Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the WTA Beijing match.
Anastasia Potapova is enjoying her best tournament for a long time and is back inside the top 50 in the live rankings. Linda Noskova faces a test against the Russian, who eliminated her at Roland Garros earlier this year.
Anastasia Potapova
Potapova has won three matches in a row for the first time since April. She has come through a difficult spell — a split with her coach and with Tallon Griekspoor, missing Wimbledon due to health reasons, and a poor North American swing. In Beijing, Anastasia has sparked back into life, not dropping a set against Kateřina Siniaková, Victoria Mboko and Zeynep Sönmez, while averaging 67% of points won behind her first serve. The Russian has a positive record in the round of 16 at WTA 500 level or above: nine wins against six defeats across her career. She always competes, attacks from the baseline and can compete with the top 30 when she keeps the errors down. In their meeting at Roland Garros, Potapova prevailed in three sets (5:7, 6:1, 7:5).
Linda Noskova
Noskova has yet to win a title this season, though she has been close: strong showings in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and a final in Prague (lost to Marie Bouzková). She is currently No. 27 in the world rankings. Linda hits a heavy ball but lacks variety and consistency, particularly at the net. In Beijing, she beat two Chinese opponents: she dropped only five games in straight sets against Xiyu Wang, and Zheng Qinwen retired in the third. Even so, Noskova is landing only 65% of first serves and is averaging over four double faults per match at this tournament.
Anastasia Potapova vs Linda Noskova Prediction
Anastasia Potapova is trending up and will make this competitive against a higher-ranked Linda Noskova. The Czech player can apply power from the baseline, but her unforced errors and a vulnerable second serve — 47% of second-serve points won in her last match — could count against her. The Russian has won her last two matches as the underdog, and we expect her to cover the handicap.
