2015 Korea Open- Irina-Camelia Begu vs Aliaksandra Sasnovich

There could be an interesting final at the Korea Open, as top seed Irina-Camelia Begu faces Aliaksandra Sasnovich on sunday. It will be interesting to see which way it goes- here is my prediction!

Top seed Irina-Camelia Begu has had a good year overall and has a good opportunity to win her 1st title of the year here. She started well, easing past Kateryna Kozlova, but then had a tricky three set match against Polona Hercog and then Johanna Larsson in 2 tight sets. However she saved her most impressive performance for the semi-finals, where she cruised past 8th seed Alison Van Uytvanck for the loss of just 2 games- she is certainly rounding into form nicely.

Aliaksandra had to qualify for the tournament, but now finds herself in a first career final after an impressive run of results. She eased past 6th seed Alexandra Dulgheru in her first match, and then was equally comfortable against the dangerous Magdalena Rybarikova and the 3rd seed Sloane Stephens. She than rallied from a set down to beat  2nd seed Anna Karolina Schmiedlova in the semi-finals, and will be full of confidence after a good run.

The key thing for Sasnovich is whether she manages her nerves; it is the biggest match of her career- will she cope with the occasion? She has also had to come through qualifying which means she has had to play three more matches than Begu and could be affected physically. Begu has played in 4 career finals before though has only won one, so she may be nervous as she has a great opportunity to double that number.

Both women are in form so it could be tight though Begu was dominant in the semi-finals and with her playing well and Sasnovich possibly being a bit more tired, it’s hard to bet against the top seed for the title.

Prediction: Begu in 2

2015 Connecticut Open- Tuesday Predictions

Action continues in New Haven on Tuesday, with some first round matches and second round matches taking place at the Connecticut Open- Here are my predictions for three of the matches today!

Caroline Wozniacki vs Alison Riske

3rd seed and 4-time champion Caroline Wozniacki will be desperately looking for form before the US Open, but faces a difficult first round match against Alison Riske. Wozniacki has lost her first match in Stanford, Toronto and and Cincinnati and really needs to play better as she is in danger of slipping out of the top 5 after the US Open. Riske has played well in this summer hard court season, pushing Elina Svitolina to three sets twice and beating players such as Carla Suarez Navarro and Timea Bacsinszky over the past few weeks. This is certainly a great opportunity for Riske, and if she plays well she should see off Wozniacki if the Dane is still in poor form. However Riske can be erratic and if she isn’t playing well, Wozniacki will have an opportunity.

Prediction: Riske in 3

Lucie Safarova vs Irina-Camelia Begu

4th seed Lucie Safarova could have a difficult match as she faces Irina-Camelia Begu on Tuesday evening. Safarova hasn’t been in great form since her run to the French Open final but reached the quarter-finals in Cincinnati and played a good match against the talented Daria Gavrilova in the first round. Begu is having the best year, reaching a career high of 28th in the world, and battled past Zarina Diyas in the first round. Begu actually won the only meeting between the two, prevailing in three sets in Moscow last year, and both women have seemingly improved since then so it should be a competitive match. Safarova should have the edge in this match, though Begu will be able to push the 4th seed.

Prediction: Safarova in 3

Dominika Cibulkova vs Kristina Mladenovic

Dominika Cibulkova looks to continue her comeback as she faces rising star Kiki Mladenovic in the second round. Cibulkova has had mixed results during her comeback so far, but toughed out a three sets victory over Tsevtana Pironkova in the first round. Mladenovic was also made to work in her first round match, but eventually pulled off the upset against 8th seed Sara Errani and will be confident following that result. Cibulkova has won all four of their previous meetings, including in Sydney earlier this year, but has been injured since then and is not in as great shape as she was earlier on in the year. It’s been a good year for Mladenovic, reaching her first career final in Strasbourg, and this is a great opportunity for her to record her first victory over Cibulkova.

Prediction: Mladenovic in 3

Also in action

Barbora Strycova starts the action today against lucky loser Lesia Tsurenko, whilst Magdalena Rybarikova faces Caroline Garcia. There are also several doubles matches taking place.

2015 Citi Open- Women’s Quarter-Finals

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

2015 Citi Open- Day 3 Women’s picks

Usually I have to decide which matches to preview out of several, but later in Washington there are only four Women’s singles matches taking place! Here are my picks for them!

Irina Falconi vs Sam Stosur

This match kicks off the action in Washington today, and it will be interesting to see if Sam Stosur can maintain her impressive form against an opponent she has beaten comfortably in their previous two meetings. She won her previous tournament in Gastein and recorded her 500th career win yesterday, cruising past the dangerous Kiki Mladenovic 6-2 6-2 in just over an hour. Stosur is hard to beat when she is at her best, but can be inconsistent and if she drops her level Falconi certainly has a chance. Having had an extra day off after beating fellow American Taylor Townsend, the crowd should be on her side and she will need to hope for a drop in Stosur’s level.

Prediction: Stosur in 2

Alize Cornet vs Louise Chirico

Two women who were very impressive in their first round matches meet first on Grandstand 1. The French number 1, Cornet, hasn’t had the best year but comfortably saw off An-Sophie Mestach 6-3 6-3 in the first round. American wildcard Chirico was even more impressive, cruising past Heather Watson 6-3 6-0. This is the first meeting between the two, and Chirico will surely be confident she can cause another upset against the fifth seed. If she plays well she has a chance, but a lot depends on what Alize Cornet turns up; will it be the Cornet who beat Serena Williams twice last year (And also beat her via a retirement) or the Cornet who suffers strange losses to players she should beat comfortably?

Prediction: Cornet in 3

Lauren Davis vs Monica Nicelescu

Lauren Davis and Monica Nicelescu face each other for the first time later today in Washington. Nicelescu saw off Lara Arruabarrena 7-5 6-4 in the first round, whilst Davis was 7-5 2-1 up when 8th seed Zarina Diyas retired. Neither of these two are particularly tall (Nicelescu is 5’6 whilst Davis is only 5’2) so neither player is likely to be able to overpower each other. Nicelescu has a difficult game to play against, with lots of slices, but can be inconsistent and Davis will have the crowd behind her- It promises to be tight!

Prediction: Nicelescu in 3

Irina-Camelia Begu vs Polona Hercog

The crowd on Grandstand 2 have two Romanians in a row, as Irina-Camelia Begu faces Polona Hercog after the conclusion of the Nicelescu/Davis match. Begu is having the year of her life, and is currently at a high of 29th in the world. She saw off Madison Brengle comfortably 6-4 6-0 in the first round, whilst Hercog saw of Julia Glushko 6-2 7-5. Hercog has actually won more titles than Begu (2 to 1) but the Romanian is in the better form and will be the favourite for the match.

Prediction: Begu in 2

Also in action

As I mentioned in my introduction, these are the only four women’s singles matches taking place in Washington today. However there are also 4 women’s doubles matches taking place on the outside courts.