Wednesday marks the beginning of the second round of the US Open. We cut the field from 128 to 64 in two days, and we’ll be down to 32 in another two. From this point on, we here at LWOT will be predicting every match. Who will win on Day 3? Let’s look at the matches. This group of predictions contains four matches. For Wednesday’s 16 matches, we have three more groups. One features Kirsten Flipkens vs Jessica Pegula, the next headlines CiCi Bellis vs Jennifer Brady, and the final group features Naomi Osaka vs Camila Giorgi. Predicting this set of matches are Jim Smith, Andrew Watson, and Damian Kust.
US Open Day 3 Women’s Predictions
Karolina Pliskova vs Caroline Garcia
Jim:
After a disappointing return to action in “Cincinnati,” Pliskova bounced back at the US Open with a 6-4 6-0 win over Anhelina Kalinina. Don’t expect her to find things so straightforward against Garcia, who began her campaign with a 6-3 6-2 win over Jasmine Paolini. But the quick conditions should give Pliskova the decisive edge thanks to her big serve and flat forehand.
Prediction: Pliskova in 3
Andrew:
Both women were impressive in their opening round matches, albeit against opponents who struggle in this class of field. Pliskova’s serve and forehand combination is going to be very tough for Garcia to handle in these conditions. The Frenchwoman will also be tough to break for the Czech but expect her to chance one or two of her chances and that may well be enough for the win.
Prediction: Pliskova in 2
Damian:
The top seed wasn’t really in stellar form coming into the US Open and signs of rust were very visible in the early stages against Anhelina Kalinina. However, Pliskova slowly tuned in her shots and was out of the Ukrainian’s range in the second set. Garcia split her past six meetings with the Czech but she hasn’t really played her best tennis in the past year or so. Pliskova should have enough time to find her rhythm again.
Prediction: Pliskova in 2
Magda Linette vs Danka Kovinic
Jim:
Linette has not quite yet convinced during this abbreviated North American summer hard-court swing. Should she wish to go deep at the US Open, she will certainly need to improve on her performance against Maddison Inglis in the first round. But it would still be a surprise were she to fail to get past the inexperienced Kovinic and into the third round.
Prediction: Linette in 3
Andrew:
The Montenegrin player has never made it to the third round at a Grand Slam in her career and may find it tough again against Linette. The Pole has made a nice improvement in her game over the last couple of years and has a class edge over her opponent here. It may be close but expect the Pole to come out on top.
Prediction: Linette in 3
Damian:
Magda Linette was on the way to quickly end her first-round match against Maddison Inglis, but made it tougher than she needed to by letting her opponent back into the game. This is a great opportunity for the Pole, who has been steadily improving her game for the past couple of years. Her woes usually come from her weak mentality and lack of killer instinct and while she might struggle to close out the match again, she’s a much better player than Kovinic at the moment.
Prediction: Linette in 2
Anett Kontaveit vs Kaja Juvan
Jim:
Kontaveit was surely bitterly disappointed to have lost out to Naomi Osaka in the quarterfinals at the Western & Southern Open last week, but she put that defeat behind her with a creditable three-set win over Danielle Collins. Expect her to prove too strong for Juvan.
Prediction: Kontaveit in 2
Andrew:
The Estonian stuggled more than she would have liked to get past Danielle Collins in the first round. However, the American is a battler to progress 6-2 in the final set may actually set Kontaveit up for the tournament nicely. Juvan came through a tight match against Arconada but will certainly need to improve on serve to make an impact here. Expect Kontaveit to progress.
Prediction: Kontaveit in 2
Damian:
The Estonian is a trendy pick for a dark horse here, following great runs in Palermo and Cincinnati. Kontaveit lost a set to Danielle Collins in the first round but recovered well enough to survive a potentially tricky opener. Kaja Juvan is a young player on the rise but should be no match to Kontaveit’s baseline power.
Prediction: Kontaveit in 2
Madison Brengle vs Dayana Yastremska
Jim:
Yastremska is another player to have scraped into the second round by the narrowest of margins. But having avoided defeat against Astra Sharma by winning a third-set tiebreak, the Ukrainian might just be able to play a little more freely. That does not bode well for Brengle.
Prediction: Yastremska in 3
Andrew:
The Ukranian is favorite for this clash and rightly so. Brengle often produces decent performances in a Grand Slam but doesn’t often make deep runs, only once reaching the third round here in 15 attempts. Yastremska’s power game when it is on song is difficult for anyone in the world to counter so Brengle will be up against it.
Prediction: Yastremska in 2
Damian:
Yastremska has been going a bit under the radar recently, putting up solid yet unspectacular results. Don’t make the mistake of underestimating her game though, on a good day she is a threat to anyone and if everything goes right for her, a good run might be in the making here. It would be quite unexpected if her 2020 US Open campaign finished against a solid, yet relatively unthreatening opponent like Madison Brengle.
Prediction: Yastremska in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
