After a wash of walkovers in the semifinals with Paula Badosa and Veronika Kudermetova withdrawing, we can hope for an exciting WTA final in Adelaide before the Australian Open begins on Monday. As always, we here at LWOT will preview and predict the match. Who do you think will lift the trophy?
WTA Adelaide Final Prediction
Belinda Bencic vs Daria Kasatkina
Head-to-head: Kasatkina 3-2 Bencic
Bencic has already secured a return to the Top 10 with her run in Adelaide but the Swiss will definitely look to enter Melbourne with a winning streak. The 25-year-old has never won a title in Australia before, losing a final in Adelaide two years ago to Iga Swiatek. The Pole is the only player Bencic has lost to in 2023 so far, finishing in the group stages of the United Cup before coming to Adelaide. The Swiss started with straight-set wins over Garbine Muguruza and Anna Kalinskaya before defeating World No. 4 Caroline Garcia 6-4 in the third. Bencic then received a walkover from Veronika Kudermetova into the final.
Kasatkina did not get off to the best start in Adelaide in week one, becoming the first main draw scalp of Linda Noskova on the Czech teen’s road to the final. The World No. 8 re-grouped though and got a couple of strong wins in week two. Kasatkina began with a bye in Adelaide 2 before taking out Barbora Krejcikova and Petra Kvitova, defeating both Czechs in straight sets. After a semifinal walkover from Paula Badosa, Kasatkina will now face a non-Czech opponent for the first time in 2023. Kasatkina won her previous WTA final in Australia, winning one of the Melbourne warm-up events in 2021.
Bencic and Kasatkina have been facing off since they were both Juniors with the Russian winning in back-to-back weeks over Bencic in May 2013 in Italy. Kasatkina also leads the professional head-to-head between the two, though Bencic has beaten her twice including in Adelaide in 2020. It’s a tight match to call and it really could go either way, though on faster hard courts I am leaning toward Bencic as a favorite.
Prediction: Bencic in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
