Sunday 25 July 2010

WTA Istanbul preview

The second WTA tournament for this week kicks off in Istanbul with the likes of Francesca Schiavone, Petra Kvitova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova competing.

1st Quarter - Schiavone (1) v Petkovic (6)
Francesca Schiavone will have to overcome some British opposition in Keothavong and Baltacha. I expect her to progress with some difficulty to win her first matches since winning Roland Garros. Petkovic should be her QF opponent with Razzano her R2 opponent.
Prediction = Schiavone v Petkovic

2nd Quarter - Shvedova (4) v Pironkova (5)
Shvedova faces a tricky opener against Stefanie Voegele who played well in Portoroz last week. Elena Vesnina is also lurking and is a talented hard court player so I expect her to find some form like compatriot Anna Chakvetadze in Portoroz last week. I'll go for Pironkova to come through against the fiesty Rodionova.
Prediction = Vesnina v Pironkova

3rd Quarter - Schnyder (8) v Pavlyuchenkova (3)
Im going to go for Sorana Cirstea to hit some form and knock out the seeded Schnyder who I predict will overcome a tired yet talented Johanna Larsson. Pavlyuchenkova should pass Rybarikova without any problems despite a disappointing exit in the QF of Portoroz.
Prediction = Cirstea v Pavlyuchenkova

4th Quarter - Zakopalova (7) v Kvitova (2)
In this final quarter, i'm going for the in-form Jarmilla Groth to knock out Zakopalova. Kvitova struggled in Portoroz last week and im anticipating another struggle against Sevastova. Ultimately, i think it will be Vera Dushevina who progresses to the QF.
Prediction = Groth v Dushevina

I'm predicting a final between Elena Vesnina and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova with A-Pav winning; however these tournaments can often be unpredictable with a selection of new names such as Julia Goerges and Johanna Larsson reaching the latter stages of recent WTA events.

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