The quarterfinal matches at the WTA 500 in Stuttgart will be held on Saturday with Friday being a public holiday in Germany. This means we get a full day of rest to let these matchups sink in and the line-up is, as usual at this venue, outstanding. World No. 4 Coco Gauff and World No. 6 Jasmine Paolini will face each other this early into the event, while 2-time champion Iga Swiatek is facing Jelena Ostapenko, whom she has never defeated despite five attempts. Who do you think will make the final four?
WTA Stuttgart Quarterfinal Predictions
Ekaterina Alexandrova vs Jessica Pegula
Head-to-head: 2-2
Ekaterina Alexandrova’s game has basically no margin for error, but the Russian can be a nightmare to face when she’s on. Conditions in Stuttgart support her game and she was borderline unplayable in her dismissal of Mirra Andreeva in the second round. She’s already played Jessica Pegula twice this year, winning in Doha but losing in Charleston on green clay recently. This indoor clay court is probably more of a boost to her game than it is to the American’s. The chance is there, just a question of which Alexandrova we’ll get on Saturday.
Prediction: Alexandrova in 3
Aryna Sabalenka vs Elise Mertens
Head-to-head: Sabalenka 8-2
While Elise Mertens used to push Aryna Sabalenka all the time, she hasn’t come close to the Belarusian in their last six meetings. The last time she won was in 2018, the last time she took a set the year after. While this is a somewhat unusual position for the World No. 1 as she hasn’t even played a single minute of tennis and is in the quarterfinals, she usually performs at this tournament and clearly doesn’t struggle against the solid baselining that Mertens brings to the table. And her Sunshine Double form was ridiculous.
Prediction: Sabalenka in 2
Iga Swiatek vs Jelena Ostapenko
Head-to-head: Ostapenko 5-0
Iga Swiatek has a great record in Stuttgart, although at least on the eye test this event isn’t as easy for her to dominate as the other clay-court venues. The conditions are faster and maybe even more importantly slicker with Liudmila Samsonova or Elena Rybakina bothering her with first-strike tennis here in the past. But if you want somebody to follow in their footsteps, Jelena Ostapenko’s your girl. She’s literally Swiatek’s nemesis and the Pole will have to stop panicking against her if she finally wants to pick up a win.
Prediction: Ostapenko in 3
Coco Gauff vs Jasmine Paolini
Head-to-head: Gauff 2-0
Some have doubts whether Jasmine Paolini will be on top of the sport for that long and while these concerns are perfectly understandable, the Italian has recently made the semis in Miami and now didn’t waste any time defeating the local hopes Eva Lys and Jule Niemeier here. The matchup with Coco Gauff is one we haven’t seen too much, at least not since Paolini became a top player. The American needs to bounce back from a weaker patch, clay’s usually where she turns it on.
Prediction: Gauff in 2
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
