We are officially down to just four surviving players in the Nature Valley Classic main draw. Which two players will make their way into our final?
WTA Birmingham Semifinal Predictions
Julia Goerges vs Petra Martic
Head to head: Goerges leads 1-0
In an interesting contest in the second semifinal, Julia Goerges will be aiming to power her way into a first Birmingham final. To do so, she must test her baseline skills against the resilient and tricky Petra Martic. Goerges is probably the most powerful of the players left in the Birmingham draw. She consistently seeks to run around her backhand to get her stronger forehand into play.
Few baseline defenders on tour can really live with a Goerges forehand when it is firmly struck, and that is even more the case on a grass court, where it is tough to find defensive answers at the best of times. Goerges simply overwhelmed and overpowered Yulia Putintseva in the previous round, where she hit 31 winners and dominated from the service line. If she plays anywhere close to that level then it could be tough for the Croatian, who has plenty of shots to turn points around from desperate situations, but can become a touch too reactionary as she showed in phases of her win against Jelena Ostapenko in the last round.
These two have played just once before, with Goerges taking a hard-fought 6-4 third-set win all the way back in 2008.
Prediction: Goerges in 2
Ashleigh Barty vs Barbora Strycova
Head to head: Barty leads 2-1
In the first big semifinal, Ashleigh Barty, a former finalist here, takes on the two-time runner-up Barbora Strycova in a battle of two accomplished grass-courters. Barty has played some very good ball this week, looking assured and composed off the ground from the baseline, and handling the pressure of this tournament very well at present. She took a huge win over Venus Williams in the quarterfinal, where she won 11 of the last 14 games of the match to cruise to victory.
Barbora Strycova was in a bit of a rut during the clay-court swing and arrived in Birmingham on a losing streak. However, she has once again rediscovered some good form on a surface tailor-made to her brand of all-court tennis. She was particularly effective against Kristyna Pliskova in the last round, and will need to maintain all of her depth and deadly accurate service placement in order to stand a chance against Barty in the next round.
Strycova doesn’t necessarily have the baseline power to match what Barty can come up with on the forehand wing, but she steals points in a number of ways. The Czhech won’t be able to live with the Barty game if she stays in the baseline, but she’ll give herself every opportunity if she can find moments to come into the net and get firmly in the face of her opponent. Strycova really is a formidable opponent, who has earned huge wins on this surface. Barty should be a step too far, though. Also, worryingly for the rest of the tour, the Australian is starting to look at home as one of the household names on the circuit.
Prediction: Barty in 2
Main Photo from Getty
