We are up to Day 2 of the WTA Volvo Car Open in Charleston, South Carolina. Tuesday will see a mix of first- and second-round matches, with some great ones on deck. We predict all 13 of the day’s matches between three articles. In addition to this one, we have other articles featuring Petra Kvitova vs Storm Sanders and Coco Gauff vs Tsvetana Pironkova.
WTA Charleston Day 2 Predictions
Kristina Mladenovic vs Shelby Rogers
The Frenchwoman has been a bit up and down recently, though we often see glimmers of her best self. Mladenovic was a Top 10 player four years ago, though her form really fell off for a while after that. Her ceiling is higher than Rogers’, and her game is slowly but surely improving, so she’s the safer pick here, especially on clay. With the pair separated by just three ranking spots, though, expect a tight match.
Prediction: Mladenovic in 3
Anastasia Potapova vs Anastasija Sevastova
This battle of the Anastasi(j)as has the potential to be a good one, though I’m not so confident. Sevastova was close to cracking the Top 10 a few years ago, though her form has regressed rapidly since then. Potapova, meanwhile, is improving every match. Both have similar recent results, but I just like Potapova to keep getting good wins as her career advances.
Prediction: Potapova in 3
Emma Navarro vs Renata Zarazua
Navarro is underrated here. Don’t let her ranking of #481 confuse you. She’s a strong NCAA player, currently undefeated this year and ranked #6 among women’s college players. If this match was on a hard court, I would take her straight for the upset. Even though Navarro was better on clay as a junior, she spends her whole competitive NCAA season on hard courts, so there will be a bit of an adjustment back to hard courts. On clay, I favor Zarazua. Barely.
Prediction: Zarazua in 3
Magdalena Frech vs Garbine Muguruza
Frech has not lost a set in her three matches in Charleston so far–two in qualifying and a first-round win. None of those matches, though, were against a player of Muguruza’s caliber. The Spaniard might not be at her Slam-winning peak right now, but she’s improving and getting closer to returning to that level. As we transition back to clay, expect Muguruza’s improvements to continue.
Prediction: Muguruza in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
