Six first-round matches will be on the slate on Day 1 of the WTA Mubadala Citi Open in Washington. And frankly, we’ve got six matches of top-notch quality. Aside from the Wimbledon rematch between Victoria Azarenka and Elina Svitolina, we’ve got a two-time WTA champion in 2023, Belinda Bencic, facing one of the fastest-rising players on Tour in Anastasia Potapova. Who do you think will advance?
WTA Washington Day 1 Predictions
Bianca Andreescu vs Marta Kostyuk
Head-to-head: Andreescu 1-0 Kostyuk
Marta Kostyuk’s win over Maria Sakkari at Wimbledon was the first top-1o win of her career. It’s the kind of result that could unlock her true potential as I genuinely feel she’s got the talent to rank a lot higher than 34. But she is making steady progress this season which is good to see. Andreescu has had an up-and-down year, and the goal right now has to be getting one of the top 32 seeds at the US Open.
Andreescu is so invested in performing well in Canada next week, but it’s imperative she gets some hard court momentum in place in Washington. Andreescu and Kostyuk played a very strange match in Hua Hin quarterfinal earlier this season. The Canadian nearly squandered a 6-0 5-1 lead, but Kostyuk was poor during the week in Thailand and it was a minor miracle she even made it that far. Kostyuk has improved considerably since Hua Hin, but I can see her having trouble handling Andreescu’s skillset.
Prediction: Andreescu in 3
Sloane Stephens vs Lauren Davis
Head-to-head: Stephens 2-2 Davis
Lauren Davis struggled mightily in qualifying for Washington and needed three sets to take down a pair of her compatriots. One of those was Alana Smith, ranked outside the world’s Top 500. Stephens has enjoyed a resurgent season results-wise, winning 18 matches in the first half of the current season, which is the same number she managed in the entirety of 2022. Stephens is a momentum player and hasn’t played any matches since Wimbledon, so I’m backing her with a pint of caution.
Prediction: Stephens in 3
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Belinda Bencic vs Anastasia Potapova
Head-to-head: Bencic 1-1 Potapova
Belinda Bencic has won 23 of her 32 matches this season, which is a fine record and is very much on course to have a career-best win-loss ratio. But it hasn’t all been plain sailing for the Swiss gold medalist whose brilliant first half of the year was curtailed by a hip injury. Bencic missed important tournaments in the leadup to the French Open and Wimbledon but appears to have shaken off every ounce of doubt regarding her fitness.
Bencic came within a point of a maiden Wimbledon quarterfinal, and those missed match points against Swiatek will sting for a while. But one of her major attributes is that she takes defeats and setbacks in her stride. This won’t be an easy task for Bencic though. Potapova comes in with a strong reputation as the WTA’s ultimate marathoner, playing the most three-set matches this season. This will likely live the full three sets.
Prediction: Bencic in 3
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
