Round of 16 action at the WTA China Open in Beijing comes to a conclusion on Day 6. Top seed Aryna Sabalenka will take on feisty Italian Jasmine Paolini while US Open champion Coco Gauff faces arguably the toughest match on paper when she squares off against in-form Veronika Kudermetova. The second batch of quarterfinalists will be determined on Thursday but who will advance?
WTA Beijing Day 6 Predictions
Aryna Sabalenka vs Jasmine Paolini
Head-to-head: Sabalenka 1-1 Paolini
Aryna Sabalenka withstood the challenge of British No. 1 Katie Boulter to advance into the round of 16 in two tight sets. Boulter served for both sets, but nerves got the better of her. Sabalenka prevailed 7-5, 7-6. Jasmine Paolini, for her part, overcame home wild card Yue Yuan in three sets, backing up her shock win over 15th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia in her opening match. The Italian is a great defender and a wonderful mover. Those are two of her biggest assets that nullify her shortcomings in terms of height. She’ll try and frustrate Sabalenka and play many balls back. But unlike their meeting last year when Paolini stunned the Belarusian, Sabalenka has polished her game. The World No. 1 is also more likely to find a way to win this match even if her serve misfires.
Prediction: Sabalenka in 2
Maria Sakkari vs Xinyu Wang
Head-to-head: first meeting
What a difference a month makes. Maria Sakkari made a tearful exit at this year’s US Open and was seemingly overwhelmed by online hate after a third successive first-round loss in a Grand Slam. But instead of throwing in the towel, she restored her confidence and match-winning qualities in Guadalajara. Xinyu Wang hasn’t won a Tour-level title yet, but she’s made huge strides in that regard. Sitting at a career-high ranking of No. 37, she scored one of her best wins in Beijing by eliminating 11th seed Daria Kasatkina. Wang is rapidly improving and she’s got a solid baseline game – hard to thit through her. But Sakkari has got that Top 10 aura back and she’s got the extra incentive to qualify for the WTA Finals.
Prediction: Sakkari in 2
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Anhelina Kalinina vs Caroline Garcia
Head-to-head: Garcia 1-0 Kalinina
This is a rematch from Tokyo just a week ago where Caroline Garcia defeated Anhelina Kalinina in straight sets. It’s great to see the Ukrainian potentially turning a corner in Beijing after a woeful run of form. Victory over Daria Saville in the second round was the first time she’s tallied back-to-back wins on Tour since Rome in May. Garcia has been intermittently inconsistent this year (for a player with Top 10 ambitions), but she’s part of the exclusive club of players with 20 or more wins on hard courts. The Frenchwoman should be considered the favorite here.
Prediction: Garcia in 3
Coco Gauff vs Veronika Kudermetova
Head-to-head: Gauff 1-1 Kudermetova
Coco Gauff earned a 14th straight win after recovering from a break down in the final set to beat Petra Martic 7-5 5-7 7-6 in a three-hour thriller. It wasn’t the prettiest of matches, but certainly a unique accomplishment for the 19-year-old. If you stretch that run further, it’s 20 wins from 21 matches since the start of the US swing. That streak conspicuously includes three title wins including her first Grand Slam at the US Open. Gauff will need to clean up her act after committing a flurry of errors in that win over Martic now that she’s facing a Top 10 slayer.
Veronika Kudermetova hit a purple patch at the end of September and she’ll be expected to pose a major challenge in the third round. After sweeping past Lesia Tsurenko 3-6, 6-0, 6-0, it’s now six wins in a row for the big-serving Russian. Apart from mild fatigue, Kudermetova has a big chance to end Gauff’s run. Bundled with a powerfully reliable serve and devastating forehand, she’ll be steaming into this match with confidence. With the two Top-1o wins under her belt since the start of last week, she’s got a good shot of engineering another upset.
Prediction: Kudermetova in 3
Main Photo Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
