First round matches continue on Day 2 of the inaugural Tenerife Ladies Open. Camila Giorgi, Sara Sorribes Tormo and Alison Riske are among the seeded players in action on Tuesday. Camila Giorgi will be looking to avoid a fifth consecutive loss since winning the biggest title of her career at the Rogers Cup. The Italian faces Spanish qualifier Aliona Bolsova. Will she avoid another disappointing loss? We also predict the rest of the day’s matches, split between two other articles. One features Heater Watson vs Clara Tauson, and the other features Elina Svitolina vs Maria Camila Osorio Serrano.
WTA Tenerife Day 2 Predictions
Sara Sorribes Tormo vs Varvara Gracheva
H2H: First meeting.
Sara Sorribes Tormo is having the best season of her career. However, the Spaniard’s recent form has dropped off a little. She hasn’t quite recovered from the surprise belting she received from Emma Raducanu at the at the third round of the US Open, where she won just one game. Most recently, Sorribes Tormo suffered a disappointing first-up loss to Anna Kalinskaya in three sets in Indian Wells. This week looks like a good opportunity for the 25-year-old to regain some momentum given the relevantly weak field.
Varvara Gracheva is also having the best season of her career. The 21-year-old made the third round of a Major for the first time at the US Open last month. The Russian hasn’t been in action since a straight set opening round loss to Paula Badosa in Ostrava just over a month ago. It’s hard to see Gracheva producing a consistently high enough level to get the better of Sorribes Tormo. Gracheva has an aggressive game, but she’s probably not powerful enough to consistently hit through one of the best defensive players on tour. Look for Sorribes Tormo to make a strong start here.
Prediction: Sorribes Tormo in 2
Alison Riske vs Donna Vekic
H2H: 2-2
Donna Vekic’s ranking has slipped so low that she was forced to play qualifying to enter the main draw. The Croatian currently sits just outside the Top 100, far from her career high ranking of #19. Vekic dropped just two games against local wild card Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the first round of qualifying before booking her spot in the main draw with a 6-2 4-6 6-1 win over Ysaline Bonaventure.
A tougher test awaits in the first round of the main draw against eighth seed Alison Riske. The American has had her own struggles for form but has shown some better signs of late. Riske has won the last couple of matches between the pair and should again be too solid for a vulnerable Vekic. Riske absorbs pace well and is playing slightly more displaced tennis than her opponent at the moment, expect her to be too steady here as she draws errors from Vekic’s racquet.
Prediction: Riske in 3
Alison Van Uytvanck vs Danka Kovinic
H2H: Kovinic 1-0
Alison Van Uytvanck will be in action for the first time since winning her fifth WTA singles title in Nur-Sultan a few weeks ago. The Belgian is notoriously inconsistent and must avoid a disappointing opening round loss in Tenerife against a struggling opponent. Danka Kovinic has lost 11 of her last 13 matches–some of the worst form of her career. Kovinic did beat Van Uytvanck 6-3 6-4 in Istanbul last year in their only previous meeting, but it seems highly unlikely she will be able to replicate that result here. Van Uytvanck is in far better form and should be too strong on this occasion.
Prediction: Van Uytvanck in 2
Camila Giorgi vs Aliona Bolsova
H2H: First meeting.
Camila Giorgi hasn’t won a match since she won the biggest title of her career at the Rogers Cup just over a month ago. Four consecutive opening round losses have followed the Italian’s triumph in Canada, beaten by Simona Halep, Jessica Pegula, Elena-Gabriela Ruse, and Amanda Anisimova–all in straight sets. Giorgi mentioned after her most recent loss to Anisimova in Indian Wells that she was struggling physically, it will be interesting to see how well she has recovered and what type of level she can produce in Tenerife.
Aliona Bolsova took the long route to the main draw. The 23-year-old claimed a simple 6-3 6-2 win over Irina Khromacheva in the opening round of qualifying before requiring just under three hours to confirm her place in the main draw with a 4-6 7-6 7-6 win over Kaja Juvan. The Spaniard will get a day off to recover from that marathon match and will certainly be used to the courts and conditions after that match. I think Bolsova could be too strong for Giorgi here. The Italian seems done for the year, Bolsova is a tough competitor and will likely to rewarded with a heap of errors from the Italian if she competes hard enough for long enough.
Prediction: Bolsova in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
