After what has been a thrilling week of tennis in Osaka, just four women remain in contention for the title. Home favorite Naomi Osaka will face Elise Mertens whilst Angelique Kerber will meet Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for the fourteenth time in the semifinals of the 2019 Toray Pan Pacific Open. But who will book their place in the final?
Pan Pacific Open Semifinal Predictions
Angelique Kerber vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Head-to-head: Kerber 7-6 Pavlyuchenkova
This will mark the latest instalment of what has been a fierce rivalry. Pavlyuchenkova leads 6-4 on hard courts, but has lost all three of their matches on clay and grass. Kerber has struggled throughout this season, falling out of the top ten as a result, but the German has benefitted from a nervous performance from Nicole Gibbs in the second round and a third-set retirement from Madison Keys in the quarterfinals en route to the last four. She’s the only one of the remaining four players who managed to finish her quarterfinal on Friday.
Due to inclement weather, Pavlyuchenkova will have to play two matches on Saturday. Fortunately for the Russian her win over Misaki Doi was comprehensive as she surrendered just four games to the Japanese #2. The Russian reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open this season, but had struggled to back up that result. But she has managed to turn the tide in Osaka. Her performances in victories over Dayana Yastremska, Kiki Bertens and Misaki Doi were all extremely impressive.
And unless she’s fatigued by having to play a second match in one day, Pavlyuchenkova should be the favorite going into this clash. She matches up well with Kerber, particularly on a hard court, and hits a big enough ball to trouble the German. The Russian has been nothing short of spectacular this week and undoubtedly has the talent to beat Kerber. Expect her to do just that.
Prediction: Pavlyuchenkova in 3
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Naomi Osaka vs Elise Mertens
Head-to-head: Mertens 1-0
The world #4 managed to turn around her head-to-head against her quarterfinal opponent Yulia Putintseva and advance to the semifinals in her hometown with a straight-sets victory. She’s a two-time runner-up of the Toray Pan Pacific Open, although the tournament was played in Tokyo up until this year, and she will surely be desperate to go one better in front of her hometown crowd.
Elise Mertens had a brilliant US Open campaign, reaching the quarterfinals where she took a set off eventual champion Bianca Andreescu. She has managed to bring that form to Japan, beating Whitney Osuigwe, Su-Wei Hsieh and Camila Giorgi on her way to the semifinals. The Belgian won their only head-to-head meeting two years ago in Wuhan. They’ve both made a lot of progress since that time, but it’s Osaka who has won two Grand Slams and become the world #1 in that period.
Mertens plays a deep, consistent ball and is generally the type of opponent Osaka to struggle against. However, she can offer precious little offensively compared with the Japanese star. When she’s on form, as she has been so far at the Pan Pacific Open, Osaka has the power and finesse to get the better of anyone. And the Australian Open champion is clearly very motivated to get a title here. Expect her to prove too strong for Mertens, though she will not have things all her own way.
Predictions: Osaka in 3
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