The WTA 250 in Rabat has not been getting enough traction all week. But tennis fans will surely not want to miss Saturday’s final as one of two storylines will unfold. Egypt’s Mayar Sherif can become the first African woman to win in Rabat. But standing in her way is American Peyton Stearns, who is in search of her maiden title. So, who do you think will triumph?
WTA Rabat Final Prediction
Mayar Sherif vs Peyton Stearns
Head-to-head: first meeting
History beckons for Sherif. The 28-year-old from Cairo will contest her third career final at WTA level. Unsurprisingly, all are on clay, her best surface. She lost Andrea Petkovic in Cluj-Napoca three years ago in her first final. But she made amends the following season when she stunned Maria Sakkari in the Parma final to bag her maiden WTA title.
Although Sherif has not been anywhere near this stage in the last two years, she has played five finals at the 125K level, most recently in Parma this past week, where she lost to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. That defeat didn’t dampen her mood in Rabat because she’s been on fire. In her run to the championship match, she has not dropped a set and has lost a combined 11 games in four matches.
Peyton Stearns has played possum for most of this week, and she’s taken a more taxing route to Saturday’s final. It is her second at the Tour level. The 22-year-old Ohio native lost to the experienced Tatjana Maria in Bogota final 12 months ago. So, nerves shouldn’t impact her performance in Rabat. Aside from her 6-3 6-1 win over Xiyu Wang in the second round, Stearns needed three sets to defeat Aleksandra Krunic, defending champion Lucia Bronzetti, and Viktoriya Tomova. The semifinal win over the Bulgarian lasted over three hours. She recovered from a 2-4 deficit in the decider to prevail in a tie-break.
Stearns has done a lot of heavy lifting to reach the final, and this could be her downfall. The same cannot be said of Sherif, who looks impeccable and has played the better tennis from planning and execution. Expect the Egyptian to make history and lift her second WTA title in her home continent.
Prediction: Sherif in 3
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
