Day 2 of the WTA Lyon tournament is upon us. Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia (we predict her match in another article) are among those in action on the second day. Both will surely like their chances of lifting the title after top seed Alexandrova was upset in the first round. Others in the slightly weaker field in Lyon will be hopeful of a deep run and some valuable points this week. We take a look at who should continue on their way in our WTA Lyon Day 2 predictions.
WTA Lyon Day 2 Predictions
Katarina Zavatska vs Margarita Gasparyan
Head-to-head:
Zavatska should be happy with this first round match. The young Ukrainian is trending in the right direction on the women’s tour and looks set to break into the top 100. Gasparyan on the other hand seems a long way from her best and has done for some time now. Ordinarily this would have the makings of a tight match given their ranking similarity, but Gasparyan has been trending downwards for over a year now. I think Zavatska has a big enough game to trouble the Russian here. If she can take the ball early and rush the Gasparyan backhand she should draw enough errors to come away with the win.
Prediction: Zavastka in 3
Aliaksandra Sasnovich vs Eugenie Bouchard
Head-to-head:
Both of these players are hoping to return to the heights they once enjoyed on the women’s tour. What seems a now never-ending comeback story for Bouchard has finally gained some traction. The Canadian is beginning to look like the former top 5 player she once was. Sasnovich on the other hand remains infuriatingly inconsistent. That fact alone is what keeps her outside the top 100 looking in. The Belarus native has the game to be well inside the top 50. However, she doesn’t play at that level anywhere near as often as she needs to if she wants to climb back up the WTA rankings.
That lack of consistency makes her matches hard to predict. However, I think Sasnovich should enjoy the conditions in Lyon. She hits a big ball and is more than happy to be the aggressor in matches. That mindset should pay dividends here. If she can maintain belief in her game when she inevitably has a wobble, she should be able to power her way into the next round.
Prediction: Sasnovich in 3
Kristina Mladenovic vs Mihaela Buzarnescu
Head-to-head: First meeting
#4 seed Mladenovic has been given a kind draw to kick off her campaign here in Lyon. Buzarnescu is undeniably a talented player. However, she hasn’t looked anywhere near her best in some time. The Romanian was once ranked #20 in the world but now founds herself outside the top 100. The number of players outside the top 100 in this main draw really does demonstrate how watered down the tournament is. As such, top seeds will see a real opportunity to pick up a title here. Mladenovic in particular will be hoping to add to what is a surprisingly small trophy tally given the talent she possesses.
Mladenovic is running out of time to resurrect her singles career. She should be fired up to perform in her home country and certainly possesses the game to trouble anyone in the draw here in Lyon. She will face stern opposition in later rounds if the other seeds perform, but should come through tis round relatively comfortably.
Prediction: Mladenovic in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
