We've got three first-round matches to break down from Rouen today, and a couple of them are genuinely hard to call. First meetings all around, so we're going on form and surface feel here. Who do you think causes the biggest upset?
WTA Open Capfinances Rouen Metropole Predictions
Daria Kasatkina vs Ann Li
Head-to-head: First meeting
Kasatkina has been one of the better clay-court movers on the WTA tour for years, and even at a lower ranking right now she's the kind of player who makes rallies really uncomfortable on this surface. Li is ranked higher but has never been a clay specialist, and the slower conditions in Rouen won't play to her strengths at all.
I think Kasatkina gets through this one, though it probably takes three sets given Li's ability to stay competitive in long matches, and she's shown enough resilience this season to make things awkward.
Prediction: Kasatkina in 3
Tatjana Maria vs Marketa Vondrousova
Head-to-head: First meeting
Vondrousova is ranked higher and won Wimbledon in 2023, but clay, which has never really suited her aggressive net game, has never really been her best surface and she's had a rough stretch of results recently. Maria, on the other hand, plays this scrappy baseline game that gets under people's skin on slow clay, and she's the kind of opponent who makes you work for every single point.
To make things worse for Vondrousova, Maria plays exactly the kind of messy, awkward tennis that's hard to time when you're not in form. Maria takes this one.
Prediction: Maria in 3
Janice Tjen vs Anna Bondar
Head-to-head: First meeting
Tjen is ranked inside the top 45 and has been solid on clay this season, and Bondar hasn't shown much form lately. Hard to see this being competitive at all. Tjen in straight sets.
Prediction: Tjen in 2
For full predictions on ATP and WTA matches today, check out Uppset.
Credit Image: © PI via ZUMA Press Wire