Main draw action starts on Tuesday on the WTA side of the 2023 Mutua Madrid Open. How will former Roland Garros runner-up Sofia Kenin fare in her first appearance in Spain since 2019? Can Sorana Cirstea maintain her Sunshine Double disposition? These and many other questions will be answered quite soon. As always, we look at all the matches. We split the rest of the day’s matches between two articles. One features Anett Kontaveit vs Karolina Muchova and the second features Kaia Kanepi vs Shelby Rogers. Who do you think will win?
WTA Madrid Day 1 Predictions
Ana Bogdan vs Anna Bondar
Head-to-head: 1-1
Anna Bondar picked up her season recently with a few wins in Billie Jean King Cup, but they were mostly against weaker opposition. Ana Bogdan has more quality, although it’s not like the Romanian has been doing that well in 2023 besides her big run in Dubai. It was Bondar who went their only clay meeting four years ago, but it was quite a long time ago and Bogdan managed to exact revenge at this year’s Australian Open. Should be a tight one, the 30-year-old feels like the one who should be able to extract more out of these quicker clay conditions.
Prediction: Bogdan in 3
Sorana Cirstea vs Lauren Davis
Head-to-head: Davis 1-0
Sorana Cirstea is coming off a phenomenal showing at the Sunshine Double where she won nine matches, including one victory over Aryna Sabalenka and two against Caroline Garcia. Her sudden resurgence has been credited to her partnership with the 2002 Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson. While she is trailing Lauren Davis in the head-to-head, their only match happened ten years ago. It seems like Cirstea’s form right now, if she can maintain it, will simply be too much here.
Prediction: Cirstea in 2
Maryna Zanevska vs Sofia Kenin
Head-to-head: Kenin 1-0
Sofia Kenin’s comeback trail has been a bumpy ride and this isn’t a very favorable opening draw. Maryna Zanevska hasn’t played since Miami, but clay has been a happy hunting ground for her over the years, especially when she won her only WTA 250 title on it in Gdynia two years ago. They’ve already played in Hobart this year and Kenin managed to drop just five games. But as we know her level is far from stable so far and Zanevska will not be entering this one as a clear underdog. The American has a higher upside and it’s her responsibility to show it.
Prediction: Kenin in 3
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
