A couple of semi-final picks from Washington today, with temperatures sitting around 74°F under partial cloud and the high threatening to push into the 90s by the afternoon. Two very different matches on paper, so let's get into them.
WTA Mubadala DC Open Predictions
Jessica Pegula vs Diana Shnaider
Head-to-head: Pegula 3-0 Shnaider
Three from three, and it hasn't been particularly close. Pegula's consistency on hard courts is exactly the kind of thing that wears Shnaider down and the Washington conditions, not too fast, not too slow, suit Pegula's game about as well as any surface gets. Shnaider has had a decent tournament but she hasn't beaten Pegula yet and I don't see this being the day that changes.
Pegula wins this without too many alarms.
Prediction: Pegula in 2
Naomi Osaka vs Alexandra Eala
Head-to-head: First meeting
First meeting between these two, and it's a genuinely tricky one to call. Eala has been one of the stories of the summer and making a WTA semi-final at 19, which not many players manage in their first real breakthrough run, is no small thing and Osaka has looked sharp this week but hasn't always been able to sustain that level deep into tournaments since her return. That said, Osaka's ball-striking on hard courts at her best is still a level above most players ranked around Eala, and I feel like the occasion might work against the younger player here rather than for her.
Osaka gets there, but probably not without dropping a set along the way, all things considered.
Prediction: Osaka in 3
For full predictions on ATP and WTA matches today, check out Uppset.
Credit Image: © Kyle Gustafson/ZUMA Press Wire