It’s time for half of the second-round matchups, on Day 3 at the 2023 WTA Miami Open. In one of the most interesting clashes of the day, Camila Giorgi takes on Victoria Azarenka. Who do you think will prevail?
WTA Miami Day 3 Predictions
Nao Hibino vs Martina Trevisan
Head-to-head: Trevisan 2-0
Martina Trevisan is still keeping herself extremely high in the WTA rankings, but that’s mostly based on her run in Rabat and at the French Open. On hard courts, the Italian usually struggles to keep herself competitive against tour-level players. Nao Hibino is a good draw for her, but it’s far from certain that the 29-year-old will make it to the next stage. Aside for that win over Paula Badosa, her last appareances at this level have been underwhelming.
Prediction: Hibino in 3
Elise Mertens vs Daria Kasatkina
Head-to-head: Kasatkina 4-1
Daria Kasatkina will likely fail to keep herself inside the Top 10, but the Russian still had the season of her career in 2022. It’s not going quite as well this time, especially as even at Indian Wells she was forced to put herself through a lot of trouble. Elise Mertens already has a win over Alycia Parks under her belt and while she’s not in the process of putting together her best-ever campaign, she’s just that much more solid.
Prediction: Mertens in 3
Magda Linette vs Evgeniya Rodina
Head-to-head: Linette 2-0
After making the semifinals at the Australian Open, Magda Linette was expected to go pretty huge in the next few events she played. It never materialised and the Pole is still looking for an opponent who will replicate the conditions from Melbourne, which allowed her to counter and redirect the pace flying at her without that much of an issue. Evgeniya Rodina should be weak enough to land her a helping hand.
Prediction: Linette in 2
Camila Giorgi vs Victoria Azarenka
Head-to-head: Azarenka 2-1
Camila Giorgi has just recently won the title at Merida, taking home a WTA 250 title. The Italian is always a tough player to predict as you never quite know whether she’ll suddenly find her rhythm or not. Victoria Azarenka hasn’t been declining at all with most of her issues in recent years boliing down to injuries. In the past couple of campaigns, the Belarusian has definitely still been one of the best players in the world.
Prediction: Azarenka in 3
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports