Monday’s line-up for the 2024 WTA Qatar TotalEnergies Open in Doha is incredibly stacked with all the remaining first-round matches and a couple of clashes from the next stage of the competition as well. It’s quality matchups everywhere as Anna Kalinskaya plays Cluj champion Karolina Pliskova, while Naomi Osaka faces Caroline Garcia again. Who do you think will prevail?
WTA Doha Day 2 Predictions
Emma Raducanu vs Anhelina Kalinina
Head-to-head: Kalinina 1-0
The most important thing for Emma Raducanu is that she’s remaining healthy right now, but soon enough the time will come when we’re also going to start expecting results. Ons Jabeur kinda blew her off the court last week and the Brit will be looking for a stronger performance here, especially as every match win just allows her to grab more rhythm. Anhelina Kalinina has felt like a pretty overranked player for a while now, so it’s a good opportunity for Raducanu against a vulnerable opponent.
Prediction: Raducanu in 2
Arantxa Rus vs Petra Martic
Head-to-head: Rus 2-0
Arantxa Rus has two head-to-head wins over Petra Martic, but they both came on clay and the most recent was thirteen years ago. Petra Martic is the player who’s gotten a lot more main tour results since and she should be taking this one here as well. While Rus is in the prime of her career at the moment, her heavy topspin game gets significantly less effective outside of the dirt. It’s Martic who has both the weapons and the variety in this matchup.
Prediction: Martic in 2
Anna Kalinskaya vs Karolina Pliskova
Head-to-head: 1-1
Anna Kalinskaya had that amazing run at the Australian Open and it’s good to see the underrated ball-striking talent getting the recognition it deserves. She doesn’t exactly have to follow it up, but this looks like a decent opportunity given Karolina Pliskova just finished playing the event in Cluj and will have to fly over plus adapt to the conditions very quickly.
Prediction: Kalinskaya in 3
Naomi Osaka vs Caroline Garcia
Head-to-head: 1-1
Their first-round match at the Australian Open was a big deal, even if the winner didn’t get through even one more opponent after that. It was a bit of a serve fest with Caroline Garcia being unbreakable on the day, some of that coming from Naomi Osaka’s reactions on return not being where they needed to be yet. This would be a nice matchup for the Japanese at the peak of her powers, but has she made progress to be considered the favorite here? Probably not.
Prediction: Garcia in 3
Main Photo Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
