kanepi vs Beatriz Haddad Maia
Jim:
Kanepi looked like a tough opponent for Garbine Muguruza in the first round and so it proved. The Estonian pulled off another famous first-round win at a Major and her reward is a winnable match against Haddad Maia. In truth, this match could go either way, but Kanepi probably has the higher ceiling of the two and more experience to call upon.
Prediction: Kanepi in 3
Jakub:
Kanepi reaffirmed her reputation as one of the most dangerous floaters for a seed to run into early in the draw with an upset over a struggling Garbine Muguruza. Haddad Maia has now won ten out of her last eleven matches after beating Cristina Bucsa. Kanepi is priced as the favorite but I actually see this one going the other way as I believe Haddad Maia is being underrated here.
Prediction: Haddad Maia in 2
Damian:
You can always trust Kaia Kanepi to deliver a huge upset at a Grand Slam, but can she repeat it against a lower-ranked opponent, but one who’s been playing excellent tennis in recent weeks? I’d say she can’t as Beatriz Haddad Maia is in the form of her life right now and should be able to construct the rallies well enough to keep Kanepi on the move.
Prediction: Haddad Maia in 3
Martina Trevisan vs Magda Linette
Jim:
It was some first-round win for Linette with the Pole stunning the in-form Ons Jabeur. The challenge for her now will be to back it up. Unfortunately for Linette, she is coming up against another player in excellent for in Trevisan. A return to the quarterfinals might be beyond the Italian’s reach, but it would be no surprise to see her reach the third round.
Prediction: Trevisan in 2
Jakub:
This is a sneakily good match-up. Trevisan, a quarterfinalist here in 2020, is on a six-match win streak with her title in Rabat and a 6-0 6-2 win over Harriet Dart. Linette pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament so far, taking out Ons Jabeur 7-5 in the third. Like all other match-ups in this lineup, it feels like a 50/50 to me but I will lean on the side of Trevisan with how efficiently she has demolished her opponents recently.
Prediction: Trevisan in 2
Damian:
Magda Linette played one of the best matches of her career to kick out Ons Jabeur from the tournament in the first round. The Pole was also battling against a leg injury though, leaving her fitness a bit in doubt. Against an opponent like Martina Trevisan, who’s just won Rabat and demolished her first-round opponent, this probably means trouble for Linette.
Prediction: Trevisan in 2
Bianca Andreescu vs Belinda Bencic
Jim:
This has the makings of a very entertaining match. Bencic made an excellent start to her French Open campaign, but Andreescu will surely offer more resistance than Reka Luca Jani. But the Canadian is still working her way back to her best after a succession of injury problems and this may prove to be a challenge too far too soon for her.
Prediction: Bencic in 3
Jakub:
One of the most exciting second-round match-ups here. Andreescu has been ever improving since she started her season in Stuttgart, culminating in a Rome quarterfinal but did not have the best of times in the first two sets against Ysaline Bonaventure. Meanwhile, Bencic cruised past Reka-Luca Jani with just two games lost in the first round. Neither has had a second-week run at Roland Garros before and this match-up is pretty much a coin flip for me.
Prediction: Bencic in 3
Damian:
Bianca Andreescu’s first-round win certainly wasn’t pretty. The Canadian would have to up her game a lot to have a shot at Belinda Bencic, who’s been solid if unspectacular recently. It’s not impossible to imagine, but it’s not the more likely result.
Prediction: Bencic in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
