The quarterfinal line-up is set at the WTA 250 in Rouen. Top-seeded Elina Svitolina remains the main contender for the title, but No. 3 seed Olga Danilovic is building a nice win streak in the bottom half of the draw. Who do you think will make the semifinals at WTA Rouen?
WTA Rouen Quarterfinal Predictions
Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah vs Suzan Lamens
Head-to-head: First meeting
Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah is already one of the stories of the week with success in W50 events earlier in the season (finals in Macon and Bujumbura), leading her to enter this WTA Tour debut with confidence. The youngster was fearless in her defeats of Lucia Bronzetti and Jaqueline Cristian. She’ll need to keep playing like that as Suzan Lamens has much more experience at these stages after winning Osaka last year. With four wins on indoor clay this year already after the Billie Jean King Cup, the Dutchwoman will probably end this run.
Prediction: Lamens in 3
Jessika Ponchet vs Elena-Gabriela Ruse
Head-to-head: First meeting
Jessika Ponchet snuck into the main draw as a lucky loser and has done a great job dispatching Margaux Rouvroy and Fiona Ferro to make this quarterfinal. But here she’s facing an opponent with a much stronger upside. Elena-Gabriela Ruse was close to massive wins at the last few Slams, and for some reason, just can’t produce that sort of level week in, week out on the tour. Maybe this week could be her chance, and the level in that opening-set bagel against Camilla Rosatello was pretty scary.
Prediction: Ruse in 2
Moyuka Uchijima vs Olga Danilovic
Head-to-head: First meeting
Moyuka Uchijima earned her second life at this event when she came back from 1-6 1-5 to defeat Lois Boisson. A victory like that can help you play much more freely from there, and it seems like she’ll need every edge she can get to defeat Olga Danilovic. That’s because the Serbian was barely dropping games in her most recent event at WTA 125 Antalya, and she seems to be back at it in Rouen. The 24-year-old has been playing the tennis of her life for a while now, and the conditions should only support that.
Prediction: Danilovic in 2
Elena Svitolina vs Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
Head-to-head: Svitolina 1-0
Elina Svitolina got a nice warm-up for the indoor clay conditions in Rouen during the Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers last week. So far, it seems to be doing the trick as she’s progressed through the first two rounds pretty seamlessly. The top seed has to be the main contender for the title, and Jessica Bouzas Maneiro has a tough challenge coming up for her. She defeated Maria Sakkari and Varvara Gracheva, but this is a step up in competition that she might not be ready for.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey – USA TODAY Sports
