{"id":12787,"date":"2019-03-13T08:40:09","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T12:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/?p=12787"},"modified":"2019-03-13T08:40:09","modified_gmt":"2019-03-13T12:40:09","slug":"wta-indian-wells-quarterfinal-predictions-including-garbine-muguruza-vs-bianca-andreescu-and-angelique-kerber-vs-venus-williams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2019\/03\/13\/wta-indian-wells-quarterfinal-predictions-including-garbine-muguruza-vs-bianca-andreescu-and-angelique-kerber-vs-venus-williams\/","title":{"rendered":"WTA Indian Wells Quarterfinal Predictions Including Garbine Muguruza vs Bianca Andreescu and Angelique Kerber vs Venus Williams"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Never have I seen such an open field at a tournament of this stature. With Simona Halep\u2019s and Naomi Osaka\u2019s exits, the two top contenders are out. Now, some unexpected challengers have shown up. I doubt anyone expected Marketa Vondrousova or Bianca Andreescu to here \u2013 but, here they are! My predictions for who\u2019ll be moving on the semifinals of this prestigious tournament:<\/p>\n<h2>WTA Indian Wells Quarterfinal Predictions<\/h2>\n<h5><strong>Garbine Muguruza vs Bianca Andreescu<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>No history<\/p>\n<p>Had Serena Williams not withdrawn, I doubt Garbine Muguruza would be here. Her play started slow against Williams and again against Kiki Bertens. It took more than two-and-a half hours of extended rallies for Muguruza to chalk up the win and take out Bertens. If she wants to see the semifinals, she need to come out of the gates at full force against the tournament-tough Canadian. <\/p>\n<p>Bianca Andreescu has been on a tear. And that\u2019s not just at Indian Wells. The Canadian teenager has won 14 of her last 15 matches and she\u2019s booked a spot in her third straight quarterfinal. She just chalked up her 25<sup>th<\/sup> win of 2019, more than any other player on the WTA tour. I don\u2019t think the big stage is too big and this red-hot player will not be cowed by this big moment. We\u2019ll see plenty of momentum shifts, but I expect to see the Canadian outlast Muguruza\u2019s upswings and move on the semis.<\/p>\n<p><em>Prediction:\u00a0Andreescu in 3<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a id=\"FbaDE1_HRw5VgzAyUZ7vUQ\" class=\"gie-single\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1128329695\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'FbaDE1_HRw5VgzAyUZ7vUQ',sig:'jE1VA_lSFPBGSx-_XfnfOXfS8HsS8GRo1X4SZYB_33o=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'1128329695',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h5><strong>Elina Svitolina vs Marketa Vondrousova<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p><strong>Head to head:\u00a0 <\/strong>Svitolina 2-0 Vondrousova<\/p>\n<p>Svitolina has had to play through some stiff competition to reach the quarterfinals. There have been no easy passes along Elina Svitolina\u2019s route to the quarterfinals. After a first round bye, it took a contentious, three set match for her to move on to the third round. Her third round win came in straight sets, but it took her nearly two hours to defeat her former doubles partner. Pitted against Ashleigh Barty in the Round of 16, it took three close and combative sets to claim her quarterfinals spot. Perhaps the tight matches and extensive court time will serve to sharpen her game, or perhaps the fatigue will creep in.\u00a0 Against Marketa Vondrousova, Svitolina has little margin of error. In a three-set contest, Vondrousova upended Simona Halep with her all-court game. Running her side to side, tempting her into futile runs for delicate dropshots, Vondrousova outplayed #2 seed Simona Halep. The Czech teen has that rare combination of power and finesse, combined with whip-smart shot selection. I don\u2019t see Vondrousova leaving just yet.<\/p>\n<p><em>Prediction:\u00a0Vondrousova in 3<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a id=\"dCBkCjIoQmxOKyw-eIi7fQ\" class=\"gie-single\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1128958345\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'dCBkCjIoQmxOKyw-eIi7fQ',sig:'QhXA8l2T-g7-yRI3kiNW3g5mpZVpfD4M03CqI1IQ8XU=',w:'438px',h:'594px',items:'1128958345',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h5><strong>Angelique Kerber vs Venus Williams <\/strong><\/h5>\n<p><strong>Head to head:\u00a0 <\/strong>Kerber 5-3 Williams\u00a0\u00a0 No history<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s back! That powerful first step which drives Venus quickly to any drop shot or to the opposite side of the court chasing down her opponent\u2019s intended winner. This is the Venus of old \u2013 invigorated, commanding, and doing it without racking up free points on her serve. She has certainly earned her place in the quarterfinals. It won\u2019t be an easy go as she meets defensive mastermind Angelique Kerber. She has the ability to negate Venus\u2019 power, easily absorbing her pace. Coming off her hard-fought win against Aryna Sabalenka, Kerber is showing the prowess which led her to three Grand Slam championships.\u00a0This is going to be a tough match, nearly impossible to call, but I give the slight edge to Venus. When she on, she\u2019s on and is impossible to stop.<\/p>\n<p><em>Prediction:\u00a0Venus in 3<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a id=\"r3M_kNv9QUxvnDaMAvlt2A\" class=\"gie-single\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1135431782\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'r3M_kNv9QUxvnDaMAvlt2A',sig:'BnhihYLCGwev8JbR60G82anB257TV-2nLGIKID3J6e8=',w:'594px',h:'389px',items:'1135431782',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h5><strong>Karolina Pliskova vs Belinda Bencic<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>No history.<\/p>\n<p>It was a match played with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker. Belinda Bencic wasn\u2019t overcome by #1 seed Naomi Osaka\u2019s power. In fact, using power of her own, with placement to boot, Bencic brought in a winning performance in little over an hour, to claim her spot in the quarterfinals. It was an error-laden match by the World #1 Osaka, but do not take anything away from the Swiss\u2019 performance. Hopefully her accuracy remains when she meets #5 seed Karolina Pliskova. Pliskova worked through a tough three-set, two hour battle to overcome #21 seed Estonian Anett Kontaveit by a slim margin. Pliskova will need to keep her serve intact to punch her ticket to the semifinals. Bencic is confident, accurate, and enjoying a nine-match winning streak. I can\u2019t pick against Bencic and think she\u2019s headed to the semis, quite possibly the final.<\/p>\n<p><em>Prediction:\u00a0Bencic in 3<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a id=\"rWvWjRYFQKFRMs4Eb-diBA\" class=\"gie-single\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1130156952\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'rWvWjRYFQKFRMs4Eb-diBA',sig:'ar9t3xZIa2eJEdxNZGjw0HOYWiYzxwz7lChUGAiLTmQ=',w:'416px',h:'594px',items:'1130156952',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Never have I seen such an open field at a tournament of this stature. With Simona Halep\u2019s and Naomi Osaka\u2019s exits, the two top contenders are out. Now, some unexpected challengers have shown up. I doubt anyone expected Marketa Vondrousova or Bianca Andreescu to here \u2013 but, here they are! My predictions for who\u2019ll be [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1838,"featured_media":12798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[69,4],"tags":[4951,4888,24,266,3553,5036,394,200,147,884,70,15,4936],"class_list":["post-12787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-predictions","category-wta","tag-2019-bnp-paribas-open","tag-2019-indian-wells","tag-angelique-kerber","tag-belinda-bencic","tag-bianca-andreescu","tag-bnp-paribas-open-quarterfinal-predictions","tag-elina-svitolina","tag-garbine-muguruza","tag-karolina-pliskova","tag-marketa-vondrousova","tag-venus-williams","tag-wta","tag-wta-indian-wells-predictions"],"modified_by":"Yesh Ginsburg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1838"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12787"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12787\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}