A few second round picks from Nottingham today, and honestly this is a pretty interesting slate. Grass tennis in early June always has that slightly unpredictable feel before the surface settles, and we've got at least one match here that could easily go either way.
WTA Lexus Nottingham Open Predictions
Sara Bejlek vs Karolina Pliskova
Head-to-head: First meeting
Pliskova on grass is a different animal. Her serve becomes almost unplayable on the surface and at her peak she reached the Wimbledon final, so she knows exactly what to do out here. At 32 and ranked 87th, she's clearly not the force she was, but grass has a way of flattening the ranking difference and her flat, direct ball-striking suits the conditions perfectly.
Bejlek is a solid player and her ranking at 47 suggests she's been doing things right this season, but this is only her second full year on tour and she hasn't shown much on grass yet. Pliskova's serve alone should be enough to keep her in control of the big points throughout.
Prediction: Pliskova in 3
Katie Volynets vs Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
Head-to-head: Volynets 0-1 Maneiro
Bouzas Maneiro leads their only meeting and is ranked almost 50 spots higher, so she comes in as a clear favorite on paper. But that prior meeting was almost certainly on clay, and grass is a completely different conversation. Volynets has a compact, aggressive game that tends to translate reasonably well on faster surfaces, and the home-crowd factor won't apply for either player here.
I think the surface flips this one. Bouzas Maneiro is a clay-court builder by nature, and the pace in Nottingham won't suit her nearly as well. Volynets can be streaky, but when she's on her game she can be very difficult to handle and should still find a way to get through here.
Prediction: Volynets in 3
Lois Boisson vs Dayana Yastremska
Head-to-head: Boisson 1-0 Yastremska
This is the intriguing one. Boisson already has a win over Yastremska in their only meeting, and at 154 in the world she's clearly not a pushover despite the ranking gap. Yastremska has real weapons on grass, her flat forehand, which is particularly dangerous on a low-bouncing surface, is tailor-made for these conditions, and she's capable of beating anyone on a good day.
That said, getting beaten by the same lower-ranked opponent twice in a row would be a real problem, and Yastremska will know exactly what happened last time. Feel like she comes out sharper and more focused here, and the class difference should show over three sets even if Boisson makes it uncomfortable early.
Prediction: Yastremska in 3
For full predictions on ATP and WTA matches today, check out Uppset.
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