Roberta Vinci – Bethanie Mattek-Sands
I went against Vinci yesterday, without luck it seems, but I’ll try again today, as I still don’t think indoors is her best surface. Mattek-Sands has had to qualify for this tournament, and she’s fighting hard because she has a lot of points to defend in her ranking.
Last year she reached the semifinal here, one of her best results of 2012, and of course it brings back happy memories for the American, who already holds a 1-0 lead in the h2h against Vinci. I don’t think she should pay back more than twice the deposit.
Yanina Wickmayer – Christina McHale
Wickmayer is a very fine indoor player and started the year pretty well down under by reaching a final. The last time she visited this tournament she reached the quarterfinal and she holds a 1-0 lead over McHale. I’m voting for the Belgian.
Maria Kirilenko – Tamarine Tanasugarn
They have 2 previous meetings which lies a few years back. Tanasugarn won the first, Kirilenko the second. Then they met up last year on grass, perhaps Tanasugarn’s favourite surface but Kirilenko won in 2 sets. She really should prove the better player once again.
Vera Zvonareva – Sorana Cirstea
Zvonareva leads this opponent 1-0 in their h2h and she loves playing this tournament. She won it back to back in 2009 and 2010 and reached the semifinal last year losing to eventual winner Hantuchova.
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