With the new 96-strong draw over the course of two weeks at the WTA 1000 in Madrid, we’ve seen various storylines unfold–Mirra Andreeva’s taken center stage as a breakout junior whilst Coco Gauff’s forehand continues to let her down. These threads and others have been tied, however, and we’ve only eight remaining in the tournament. Today we’ve looked to predict the outcomes of the top half of the quarterfinals–contested Wednesday–with Tuesday’s other half in another piece.
WTA Madrid Quarterfinal Predictions
Veronika Kudermetova vs Jessica Pegula
Head-to-head: First meeting
Jessica Pegula surprised herself last year when she won in Guadalajara: “I almost didn’t come here because I don’t like playing in altitude, I have a horrible record in altitude. I definitely changed that this week for sure, went through a lot of mental battles. It’s been an interesting incredible week.”
Yet she won the title there, showing some incredible variety and steadiness to outplay her opponents, and she got to the final in Madrid with some outstanding patience in rallies. She plays some of the steadiest aggression in the game, keep her balls low and flat consistently, giving her opponents very little to work with in the thin air.
Veronika Kudermetova excels here for a completely different reason–her booming serve. So far, she’s scraped through three deciding sets covering her first serve points impeccably. That won’t be enough against the fantastic returning skills of Pegula. It’s also likely the American’s flat balls will be fairly awkward for Kudermetova to attack. A good run for the Russian but it ends here.
Prediction: Pegula in 2.
Iga Swiatek vs Petra Martic
Head-to-head: Swiatek 1-0 Martic/Martic 2-0 Alexandrova
Petra Martic is an oddity. Her game is extremely potent–potent enough in fact to have won six out of six of her top 20 matches last year. This year she’s gone two out of four, defeating Barbora Krejcikova in straight sets in the previous round in fine fashion. Martic rarely makes deep runs, however, making only one semifinal last year and two quarterfinals this year (this is her second). There is an ease to how she plays the game but she cannot seem to sustain that magic over consecutive matches.
Any signs of weakness and Iga Swiatek will pounce. Martic isn’t the sort of player that can rush Swiatek–like Alexandrova in the previous round or Rybakina earlier in the year–and, given her track record as tournaments develop, we don’t expect her to play the match of her life. Swiatek will be ready to take this match by the scruff of the neck if she’s given the opportunity.
Prediction: Swiatek in 2.
Main Photo Credit: Taya Gray/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK
