Having performed very well in her last few events, Danielle Collins is the third seed at the WTA 250 in Austin. She made the semifinals here in 2023 and will kick off her campaign against Olivia Gadecki this time. We also predict the rest of the day’s matches, split between two articles. One features Peyton Stearns vs Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and the other featured Anhelina Kalinina vs Sara Bejlek. Who do you think will come out on top?
WTA Austin Day 2 Predictions
Darja Semenistaja vs Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva
Head-to-head: First meeting
Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva had a very strong junior career and everyone was excited at the idea of having a smaller country like Andorra show up on the professional circuit. The 18-year-old’s game has felt extremely underpowered at the top level so far and nothing has changed in that regard over the past two seasons. It would already be a pretty massive win for her to beat Darja Semenistaja, who had an awesome swing in India of late with strong titles in Bangalore (ITF) and Mumbai (WTA 125).
Prediction: Semenistaja in 2
Nadia Podoroska vs Xiyu Wang
Head-to-head: 1-1
They traded hard-court meetings during the Asian swing last year. Xiyu Wang is the more competent hard-courter generally and while she has been flying under the radar in 2024, she’s already earned a semifinal in Auckland and has done well to avoid bad losses for the most part. Nadia Podoroska is a little bit of a softer draw here for sure, but she did make Wang pay for being too passive in Ningbo last year and the Chinese won’t be able to sleepwalk through this one, she’ll need to be sharp.
Prediction: Wang in 3
Katie Volynets vs Renata Zarazua
Head-to-head: Volynets 3-2
These two have formed quite a rivalry these last few years with Renata Zarazua leading the hard-court head-to-head 2-1 and Katie Volynets getting the job done twice on green clay. They’ve also been situated at similar spots in the rankings, always close to the Top 100 but struggling to make long-term impact on the main tour. Volynets is the slightly stronger prospect and she’s also been very consistent in 2024, picking up at least two wins in every event played so far.
Prediction: Volynets in 3
Danielle Collins vs Oliva Gadecki
Head-to-head: First meeting
Ever since announcing she was intending to retire at the end of the season, Danielle Collins has been playing with new-found hunger. The American almost beat Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open and went on a run in both Abu Dhabi and Doha. With all due respect to Oliva Gadecki who’s inching closer towards a Top 100 debut, there’s just nothing she can do on a tennis court that can bother Collins and she’ll need the former World No. 7 to be off her game.
Prediction: Collins in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
