The unbeatable Elise Mertens is out and someone else will win the WTA Jasmin Open in Monastir for the first time. The draw feels wide open with half the quarterfinalists having come through the qualifying draw. The last seed remaining in the draw, Lucia Bronzetti, takes on Antonia Ruzic, while Yulia Starodubtseva faces Sonay Kartal. Who do you think will make the final four?
WTA Monastir Quarterfinal Predictions
Lucia Bronzetti vs Antonia Ruzic
Head-to-head: First meeting
Antonia Ruzic has had a fine run after qualifying for the main draw, turning the match around against Nadia Podoroska before comfortably defeating Yuriko Miyazaki. The quality is going up now with the seventh seed Lucia Bronzetti, who’s usually quite solid and tough to beat as an underdog. Her ability not to go below a certain level might just end up being crucial here as Ruzic will not find it as easy to draw errors from her as she did from Podoroska.
Prediction: Bronzetti in 2
Sara Sorribes Tormo vs Rebecca Sramkova
Head-to-head: First meeting
Sara Sorribes Tormo was on a surprising losing run recently, something that doesn’t happen often to the Spanish grinder. This run is already a return to form for her, but now she’ll be tested by Rebecca Sramkova. The Slovak’s peak level is undeniably very high and if she finds her best tennis on the day, she tends to be as deadly as she was against second seed Clara Burel on Wednesday. Given Sorribes Tormo is not quite peaking herself yet, maybe Sramkova can keep going here.
Prediction: Sramkova in 3
Eva Lys vs Zeynep Sonmez
Head-to-head: Sonmez 1-0
Eva Lys was the player who snapped Elise Mertens’s 12-match win streak at this venue, beating her in an insane match in the second round. The German eventually won 7-6 in the 3rd after being 4-0 in the deciding set. She’s played Zeynep Sonmez this year already, but was forced to retire and missed almost the entire month of April. It’s a huge opportunity for either player and Lys is the just one with more upside. Having to follow up on her Mertens win might not be as big an issue as usual given this is also a huge chance for Sonmez.
Prediction: Lys in 3
Yulia Starodubtseva vs Sonay Kartal
Head-to-head: Starodubtseva 1-0
Two players who have been looking for their breakthrough WTA Tour run and they’ve already got it, but one of them will go even further. It seems like Sonay Kartal is the one better suited to the role with the way that she dispatched Mai Hontama. The Brit seems to be back stronger now than when she first made her move up the rankings in 2022. Yulia Starodubtseva pulled off an amazing feat this year with four successful Grand Slam qualifying attempts, including a win over Kartal in the final round in New York. It’s a good chance for revenge.
Prediction: Kartal in 3
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
