Day 3 of WTA Linz promises to be a cracker of a day, with intriguing matches across the park. Top seed Maria Sakkari is in second round action, with first round encounters taking place too. As throughout the week, we will be offering up our predictions on the day’s play, including in a separate article. So, who makes it through on Day 3?
WTA Linz Day 3 Predictions
Irina-Camelia Begu vs Clara Tauson
Head-to-head: First meeting
Begu has been playing some great tennis so far in 2023. She’s a strong ball-striker, and she’s taken to the hard courts really well. It was initially looking to be a tough opening round with her drawn to play Siniakova, but her withdrawal means she now plays lucky loser Clara Tauson.
Tauson would’ve been disappointed with her straight sets loss in qualifying to Masarova. We know the Dane is a great player who is capable of some wonderful tennis, but she’s struggling to bring any great consistency to her week-by-week performances. This should be a good contest – but Begu’s form is good and she’ll probably be too solid.
Prediction: Begu in 3
Madison Brengle vs Julia Grabher
Head-to-head: First meeting
Grabher has managed just one win in 2023, but her draws have been fairly brutal. She pushed Alycia Parks very close in Lyon last week, and this performance will surely give her a much needed confidence boost. Brengle doesn’t have any weapons to boast of, so there’ll be plenty of chances for her here.
Prediction: Grabher in 3
Anna-Lena Friedsam vs Sara Errani
Head-to-head: First meeting
Friedsam stormed her way through qualifying, taking down the top seed Gracheva in the process. Her form has been pretty decent this year, only losing to strong opponents and the scorelines have been close for the most part. She’ll fancy her chances here against the veteran Italian.
Errani’s time on tour is surely limited at this point. While it’s great to see her still playing, it’s tough to see her winning main tour matches now, unless she finds an immense patch of form. Friedsam has looked far better and fresher this year, so she goes in as the favorite.
Prediction: Friedsam in 2
Maria Sakkari vs Varvara Gracheva
Head-to-head: First meeting
Sakkari’s first round match was fairly typical for her – played a great first set and then made things tricky for herself in the second. In terms of WTA experience and ranking, Sakkari is the best player in this draw. It’s another tournament that she should probably win, though in form players like Alycia Parks are lurking. Still, Sakkari should be targeting at least the final this week and she can’t afford to struggle early.
Gracheva was top seed in qualifying, where she lost in the final round so entered the draw as a lucky loser. She had a nice win over Blinkova, but it’s tough to see her doing too much to get past Sakkari’s brutal and physical game (unless Maria plays a shocking match). The Greek is a very complete player and if she brings a good level she should get through just fine.
Prediction: Sakkari in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
