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Day 3 of the Dubai Tennis Championships will see the start of the second round matches.
Three seeds were eliminated in the first round, with 11th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, 14th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova and 16th seed Caroline Garcia being the victims.
Fifth seed Ons Jabeur was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to a knee injury. Jelena Ostapenko, Karolina Pliskova and Leylah Fernandez were among the winners of the past two days.
With the entirety of the second round scheduled for Tuesday, here's a look at the predictions for some of the key matches lined up for the day:
#1 - Maria Sakkari vs Emma Navarro
After a promising start to the season, things have gone south for Sakkari rather quickly. While Greece bowed out of the United Cup in the quarterfinals, the 28-year old won all three of her singles ties.
Following a routine 6-4, 6-1 win over Nao Hibino, Sakkari lost 6-4, 6-4 to Elina Avanesyan in the second round of the Australian Open. The Middle East swing has proved to be quite disappointing for her so far as she's yet to win a match.
Sorana Cristea and Linda Noskova defeated Sakkari at the Abu Dhabi Open and the Qatar Open respectively. The Greek received a first-round bye at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Navarro, on the other hand, has performed quite well so far. She reached the semifinals of the ASB Classic and then captured her maiden WTA title at the Hobart International. She followed it up with a third-round showing at the Australian Open, her best result at a Major to date.
Navarro made it to the third round of the Qatar Open but lost to Elena Rybakina in three sets. She staged a comeback to defeat Katerina Siniakova 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the first round here. The American has won thrice as many matches as Sakkari this year and given their recent form, will be favored to advance further.
Predicted winner: Emma Navarro
#2 - Jelena Ostapenko vs Lulu Sun
Ostapenko has been one of the most in-form players this season. Her record for the year stands at 15-3 and she won the Adelaide International and the Linz Open. She rallied from a set down to overcome Wang Xiyu 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 in her opener at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Sun claimed the first set 6-4 over former World No. 2 Paula Badosa in the first round here. Her opponent then called it quits due to an injury and she advanced to the next round via a retirement.
This should be a relatively easy encounter for Ostapenko as Sun hasn't done much damage on the WTA Tour. While the Latvian has three losses to her name this year, all have been against Victoria Azarenka. So for now, she can breathe easy and continue her good run of form.
Predicted winner: Jelena Ostapenko
#3 - Marketa Vondrousova vs Peyton Stearns
Reigning Wimbledon champion Vondrousova has just a couple of wins under her belt this year. She won her singles tie against Olga Danilovic at the United Cup, but lost to Zheng Qinwen as Czechia were ousted in the group stage.
Vondrousova suffered a 6-1, 6-2 loss at the hands of Dayana Yastremska in the first round of the Australian Open. At last week's Qatar Open, she was shown the door by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the third round. She received a bye into the second round as one of the top seeds in Dubai.
Stearns scored a 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 win over Mirra Andreeva in the opening round of the Dubai Tennis Championships to end her four-match losing streak since January. While the American hasn't been setting the tour on fire with her results, Vondrousova has been going through a rough patch as well.
This is a good opportunity for both to get a much-needed win. Vondrousova's resume makes her the favorite in this match-up. If the Czech is able to channel her best once again, this is quite a winnable encounter for her.
Predicted winner: Marketa Vondrousova
#4 - Zheng Qinwen vs Nao Hibino
Zheng made a quite a splash this year with a runner-up finish at the Australian Open. It was her maiden Grand Slam final but she lost to defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 6-2. Nevertheless, she made her top 10 debut as a result of it.
Zheng's next tournament was the Qatar Open. She survived a three-set tussle against Magda Linette, but slumped to a 7-5, 6-3 defeat against Fernandez in the third round. The 21-year old was also the recipient of a bye in Dubai.
Hibino came through the qualifying rounds of the Dubai Tennis Championships following wins over Minnen and Lucia Bronzetti. She overcame Linette in her opener 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 to record her second main draw win of the season.
Hibino's 1-7 track record against top 10 players doesn't do her any favors and she's hasn't been at her best this season either. Based on their recent results, Zheng is the clear frontrunner to win this duel.
Predicted winner: Zheng Qinwen
