Some of the first round action at the 2023 Lausanne Open will see Irina-Camelia Begu the top seed, take on Fiona Ferro of France and Alize Cornet play Viktorija Golubic. Get the latest predictions along with the odds, preview and head to head for these matches along with Ana Bogdan v Simona Waltert and Clara Burel v Olga Danilovic.
Irina-Camelia Begu v Fiona Ferro Preview
Head-to-Head: They have played twice before, in Sao Paolo in 2014, and in Indian Wells two years ago. Begu won each time without conceding a set.
Begu has won five titles on the WTA tour and been involved in four further finals.
Her only clay court success, though, came last year in Palermo.
She chose not to defend her title this year, instead opting to play in a Challenger event on home soil in Romania. That decision was justified by getting to the final, although she then lost in straight sets to compatriot Ana Bogdan.
Her best result on clay this year was in Madrid, where she got to the quarter-finals before losing to Maria Sakkari. And she got to the third round of the French Open before suffering a defeat at the hands of the eventual finalist Karolina Muchova.
Ferro won the singles title in Lausanne in 2019, and was a winner in Palermo a year later, at her peak being a top 40 player.
However, several years of indifferent form have seen her rankings plummet, but she has shown signs that a recovery might be on the cards.
In February she won her first ITF title in more than four years in Tunis, and she was the beaten finalist in another event in April on clay, also in Switzerland.
Two weeks ago she reached the semi-final of a Challenger event in France, but her visit to Palermo this time round was a brief one. She was knocked out in the first round.
Although Ferro has shown indications she may be on the comeback trail, it would still be a major surprise if she were able to dethrone the number one seed in this match.
Begu v Ferro Tip:
Begu to win: 4/17
Alize Cornet v Viktorija Golubic Preview
Head-to-Head: The pair have never met before. This will be the first match between Cornet, who is 33, and the Swiss, three years her junior.
Cornet has a fine record in Lausanne. She won the title in 2018, beating Mandy Minella in the final and was runner-up to Fiona Ferro of France the following year.
Her Swiss Open win was one of six she has enjoyed in her career, four of which have come on clay.
The Frenchwoman had something of a purple patch last year, reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open, and the quarter-finals of Wimbledon.
She has not been able to emulate those achievements so far in 2023, although she did reach the semi-finals in Nottingham.
Golubic’s one senior WTA triumph also came on Swiss soil, some 50 miles away in Gstaad. That, though, was back in 2016, and she has yet to enjoy further success at that level, losing three further finals.
She has enjoyed more recent success on the ITF tour, but not for two years now.
Her best result on the main tour this year came in Nottingham on grass, where she reached the third round. And she came through qualifying in Wimbledon before losing her second round match to Madison keys.
Last week she was a first round casualty in Palermo.
The difference in world rankings and recent form suggest that Cornet should win this match easily, unless Golubic can find inspiration from playing in home conditions..
Cornet v Golubic Tip:
Cornet to win: 7/19
Ana Bogdan v Simona Waltert Preview
Head-to-Head: The pair recently met for the first time in Romania on the Challenger tour, Bogdan winning in straight sets.
Bogdan will come into this match full of confidence. She has just won a Challenger event on home soil in Romania, beating compatriot Irina-Camelia Begu in the final, and successfully defending the title that she won last year.
Her 2022 win came shortly after she reached her one senior WTA final to date, beaten in the Poland Open by Caroline Garcia of France.
Recently Bogdan also reached the third round of Wimbledon for the first time, emulating her best ever result in a Grand Slam.
Waltert will have fond memories of this tournament. She won her only senior WTA title in the doubles here two years ago when she was partnered by compatriot Susan Bandacci.
And, last year, in the singles, she not only recorded her first ever win over a top ten layer by beating Danielle Collins after entering the event as a wildcard, saving three match points in the deciding tie-break, but she went on to reach the quarter-finals before losing to the Serb, Olga Danilovic.
Last month she reached a career high singles ranking, having just made her Grand Slam debut in Paris, where she won her first match at that level defeating Elizabeth Mandlik.
Whilst Waltert would dearly love to match her achievements of last year, she is playing an opponent whose in in good form, beat her last week, and who will be looking to keep her recent run going in Switzerland.
Bogdan v Waltert Tip:
Bogdan to win: 2/7
Clara Burel v Olga Danilovic Preview
Head-to-Head: The only meeting between the pair occurred in qualifying for the Australian Open earlier this year, Burel winning in three sets.
Burel was the beaten finalist in Lausanne two years ago, losing a three set match to the Slovenian Tamara Zidansek.
That remains her only WTA final, although she has just tasted success on the ITF tour, winning a clay court event on home soil in Montpellier.
It was her first victory at that level for nearly two years.
A former junior world number one, Burel has yet to fully convert that form on to the senior tour.
Danilovic’s last visit to Lausanne in 2022 was a resounding success. She reached the final in the singles, her second ever on the WTA tour, losing eventually to Petra Martic in straight sets, and she won the doubles with partner Kristina Mladenovic.
Since then she has been a winner on the ITF tour in singles on clay in Madrid, and been the beaten finalist on the senior tour in doubles in Lyon.
She also won the Challenger title in Bastad, but lost in the first round of Palermo last week.
This match features the beaten finalist from the past two years. Danilovic is the lower ranked, but recent form suggests that she should be considered favourite.
Burel v Danilovic Tip:
Danilovic to win: 7/10
The 2023 Lausanne Open will be played from July 24 to 30. Get our ultimate guide on tennis betting and predictions here.
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