Only eight women are still standing in Washington and five of them are unseeded, meaning there is certainly a possibility we could have a surprise champion in the American capital. Here are my picks for the matches today!
Ekaterina Makarova vs Irina-Camelia Begu
The top section is the only section that has gone with the seedings, as top seed Ekaterina Makarova faces 6th seed Irina-Camelia Begu in the last 8. Makarova hasn’t had easy matches so far, but has most importantly seen off Alison Van Uytvanck and Naomi Broady in straight sets to get to this stage. Begu has had a had different path to this stage- after cruising past Madison Brengle in straight sets, she had to battle past Polona Hercog in 3 sets in the second round. The two have met once before and Begu was victorious in straight sets in Moscow last year (Makarova withdrew from their match in Charleston earlier this year) but in the outdoors and in very warm conditions, it will be interesting to see who can play the better tennis.
Prediction: Begu in 3
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs Christina Mchale
An unseeded quarter-final takes place on Grandstand 2 as Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova faces American Christina Mchale. Pavlyuchenkova has been on scintillating form so far, battling past two-time champion Magdalena Rybarikova in two tie breaks before stunning 3rd seed Belinda Bencic 6-2 6-4 in the second round. Everyone knows that Pavlyuchenkova is certainly talented enough to be a force in the game, but she is extremely inconsistent and faces Mchale, who knows how to tough out victories after 3 set victories over 7th seed Coco Vandeweghe and Yulia Putintseva so far in Washington. The Russian won there only previous meeting 3 years ago in Eastbourne and if she plays as well as has so far this tournament she should win, though Mchale will have the crowd behind her and is clearly up for a fight.
Prediction: Pavlyuchenkova in 3
Louise Chirico vs Sloane Stephens
An all American battle takes place between two women who could be future stars of the game. Wildcard Louise Chirico has had a fantastic tournament so far, demolishing Heather Watson before battling past 5th seed Alize Cornet in the second round. Stephens was very impressive in her first round victory over Magda Linette, but unfortunately received a walkover into the quarter-finals after defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova withdrew from what would have likely have been a fantastic match. Because of this it’s hard to judge how Stephens will play, though if she plays as well as she did in her first match Chirico will have to play very well to beat hear.
Prediction: Stephens in 2
Monica Nicelescu vs Sam Stosur
Two of the best athletes in women’s tennis face off as 2nd seed Sam Stosur faces off against Monica Nicelescu first on Grandstand 1. Both women come into this match in good form- Stosur won at her last tournament in Gastein and has been comfortable so far, beating Kiki Mladenovic and Irina Falconi in straight sets, whilst a runner up spit in Nottingham and a 4th round at Wimbledon have seen Nicelescu come from outside the top 60 to 39th in the world, and she has seen of Lara Arruabarrena in straight sets and Lauren Davis in 3 sets so far here. However the signs are not good for the Romanian; she hasn’t beaten Stosur before in 5 previous meetings. If Stosur plays well, that is very unlikely to change.
Prediction: Stosur in 2
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