We've got three first-round picks from the Hamburg Ladies Open today, with grey skies overhead and a 100% chance of rain making things potentially interesting on the clay. Let's get into it.
WTA Hamburg Ladies Open Predictions
Kaitlin Quevedo vs Anhelina Kalinina
Head-to-head: First meeting
Kalinina is ranked 59th but she's been pretty inconsistent this season, and Quevedo has been quietly putting together a solid year on tour. At 100 in the world and still just 22, she plays a heavy clay game and this surface genuinely suits her. First meetings on clay can go either way, and I feel like Quevedo's game holds up well in the slow Hamburg conditions and should still find a way to get through here.
Prediction: Quevedo in 3
Anna Bondar vs Moyuka Uchijima
Head-to-head: Bondar 0-2 Uchijima
That head-to-head looks bad for Bondar, but Uchijima is ranked 35 spots below her and has been inconsistent away from hardcourts. Bondar is a clay specialist who really knows how to grind out these kind of slow-surface matches and Hamburg clay especially rewards patience. The 0-2 H2H is worth noting, but both of those losses might not have come on this surface, and rankings tend to tell the real story eventually.
Prediction: Bondar in 3
Nadia Podoroska vs Julia Stusek
Head-to-head: First meeting
Podoroska was once a top-50 player and a Roland Garros semifinalist, but she's ranked 533rd right now and that kind of drop doesn't happen without serious issues. Hard to see this being competitive at all. That said, Stusek at 438 isn't exactly flying either, but she's been more active on tour recently. Stusek wins this one.
Prediction: Stusek in 3
For full predictions on ATP and WTA matches today, check out Uppset.
Credit Image: © Rob Prange/AFP7 via ZUMA Press Wire