Wimbledon women's draw: Round of 16 Preview

Halfway through the tournament, Wimbledon has experienced its fair share of upsets and withdrawals. But as we head towards the 2nd week of the Championships, the battle for the Venus Rosewater Dish will only intensify further. Here is a preview of the round of 16 encounters from the Wimbledon Women’s Draw:

1) Kirsten Flipkens vs Flavia Pennetta (Head to Head: 1-1)

An unlikely matchup, Pennetta and Flipkens have both benefitted from the withdrawals and upsets to progress deep into the draw. Pennetta, ranked as low as 166, will have a tough task on her hands to improve on her 4th round performances in 2005 and 2006 at Wimbledon. However, a three-set win over Alize Cornet would surely bolster her confidence.

Last time these 2 met was in the first round of Roland Garros a month earlier, with Flipkens winning in 3 sets. This is going to be a close encounter with either player having a good chance of making it through to the quarters.

Prediction: Kirsten Flipkens wins in 3 sets.

2) Petra Kvitova vs Carla Suarez Navarro (Head to Head: 4-1)

Petra Kvitova

2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova will have a tricky encounter against 19th seed Carla Suarez Navarro in the pre-quarterfinals. These two have faced each other twice in the past year on hard courts, with both players winning once. Kvitova had a tough 3rd round match against Ekatarina Makarova, with a night’s break helping her to rejuvenate and continue on in the tournament.

Meanwhile, Suarez Navarro defeated young Eugenie Bouchard to reach the round of 16. The Spaniard reached the semis of the warm up event for Wimbledon at Hertogenbosch, whereas Kvitova lost out in the 2nd round at Eastbourne. Overall, this will be a fairly even encounter between the two players.

Prediction: Kvitova wins in 3 sets.

3) Marion Bartoli vs Karin Knapp (Head to Head: 1-0)

Marion Bartoli

2007 finalist Marion Bartoli will face world number 104 Karin Knapp for a place in the quarterfinals. The 15th seed certainly cannot underestimate the Italian, who has overcome Lucie Safarova and the conqueror of Sharapova, Larcher Di Brito in the previous rounds and would be confident of causing another upset.

Bartoli and Knapp last met 5 years back with Bartoli easily winning in straight sets. If Bartoli plays to her potential, this should be an easy encounter for her.

Prediction: Bartoli wins in straight sets.

4) Sloane Stephens vs Monica Puig (First meeting)

Sloane Stephens

Playing her first Wimbledon, Puerto Rican youngster Monica Puig would certainly be the underdog going into this encounter with American Sloane Stephens. Puig created waves at SW19 by toppling fifth seed Sara Errani in the first round. Both Stephens and Puig have had to face some difficult 3 set encounters in the previous rounds. Sloane Stephens would be the favourite to progress through to the quarters.

Prediction: Stephens wins in straight sets.