It was an exciting opening day for the WTA Monterrey tournament and the action continues on Day 2 as we have another slate of entertaining matches! Who will move on to the second round and who will fall short? Read on to find out!
WTA Monterrey Day 2 Predictions
Stefanie Voegele vs Leylah Fernandez
Head to Head: never played
Stefanie Voegele qualified for Monterrey with wins over two Italians, taking out Sara Errani and Martina Trevisan. Voegele did well to avenge her loss to Errani in Acapulco qualifying last week. Leylah Fernandez had an amazing run in Acapulco, coming within one set of the title before falling to Heather Watson in three sets. Fernandez’s lefty forehand is nasty and was a major reason why she made her run last week.
These two have never played before. Fernandez will have to deal with the heightened expectations and fatigue that comes with a long week before. Fernandez had to come through qualifying and win six matches to reach the Acapulco final. Given that Voegele showed enough form to get through qualifying, I think she beats Fernandez here. Voegele moves on.
Prediction: Voegele in 3
Elina Svitolina vs Danka Kovinic
Head to Head: 2-0 Svitolina
Elina Svitolina has had a tough start to the season by her standards, failing to win more than two matches in a tournament so far and is currently on a three-match losing streak. Danka Kovinic is also currently on a three-match losing streak, but she did reach the semifinals of a WTA Challenger event in Taiwan before losing to Vitalia Diatchenko.
Svitolina leads the head to head 2-0, although both matches were on clay. Svitolina is much more consistent from the baseline than Kovinic and that should be the difference in this match. Svitolina should come on top in the long rallies and that should make the difference in this match. Svitolina advances.
Prediction: Svitolina in 2
Victoria Azarenka vs Tamara Zidansek
Head to Head: never played
Victoria Azarenka is starting her 2020 season in Monterrey! It will be interesting to see how she does in this year’s edition of the tournament, where she made the final last year before falling to Garbine Muguruza. Tamara Zidansek made the quarterfinals of Acapulco last week. Zidansek beat Anna Kalinskaya and Kaja Juvan before falling to Renata Zarazua in the quarterfinals.
These two have never played before. Expect Azarenka to be rusty in this match. Even so, Zidansek’s best surface is by far clay, where her heavy forehand can do the most damage. So, given her form in Acapulco last week and Azarenka’s rust, Zidansek should be able to make this match close, Azarenka will eventually pull away and reach the second round of Monterrey.
Prediction: Azarenka in 3
Kim Clijsters vs Johanna Konta
Head to Head: never played
Kim Clijsters had a fairly successful return to the WTA Tour, losing 6-2 7-6(6) against Garbine Muguruza in the first round of Dubai. Clijsters fought hard, but Muguruza was the better player on the day, which is to be expected given this is just the very beginning of Clijster’s comeback. Johanna Konta has had a rough start to the season. Konta has lost the first three matches of the year and has fallen in four straight matches overall.
These two have never played before. While Konta is completely out of form, she is still the better player currently compared to Clijsters as she tries to comeback to the WTA Tour. Clijsters played pretty well against Muguruza, but whether she can sustain that level on a tournament-by-tournament basis remains to be seen. Clijsters’ ability to hang in there in a long match is also up in the air. While Clijsters will make this match close, Konta will advance to the second round.
Prediction: Konta in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
