Jasmin Open 2023 Day 4: Women's singles predictions ft. Jasmine Paolini vs Petra Marcinko
The remaining second round matches will come to an end on day 4 of the 2023 Jasmin Open.
The tournament was supposed to be headlined by Ons Jabeur and Venus Williams. Unfortunately, both of them were forced to withdraw due to injuries. The two were also set to team up in doubles.
But the show goes on, even without the tour's leading stars. Defending champion Elise Mertens scored wins over Alex Eala and Iryna Shymanovich to reach the quarterfinals. However, third seed Martina Trevisan was upset in the first round by Katarzyna Kawa.
With a place in the quarterfinals on the line, here's a look at the predictions for day 4 of the Jasmin Open:
#1 - Jasmine Paolini vs Petra Marcinko
The Asian swing has been pretty good for Paolini so far. She made it to the third round of the China Open and followed it up with a semifinal in Zhengzhou last week. The Italian won veteran Alize Cornet in straight sets in the first round of the Jasmin Open.
Marcinko defeated Marina Bassols Ribera 7-6 (7), 6-2 to score her second main draw win of the season at the WTA level. Considering the wide gulf in their rankings and results, Paolini will be expected to make light work of her opponent to advance further.
Predicted winner: Jasmine Paolini
#2 - Clara Burel vs Erika Andreeva
Mirra Andreeva made quite a splash with her results this year and has already cracked the top 50 of the WTA rankings. Now, her older sister Erika is also starting to make some noise. The 19-year old defeated Darja Semenistaja 6-2, 6-0 to commence her challenge at the Jasmin Open.
Burel eased past Cristina Bucsa as well in the first round here. The Frenchwoman has been plagued by recurring injuries and hasn't been able to garner any sort of momentum over a long period.
The older Andreeva sibling has been overshadowed by her younger sister this season, but this is her opportunity to step into the limelight. However, Burel is the more experienced player of the two. If the Frenchwoman's body holds up, she should be able to deal with everything Andreeva throws at her.
Predicted winner: Clara Burel
#3 - Lesia Tsurenko vs Claire Liu
Tsurenko ousted Chloe Paquet to begin her journey at the Jasmin Open. Liu withstood a challenge from her fellow American Emina Bektas to book her passage into the second round.
Liu's had a rather average season so far, though she did reach the quarterfinals last week at the Korea Open. She had World No. 4 Jessica Pegula on the ropes, but lost the match in three sets.
Tsurenko's had better results compared to Liu, but her body has let her down quite often. She has had to retire halfway through her matches at times and has pulled out of tournaments too.
Just last week the Ukrainian retired after losing the first set against Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals of the Zhengzhou Open. If she's feeling fine physically, Tsurenko will certainly have the edge against Liu.
Despite her inconsistent form, Liu is a tough cookie. If the American is able to replicate the form she displayed against Pegula a few days ago, then she could pull off a win against Tsurenko too.
Predicted winner: Claire Liu
#4 - Katarina Zavatska vs Nuria Parrizas-Diaz
Zavatska won an ITF title at the start of the month and has carried that winning momentum into the Jasmin Open too. She came through the qualifying rounds and defeated Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the first round here.
It was Zavatska's first main draw win of the season at the WTA level. Parrizas-Diaz earned a hard fought three-set win over Magdalena Frech to begin her Jasmin Open campaign with a win.
The Spaniard cracked the top 50 of the WTA rankings last year based on a string of good wins. However, she wasn't able to maintain her form this year and has fallen out of the top 100 of the rankings.
Zavatska has now won eight matches in a row across all levels. Given her form, she'll be the favorite to beat Parrizas-Diaz.
Predicted winner: Katarina Zavatska