Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the WTA Madrid match.
Tenth seed Elena Rybakina is set to face 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu. However, the dynamic between the two players has changed significantly since that title-winning run.
Elena Rybakina
Elena Rybakina brings strong credentials to the court. She claimed the Wimbledon title in 2022 and reached the final of the Australian Open the following year. Those performances marked the start of her rise up the rankings. In June 2023, she climbed to a career-high No. 3 in the WTA rankings and began the current season ranked fifth. Since then, however, Rybakina has slipped to 11th. The decline stems largely from missed opportunities to defend ranking points. In Doha, where she was a finalist last year, she went out in the quarter-finals. In Miami, where Rybakina also reached the final in 2023, she suffered an early second-round elimination. These results cost her valuable points. Her most successful tournament this season has been the WTA 1000 event in Dubai, where she made the semi-finals.
Bianca Andreescu
Bianca Andreescu, meanwhile, has struggled not only this season but over the past several years. Her time on tour has been repeatedly interrupted. In 2023, her season ended as early as August due to a back injury that required a nine-month recovery. She made her return at Roland-Garros in 2024, reaching the third round. Aside from a respectable showing in 's-Hertogenbosch, Andreescu found it difficult to build momentum through to October, after which she again took time off to focus on her health. A return had been planned for late February in Mérida, Mexico, but emergency surgery for appendicitis delayed that comeback. She finally returned to action in April, playing her first match of 2025 last week in Rouen, where Andreescu lost a closely contested match against Suzan Lamens, falling in a third-set tie-break.
Elena Rybakina vs Bianca Andreescu Prediction
We expect another competitive match here. Elena Rybakina is not playing at her peak, and in their two previous encounters—both won by her—Bianca Andreescu still managed to stay relatively close, winning only three and five games fewer, respectively. We lean toward a similar outcome this time.
