WTA Rome will kick off on Tuesday and is arguably the most important clay court tournament before the French Open. Seven first-round matches are scheduled on day, and as always, we here at LWOT will offer predictions for every match on the slate including Petra Kvitova vs Irina-Camelia Begu, but who will advance to the next round?
WTA Rome Day 1 Predictions
Kimberly Birrell vs Sonay Kartal
Head-to-head: first meeting
World #60 Kimberly Birrell will play her first main draw match at the Italian Open. Birrell has played some great tennis this season, but all of it has been on hard courts. She is still inexperienced on clay at this level, but so is her first-round opponent, Sonay Kartal. The Briton got a good win against Jaqueline Cristian in Madrid but lost to Elina Svitolina without putting up any fight. Birrell is a strong baseliner and can frustrate Kartal, who likes to play aggressively and end points quickly. Not my most confident prediction, but I will go with the Australian.
Prediction: Birrell in 3
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Lucia Bronzetti vs Anastasija Sevastova
Head-to-head: first meeting
Lucia Bronzetti had a positive week in Madrid as she defeated Naomi Osaka and then played a competitive match against Madison Keys. Most importantly, she broke her three-match losing streak. But Bronzetti has never won a match in Rome, which is a more than slightly surprising considering she has a WTA title on this surface and is playing on home turf. Anastasija Sevastova recently returned to the tour and looked brilliant initially Madrid before things unravelled against Diana Shnaider. The Latvian surely have taken confidence from that display, despite not winning a game against Shnaider. The Latvian has loads of experience on this surface and thrives on the dirt. Expect her to grit out a close win.
Prediction: Sevastova in 3
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Rebecca Sramkova vs McCartney Kessler
Head-to-head: Kessler 1-0 Sramkova
Rebecca Sramkova had a good run at the Italian Open last season, reaching the fourth round and narrowly losing to Jelena Ostapenko. She will hope for a similar run this time around, too. McCartney Kessler is on a three-match losing streak at the tour level, but her decision to play an ITF-level tournament in Saint-Malo could be beneficial, as she got some match wins under her belt. However, she still has no tour-level wins on this surface, and Sramkova should take advantage.
Prediction: Sramkova in 3
Main photo credit: Taya Gray/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
