With the Australian Open done and dusted and the men’s tour inactive until the Davis Cup weekend, all eyes turn to the women’s events for the week. As always, we here at LWOT will preview and predict every match including Petra Martic vs Kristina Mladenovic. Who do you think will win?
WTA Lyon Day 1 Predictions
Alize Cornet vs Camila Osorio
Head-to-head: first meeting
Cornet began her season with a win over Maria Carle at the United Cup. The 33-year-old has struggled since though, losing three in a row and dropping out of the Top 50 after failing to defend her Australian Open quarterfinal run. Osorio opted against playing any warm-up events, beating Panna Udvardy in the first round in Melbourne before losing to World No. 1 Iga Swiatek. The Colombian has very little experience with indoor hard and while it is not Cornet’s best surface, she has played over 140 career matches on it. The combination of Cornet’s experience and home advantage makes her the favorite.
Prediction: Cornet in 2
Anastasia Potapova vs Marina Bassols Ribera
Head-to-head: first meeting
Potapova left Australia with mixed results, earning a couple of decent wins over the likes of Sloane Stephens and Taylor Townsend but ultimately leaving with a 3-4 record. Bassols Ribera failed to qualify for the first slam of the season after losing 7-5 in the decider to Kristina Mladenovic. The Spaniard succeeded in Lyon though, dropping just ten games in wins over Varvara Gracheva and Sara Errani. Bassols Ribera will be a tough test for Potapova but I expect the Russian to come out on top here.
Prediction: Potapova in 3
Garbine Muguruza vs Linda Noskova
Head-to-head: first meeting
Definitely the match of the day. A two-time slam champion and former No. 1 up against one of the most exciting rising stars in the sport right now. Noskova took the tennis world by storm in Adelaide, defeating the likes of Daria Kasatkina, Victoria Azarenka, and Ons Jabeur to reach the final out of qualifying, only losing to eventual Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka. Despite rising to inside the Top 60, the 18-year-old had to play qualifying in Melbourne and fell at the first hurdle, losing 6-4 in the third to Katherine Sebov. The young Czech bounced back though, back to her dominant self in Lyon qualifying. Noskova only dropped nine games in wins over Margaux Rouvroy and Viktoria Kuzmova. Muguruza is winless on the season with losses to Bianca Andreescu, Belinda Bencic, and Elise Mertens, leading by a set in two of those matches. This is very close to a toss-up but with her confidence at the moment, I have to go with Noskova.
Prediction: Noskova in 3
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