With second seed Marie Bouzkova and sixth seed Katerina Siniakova both out in the opening round, the bottom half of the draw has opened up in Monterrey, though Caroline Garcia remains the outright favorite. As always, we here at LWOT will preview and predict every match. Who do you think will win?
WTA Monterrey Day 3 Predictions
Kamilla Rakhimova vs Ysaline Bonaventure
Head-to-head: first meeting
#97 versus #96 here, though in varying recent form. Bonaventure was 2-6 in her last eight matches coming into Monterrey, only beating Luisa Stefani and Simona Waltert in three sets. The Belgian got another win under her belt, though dropping a set again to Despina Papamichail. Rakhimova is on an eight-win streak at the moment, all in Mexico as she won the ITF 60 in Irapuato, successfully qualified in Monterrey, and took out Katerina Siniakova in a third-set tiebreak. The Russian is the favorite for me with her current form.
Prediction: Rakhimova in 2
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Caroline Dolehide vs Anna Karolina Schmiedlova
Head-to-head: first meeting
After a mediocre start to the season in singles while she reached the Australian Open quarterfinals in doubles, Caroline Dolehide has found some form in Monterrey. The American beat Laura Pigossi and Marcela Zacarias in qualifying before outclassing Jule Niemeier 6-1 6-0 in the first round. Schmiedlova, coming off a 1-6 2-6 Merida qualifying loss to Aliona Bolsova, pulled off the biggest upset of the first round. The Slovak took out second seed Marie Bouzkova 6-4 6-2. Anna Karolina Schmiedlova enters the match as a favorite though I could see Dolehide troubling her.
Prediction: Schmiedlova in 3
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Zhu Lin vs Rebecca Marino
Head-to-head: Zhu 2-1 Marino
Rematch of an Australian Open first round in Monterrey. Despite some decent qualifying wins, Rebecca Marino only got her second main draw win of the season when she beat Fernanda Contreras Gomez, losing her last five main draw matches. Zhu Lin’s having a strong run to start the season, winning her second WTA title in Hua Hin and reaching the Australian Open fourth round with a win over Maria Sakkari. Zhu dispatched Marino in Melbourne and I expect more of the same here.
Prediction: Zhu in 2
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Donna Vekic vs Emma Navarro
Head-to-head: first meeting
Donna Vekic has an impressive 10-2 record on the season, going undefeated at the United Cup, reaching quarterfinals at the Australian Open and Linz, before going to Monterrey. The Croatian went down a set to Lesia Tsurenko in her opener but the Ukrainian had to retire due to injury. Emma Navarro made good on her Monterrey wild card on the third try. The 21-year-old lost first-round matches here in 2020 and 2022 but defeated Leolie Jeanjean this time around. Navarro shares the same record as Vekic, winning an ITF 25 and reaching the final of an ITF 60 in January. Expect the Croat to win out here.
Prediction: Vekic in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey – USA TODAY Sports
