All of the top seeds in Cleveland held serve and moved on to the second round. As such, this promises to be an action-packed tournament with quality late into the draw. Barbora Krejcikova remains the favourite after shrugging off a tough test in the first round. However, the likes of Ekaterina Alexandrova and Claura Tauson look ready to spoil the party. There are five matches taking place on Tuesday, all of which are covered in this set of WTA Cleveland day 3 predictions.
WTA Cleveland Day 3 Predictions
Clara Tauson vs Alize Cornet
Head-to-head: First meeting
Tauson was predictably dominant in her first match against Harmony Tan. The young Dane has too much power for most on the tour and her serve is already a real weapon. She is very, very dangerous on hard courts and is a real dark horse to lift the title here in Cleveland. However, she faces a tough test in round two against Alize Cornet. The French star is enjoying something of a resurgence in 2022 and was emphatic in her dismissal of Dayana Yastremska. This should be a good contest but I expect Tauson to dominate with power off the ground and hit too many winners for Cornet to handle.
Prediction: Tauson in 2
Sara Sorribes Tormo vs Aliaksandra Sasnovich
Head-to-head: First meeting
Sara Sorribes Tormo is an immense fighter and competitor. However, even she will be hard-pressed to find the energy for another fight here after going nearly four hours deep in her first match in Cleveland. The Spaniard now faces sterner opposition in Aliaksandra Sasnovich. Her marathon match in the last round doesn’t help her cause against a better hard court player than her. The Belarusian is in superb form this year and will be confident in picking up a win here, I share her confidence.
Prediction: Sasnovich in 3
Sorana Cirstea vs Magda Linette
Head-to-head: 3 – 0 Cirstea
Both of these players are clean ball strikers who are incredibly dangerous when on song. They also both played solid first round matches and come into this match with decent form. However, Sorana Cirstea has dominated the head-to-head and appears to have Magda Linette’s number. Linette is a very solid player, but I can’t see her living with Cirstea if the Romanian is in full flow. Her down-the-line backhand is a sight to behold when on song and she looks good for another win here.
Prediction: Cirstea in 3
Ludmilla Samsonova vs Iryna Shymanovich
Head-to-head: First meeting
I’m not putting much stock in Iryna Shymanovich’s chances here. The Belarusian is 25 and sits well outside the top 300 in the women’s game. By contrast, Ludmilla Samsonova is a top 50 player who just won her second WTA title. The Russian is a superb player who still has levels to climb to as far as her game is concerned. This match should be a comfortable win for her barring some unforeseen meltdown of epic proportions. Those are rare, so back Samsonova to move on here.
Prediction: Samsonova in 2
Sofia Kenin vs Irina-Camelia Begu
Head-to-head: First meeting
Much has been made of Sofia Kenin’s vanishing act over the last 18 months. That being said, she is still a former world #4 and Grand Slam champion. The game is still in there somewhere unless she is the next Sloane Stephens of women’s tennis. I don’t think that will be the case though. Kenin has too much fight and heart and will find her way back to the top of the game sooner rather than later. She looked decent in her last match but will need to be more than decent against an in form Irina-Camelia Begu. Begu won a WTA title this year in Palermo and is playing some of her best tennis. She isn’t as accomplished on hard courts as Kenin, but is definitely in better form. This should go the distance and I suspect Kenin edges it. This could be the week she starts blazing her comeback trail.
Prediction: Kenin in 3
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