Charleston Scores – 27 / 49 (55%)
WTA Charleston Final Prediction for Sunday
Day 7 – 1/1
Kasatkina d. Ostapenko in 3 sets – Preview
WTA Charleston Final Poll for Sunday
WTA Charleston SF Predictions for Saturday
Day 6 – 1/2
Thoughts about both semi-finals in Saturday’s Set Points recap
Kasatkina d. Siegemund in 3 sets
Lucic-Baroni d. Ostapenko in 3 sets
WTA Charleston SF Polls for Saturday
WTA Charleston QF Predictions for Friday
Day 5 – 1/4
Lucic-Baroni d. Rogers in 3 sets – Gone back and forth on this one. If their form during the tournament is anything to go by, this could be a cracker. MLB won their only previous encounter in Acapulco, 6-4 6-4 earlier this year. Rogers has momentum this tournament and also has the buzz of playing at home. A part of me thinks Rogers could go and win the whole caboodle… but then MLB has been superb this week (and all year for that matter) and she’s playing with such confidence.
Wozniacki d. Ostapenko in 3 sets – Happen to think Ostapenko will make this very competitive. Woz has not really had time to adjust to the clay yet and Ostapenko has the type of game that can put Woz on the defensive, as she did in New Haven last year. Closing out matches against top players has been an issue for Ostapenko so i’d still have to go for Woz.
Sevastova d. Siegemund in 2 sets – Siegemund has been fantastic this week but I do wonder whether the six hours she spent on court through her first two rounds might have an impact here. Sevastova is a different player compared to V.Williams and Safarova, and really likes the clay also so there will be a few adjustments to make.
Begu d. Kasatkina in 3 sets – In all honesty, I think Begu takes this. I watched quite a bit of Begu’s first two matches and I was impressed with how she was hitting the ball and stepping in. Kasatkina’s had an encouraging week, but i’m still concerned about her tendency to sit back and play passively, and against a player of Begu’s quality (and with form improving), I don’t think that will be good enough. Kasatkina leads the head-to-head, 3-1 and edged their last encounter in Doha, 7-5 in the third set.
WTA Charleston QF Polls for Friday
WTA Charleston R3 Predictions for Thursday
Day 4 – 4/6
Osaka d. Rogers in 3 sets – On. The. Fence…. I keep changing my mind on this one. I think Rogers has a bit more experience and pedigree on the clay and her turnaround against Keys was impressive. Osaka is a similar kind of player to Keys in terms of the power she can generate off both the serve and groundies. I’ve been impressed with what i’ve seen of Osaka this week in wins over Zhang Shuai and Larsson. There’s the slight added pressure for Rogers being the last American in the draw but that may spur her on. I was going Osaka but H2H has just confused me more as Rogers leads it 2-0 with two straight set wins including one of those matches on green clay in Osprey. I’ll stick with Osaka.
Lucic-Baroni d. Bertens in 2 sets – A good win for Bertens over Bondarenko back on her favoured surface. MLB looks so confident at the moment and is finding some consistency to whittle through these tight matches where she would often come unstuck.
Wozniacki d. Rodionova in 2 sets – Woz for the win.
Stollar d. Ostapenko in 3 sets – Same as the first match, on the fence! Ostapenko should win based on experience but I was so impressed with Stollar’s composure to pull off the upset win over Vesnina. Perhaps one match too far for the qualifier but Ostapenko, who has done well to reach R3, still concerns me sometimes with her ability to go off track. It’s been a week of upsets so wouldn’t surprise me to see Stollar keep going.
Sevastova d. Jabeur in 2 sets – A big match for both, sensing Sevastova might be too solid on clay?
Stosur d. Begu in 3 sets – First time match-up, always a tricky one with Stosur as i’ve written before as she is often a match-up player and no data to go on. Begu had two matches at opposite ends of the spectrum with a 6-0 6-0 win and a third set tiebreak win. This is the first time Begu has won back-to-back matches at a tournament all year.
Kasatkina d. Gavrilova in 3 sets – Preview
WTA Charleston R3 Polls for Thursday
WTA Charleston R2 Predictions for Wednesday
Day 3 – 6/14
Keys d. Rogers in 2 sets – Nervy ending from Rogers needing a third set tiebreak to see off Cepede Royg on Tuesday having been up 5-1 in the third set but a really admirable effort to come through in the end. A little bit of uncertainty for Keys in her first clay court match. She sounds positive in her press and I think she does everything a little bit better than Rogers.
Osaka d. Zhang Shuai in 2 sets – I watched their last match in Indian Wells where Zhang Shuai was blown away by Osaka’s pace and depth. Zhang Shuai had a comfortable win over Doi so has more of a platform to build on this time round. I was impressed with Osaka’s increasing patience during her first round win over Larsson. Sold on Osaka for this particular match-up.
Lucic-Baroni d. Barthel in 3 sets – Interesting match, Lucic-Baroni was superb in the third set against Krunic and is playing with a lot of confidence right now. Barthel has the weapons to neutralise MLB’s game. I think she’ll need to step up, being passive against MLB likely won’t get the job done. Their last match earlier this year in Auckland went three sets.
Bondarenko d. Bertens in 3 sets – A toss up, Bondarenko has been shaky serving out tight three setters this year but here I find myself picking her again! Bertens is comfortable on the clay but needs to create some momentum after a disappointing start to the year.
Vesnina d. Stollar in 2 sets – Stollar is a name to watch out for, a great opportunity in the biggest match of her career. Vesnina for the win though.
Sakkari d. Ostapenko in 3 sets – This should be a fiery match-up! I think Sakkari’s scrappy nature on the court, and I mean that in a positive way, will give her good chances in this match-up, even more so on clay.
Errani d. Rodionova in 2 sets – This could also be pretty fiery, An. Rodionova can rub people up the wrong way! Errani dropped just two games in her opener and i’d predict another win here. Despite missing match points against Zhang Shuai in Miami, her level was generally high. The return to clay will be a further boost for the Italian.
Wozniacki d. Beck in 2 sets – Been a hectic few months for Wozniacki so slightly wary of how she will get on in Charleston. Still, she has been very reliable and this is a good match-up for the Dane.
Petkovic d. Sevastova in 3 sets – Preview
Linette d. Jabeur in 3 sets – On the fence with this one, went with Linette as I think she is the more stable in her strokes, and has also been consistent of late by qualifying for the main draws of both IW and Miami, and reaching the semi-finals of Kuala Lumpur.
V.Williams d. Siegemund in 2 sets – Intrigued to see whether Venus will carry on from Miami where her level was great. Siegemund had a battling win in the first round, her first for a while, but I don’t see her having much ammunition to trouble Venus.
Begu d. Kucova in 2 sets – Begu’s return onto clay where she was so, so good last year was emphatic with a double bagel win over Buyukakcay. The Turkish player is having such a tough time of it right now but Begu did play a superb match. Kucova had an epic (I feel epic is worthy in this regard!) first round that lasted more than three hours. Begu for the win.
Kasatkina d. Puig in 3 sets – Preview
Gavrilova d. Riske in 3 sets – Of all the second round matches, this is the toughest one to pick out a winner for me. The pair are tied at 1-1 in their head-to-head and neither has secured back-to-back wins since the Australian Open. Gavrilova’s variety of strokes could be key?
WTA Charleston R2 Polls for Wednesday
WTA Charleston R2 Prediction for Tuesday
Day 2 – 1/1
Stosur d. Jankovic in 3 sets – Thoughts in Tuesday’s Set Point’s post
WTA Charleston R2 Poll for Tuesday
WTA Charleston R1 Predictions
Days 1 and 2 – 14/21
Rogers d. Cepede Royg in 2 sets – Rogers leads the head-to-head, 2-0 and won their last encounter on clay in Rio last year, 7-5 6-4. Not a straightforward match but Rogers for the win.
Larsson d. Osaka in 3 sets – An interesting match-up, Larsson won their only previous match in New Haven qualies last year, 6-2 6-4. Clay definitely favours Larsson but Osaka did make R3 at the French Open and the green clay plays differently, much faster compared to red clay. I’ve changed my mind multiple times on this match.
Zhang Shuai d. Doi in 2 sets – Doi hasn’t won since Dubai and is on a three match losing streak. The Japanese player did win their last encounter on red clay in Nuremburg in 2015. Going for Zhang Shuai, a little more consistency and I think she’ll be able to rally with Doi.
Lucic-Baroni d. Krunic in 2 sets – Interestingly, Krunic has won their only two previous matches. I’d still take Lucic-Baroni who was hitting the ball so cleanly in Miami and looked super confident up against Radwanska in the third round.
Barthel d. Brady in 2 sets – Looking forward to this one, both haven’t really pushed on since reaching the last 16 of the Australian Open. I think Barthel’s fluid groundstrokes will help her take this one.
Bondarenko d. Rodina in 3 sets – Bondarenko leads the head-to-head, 2-0 with two straight set wins but i’d still fancy this to go the distance. Five of Bondarenko’s last six completed matches have gone the distance!
Muhammad d. Stollar in 3 sets – An all qualifier match-up, a great opportunity for both players. Stollar won her first WTA main tour match at home in Budapest and at 18, is one to watch. Muhammad has an all-round game and i’d take her marginally more experience in this match.
Ostapenko d. Bogdan in 3 sets – Bogdan has had some decent wins this year so could see this being a close match. After a bright start to the year, Ostapenko hasn’t been at all consistent.
Davis d. Sakkari in 2 sets – Davis’s only losses to lower ranked opposition in 2017 were against American opposition. Sakkari is a real battler but I think if this were to get tight, Davis’s match experience would give her the edge.
Errani d. Min in 2 sets – Errani for the win.
Duan d. Rodionova in 2 sets – This is Rodionova’s first WTA main draw match in nearly a year. Not convinced Duan and clay will be a match made in heaven but the speed of the court (compared to red clay) should help her.
Chirico d. Beck in 2 sets – I think this is a good surface for Chirico and have gone for the American despite the poor form in 2017.
Jabeur d. Erakovic in 3 sets – Nice to see Jabeur get the LL spot, i’d actually put her as favourite in this match although her game is very unpredictable.
Arruabarrena d. Petkovic in 3 sets – Arruabarrena played some beautiful tennis in Miami and her game is perfectly suited to clay. She played a great match vs. Kerber in Charleston and also reached a final on green clay in Osprey last year. I love Petko but she has been very erratic of late and lacking in confidence. I hope returning to a happy place with give her a boost.
Putintseva d. Linette in 3 sets – Linette leads the head-to-head, 2-0 and won their last match from match point down in Tokyo at the end of 2016. Credit to Poots, she’s improving this year and dare I say, a little more focused on court. She can still lose the plot but her level has been more consistent this year and she battled superbly against Pliskova in Miami last week.
Mattek-Sands d. Kenin in 2 sets – This will be just Kenin’s 3rd WTA main draw match having impressively qualified for the Charleston main draw. I’d go for Mattek-Sands after her confidence-boosting run in singles last week in Miami.
Siegemund d. Tsurenko in 2 sets – A terrible year so far for Siegemund but clay is her best surface. I never know what’s going on with Tsurenko. When she’s fully fit and healthy, she has been impressive this year. Sadly, she has had quite a few illnesses/injuries and this was the case in Miami where she was forced to retire in her first match.
Kucova d. Soler-Espinosa in 3 sets – A rearranged match, a toss-up. Kucova had a great run in Charleston last year, while SSE is a clay courter. Kucova won their two previous matches but both were in 2008.
Jankovic d. Alexandrova in 2 sets – Wins are hard to come by for JJ but this is a tournament she loves. She is getting so nervous closing out matches. I’ll go for JJ but slightly wary!
Begu d. Buyukakcay in 2 sets – Both players have had disappointing years but are returning to the surface of their biggest success in 2017. The faster court (compared to regular red clay) should favour Begu.
Puig d. Siniakova in 3 sets – A toss up, instinct with Puig.
Kasatkina d. Kovinic in 3 sets – A huge match for both players, Kasatkina has lost her last four matches and Kovinic the last seven. Both have had success on this surface. Kovinic has a very effective serve but I think Kasatkina’s variety and consistency will be key in this match.
Day d. Riske in 3 sets – I was so impressed with Day in Indian Wells and not convinced by Riske on clay so sensing the potential for a rankings upset.
WTA Charleston R1 Polls
WTA Charleston WWW Poll
WTA Charleston Full Draw Predictions
*Changes made after Konta pulled out*
Export taken from Tennis Draw Challenge predictions
R1
Keys
Rogers
Larsson
Zhang
Lucic-Baroni
Barthel
Bondarenko
Bertens
Vesnina
Muhammad
Ostapenko
Davis
Errani
Duan
Chirico
Wozniacki
Sevastova
Arruabarrena
Jabeur
Putintseva
Safarova
Mattek-Sands
Siegemund
Williams
Stosur
Jankovic
Kucova
Begu
Puig
Kasatkina
Day
Gavrilova
R2
Keys
Larsson
Lucic-Baroni
Bondarenko
Vesnina
Davis
Errani
Wozniacki
Sevastova
Putintseva
Safarova
Williams
Stosur
Begu
Kasatkina
Gavrilova
R3
Keys
Lucic-Baroni
Vesnina
Wozniacki
Putintseva
Williams
Stosur
Kasatkina
QF
Keys
Wozniacki
Williams
Stosur
SF
Wozniacki
Williams
F
Williams
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