The 2019 WTA Kremlin Cup will move into its quarterfinal phase on Friday, October 18 with Belinda Bencic leading the action. Get Ekaterina Alexandrova v Karolina Muchova & Belinda Bencic v Kirsten Flipkens preview, predictions, tips, and other statistics.
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Ekaterina Alexandrova v Karolina Muchova Predictions & Preview
It’s a battle between the 35th-ranked Karolina Muchova and 38th-ranked Ekaterina Alexandrova, which on paper should get quite close. However, Alexandrova, by the virtue of what has happened between the two of them on head to head, could have bit of an advantage.
Over those five matches, Alexandrova is 4-1 up, with Muchova’s only win having come on clay.
Here’s something more interesting though. Both players’ career-best is 35th, with Muchova currently on it. In fact, if one were to look at the WTA live rankings, Muchova has broken into the top 30 and another win here could seal that for another week.
However, that might not get any easy given her history with Alexandrova.
Alexandrova has dropped just seven games in getting to the last-eight stage and that includes a 6-1, 6-1 thrashing of Anna Kalinskaya in the previous match. Muchova’s performance has been even better. Having won the Seoul Open title recently, she has registered straight-set wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova and Donna Vekic and that holds her in a good stead.
Tough one to call but we think this could go the distance.
Tip: Three sets in the match: 7/5 with Unibet
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Belinda Bencic v Kirsten Flipkens Predictions & Preview
Belinda Bencic has won two of the three matches she has played against Kirsten Flipkens, which excludes one match that they had played in IPTL. Flipkens had withdrawn from it after the second set.
Bencic is gunning for the WTA Finals and has Kiki Bertens and Serena Williams for competition. While Williams isn’t playing, Bencic will need to get to at least the final of this tournament to be able to overcome the American on the ranking points. Which is why she would appreciate the fact she is up against the 120th-ranked Flipkens in what could otherwise have been a tricky last-eight match.
Flipkens has had her moments in the sun, having reached a top 15 on the WTA charts but has since had her issues. At the start of this week she was 120th but might move inside the top 100 even if she loses here. Of course she would like to give Bencic a fight, as much as the Swiss endured in her opener against Polona Hercog but expecting a straight-set win for her here.
Tip: Bencic to win 3/7 with Unibet
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Kiki Bertens v Kristina Mladenovic Predictions & Preview
World number eight Kiki Bertens will be up against the 45th-ranked Kristina Mladenovic in their quarter-finals at the Kremlin Cup, in what would also be their second meeting. The first meeting in 2016 was won by Bertens.
Bertens, much like Belinda Bencic, is in with a chance to make it to the WTA Finals but in order to do that she will need to at least make it to the final.
She had a first round bye and was expected to romp home to an easy win against Kaia Kanepi. Instead she was forced to come back from a set behind before winning the match. That made it her seventh win indoor this season to just one defeat, a loss that had come at the hands of Cori Gauff last week.
Mladenovic, who hasn’t won a singles WTA title since 2017 St. Petersburg, was a shock victor over Anastasija Sevastova last round, Having needed three sets against Yulia Putintseva as well as Sevastova, she has shown an appetite for a fight but can she go on to ruffle a few feathers? A win for her will end Bertens’ hopes of making the WTA Finals but with so much at stake, the Dutchwoman should still scrape through.
Tip: Bertens to win in three sets 3/1 with Unibet
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