Miami Open 2023, Day 3: Women's singles predictions ft. Coco Gauff vs Rebecca Marino
Day 3 of the Miami Open will take place on Thursday, March 23, with the second-round matches of the women's singles tournament taking place.
Several seeded players will be in action, with Coco Gauff facing Rebecca Marino and Jessica Pegula taking on Katherine Sebov. Victoria Azarenka will clash horns with Camila Giorgi while Elena Rybakina will be up against Anna Kalinskaya.
The likes of Daria Kasatkina, Paula Badosa and Petra Martic will also be in action on Thursday.
On that note, let's take a look at some of the notable women's singles matches that will take place on Day 3 of the Miami Open.
#1 Coco Gauff vs Rebecca Marino
Sixth seed Coco Gauff will face Rebecca Marino in the second round of the Miami Open. It will be the second meeting between the two, with Gauff beating the Canadian 7-5, 6-0 in their previous encounter in the first round of last year's French Open.
The American reached the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells before losing to Aryna Sabalenka. Marino, meanwhile, suffered an opening-round defeat to Marketa Vondrousova. She then booked her place in the second round of the Miami Open with a 7-6 (4), 6-2 win over Yulia Putintseva.
Gauff has looked good so far this season and has hardly had any difficulties when it comes to beating players ranked lower than her. The teenager should have little trouble getting the better of Marino, who has won only three main-draw matches so far in 2023.
Predicted Winner: Coco Gauff.
#2 Elena Rybakina vs Anna Kalinskaya
Indian Wells champion Elena Rybakina will take on Anna Kalinskaya in the second round of the Miami Open. It will be the very first meeting between the two.
Rybakina has been in terrific form lately, winning the BNP Paribas Open by beating Aryna Sabalenka in the final. She also ended World No.1 Iga Swiatek's title defense in the semifinals.
Kalinskaya, on the other hand, suffered a second-round exit to Karolina Pliskova at the WTA 1000 tournament. The Russian bounced back, however, and booked her place in the second round of the Miami Open with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva.
Rybakina has been in pretty good form so far this season with 16 wins out of 20 matches so far, while Kalinskaya has only won six out of her 11 matches. The Kazakh should be able to win the match without much trouble and book her place in the third round.
Predicted Winner: Elena Rybakina.
#3 Daria Kasatkina vs Elise Mertens
Eighth seed Daria Kasatkina will face Elise Mertens in the second round of the Miami Open. It will be the sixth meeting between the two, with Kasatkina holding a resounding 4-1 lead in their head-to-head.
Kasatkina received a bye to the second round of the Miami Open while Mertens booked her place with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Alycia Parks in the opening round.
The Russian has won just three matches since reaching the final of the Adelaide International 2. Mertens, meanwhile, has had a disappointing 2023 season so far, with her best performance being reaching the semifinals of the Monterrey Open.
Kasatkina may not be in very good form at the moment but given her head-to-head record against Mertens, she will be expected to come out on top on Thursday.
Predicted Winner: Daria Kasatkina.
#4 Danielle Collins vs Viktoriya Tomova
Danielle Collins will be up against Viktoriya Tomova in the second round of the Miami Open. It will be the second meeting between the two, with Collins winning their previous encounter 6-0, 6-4 in the first round of last year's French Open.
The 30th seed received a bye to the second round of the Miami Open. Meanwhile, Tomova had to go through the qualifiers to get into the main draw. She then beat Anna Karolina Schmiedlova 7-5, 6-2 to reach the second round.
Collins seems to be the superior player out of the two and has a good chance of reaching the third round in Miami.
Predicted Winner: Danielle Collins.
#5 Zheng Qinwen vs Irina-Camelia Begu
Zheng Qinwen will face Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round of the Miami Open. It will be the very first meeting between the two.
Qinwen missed the BNP Paribas Open and received a walkover to the second round in Miami. Begu, meanwhile, booked her place in the second round in Miami with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Alex Eala.
Qinwen is a talent to watch out for. The 23rd seed has produced some promising performances over the past few months. Begu, on the other hand, has only won two matches since reaching the semifinals of the Adelaide International 1.
The Chinese will enter the match as the favorite to win and should be able to book her place in the third round of the Miami Open.
Predicted Winner: Zheng Qinwen.