There’s a distinct Spanish flavor to the semifinal line-up at the WTA Finals in Guadalajara. An all-Spanish showdown sees Paula Badosa come up against Garbine Muguruza in what promises to be a thrilling encounter. The winner will become the first Spanish woman to reach the championship match of the WTA Finals since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1993. No Spanish woman has ever won the WTA Finals. Who will advance to Wednesday’s final in Guadalajara?
WTA Finals Semi-Final Prediction
Paula Badosa vs Garbine Muguruza
H2H: First meeting
Paula Badosa made an impressive start to her maiden WTA Finals campaign. The 24-year-old claimed straight set wins over Aryna Sabalenka (6-4 6-0) and Maria Sakkari (7-5 6-4). Those victories meant Badosa would finish on top of her group no matter what happened in her final group stage matchup with Iga Swiatek. Badosa was understandably not quite at her best as she succumbed to Iga Swiatek in a couple of tight sets. Perhaps it was the loss she needed to have?
Garbine Muguruza took the opposite route to the semifinals. The two-time Major champion came up short in her opening match in Guadalajara, beaten by Karolina Pliskova in a final set tiebreaker. Muguruza kept her semifinal hopes alive with a gutsy 2-6 6-3 6-4 win over Barbora Krejcikova before confirming her spot in the final four by ending Anett Kontaveit’s 12-match winning streak with a 6-4 6-4 victory. The crowd has been on Muguruza’s side all tournament, definitely helping to bring out the best in the Spaniard.
It’s surprising that this will be the first career meeting between the pair. No doubt they know each other’s games well and there will be some added tension here in an all-Spanish clash. I’m going to give the slight edge to Muguruza. Badosa seems like the safer pick here given her form over the last month. However, Muguruza seems to be peaking at the right time of the tournament and knows how to get the job done on the biggest stages. Badosa has shown signs of fatigue in her last couple of matches as she is potentially running out of steam after an unprecedentedly long season for her. Muguruza’s greater experience and slightly more dynamic game may see her through to the final.
Prediction: Muguruza in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
