Samantha Stosur vs Marketa Vondrousova Tennis Prediction
Samantha Stosur started her grass season at Nottingham last week, winning the first round against Zarina Diyas via retirement. She lost the subsequent match to British wildcard and world #156 Katie Boulter in straight sets (7-6 6-1), getting broken four times.
The former US Open champion does not have a great record on grass. She has not won back-to-back matches on this surface since 2015 Wimbledon. In WTA tournaments, it further goes back to the semifinal appearance at 2011 Eastbourne.
Stosur has gone 7-7 in first round matches in 2018 and 5-5 against outside 100 opponents in the last twelve months. Her best results of 2018 came during the clay season, a couple of quarterfinals at Prague and Strasbourg, along with a third round at the French Open.
Marketa Vondrousova kicked her grass season off at ‘s-Hertogenbosch, losing the first round to Aryna Sabalenka (0-6 7-5 6-3). The Czech is now seeking to avoid her third consecutive opening-round exit, having lost to Ana Bogdan at the French Open.
Last year, the teenager enjoyed a breakthrough season, including winning her first WTA title at Biel. She was ranked #50 in March but is currently outside top 100. She is yet to post even a quarterfinal in 2018, having gone 6-4 in first round matches.
The two Mallorca debutantes have met each other once in the past, in the second round of 2016 Prague (clay). Vondrousova was then ranked #339 and playing the main draw as a wildcard. Stosur secured the match in straight sets (6-3 6-4), within 90 minutes.
Tennis Prediction: Samantha Stosur
Odds: 2.60
