Damien Kayat previews the WTA Tour’s Miami Open Quarterfinals matches featuring Naomi Osaka vs Danielle Collins as well as Iga Swiatek vs Petra Kvitova.
2022 WTA Tour
WTA 1000
Miami Open
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida (Outdoor Hardcourt)
Selected Quarterfinals- 30th March
Naomi Osaka (49/100) vs Danielle Collins (9) (31/20)
Naomi Osaka has equalled her best ever Miami showing by beating Alsion Riske in straight-sets. Osaka was absolutely devastating from the baseline, hitting a whopping 40 winners to see off compatriot Riske. Riske did manage to break Osaka for the first time in her entire tournament.
But Osaka simply had too much firepower in the end. Osaka has looked imperious in Miami and she looks to reassert herself in the women’s game. Currently ranked 77th in the world, Osaka is yet to drop a set in the entire tournament. She also benefited from Muchova’s Round of 32 withdrawal. She looks reinvigorated and come into this quarterfinal looking absolutely dominant on serve.
Some of her serving stats from this tournament boggle the mind. She won 93% of her first serve points in her opening match. She also won a staggering 89% of her first serve points against Kerber.
Aussie Open runner-up Danielle Collins booked her quarterfinal place courtesy of a 6-2, 6-4 win over 8th seed Ons Jabeur. Much like Osaka, Collins has looked brilliant in this year’s event. Sure, she did drop a set in her opening match against Bondar.
But since then, she hasn’t looked back. Her resounding victory against Ons Jabeur took her season win-loss record to 9-2. This despite the fact that she has been fighting injury and viral infection since reaching her maiden Grand Slam final earlier this year. But let’s just take a moment and look how far Collins has come in the last 15 months. She was forced to miss virtually the entire first half of 2021, with acute endometriosis actually threatening to end her tennis career.
This was exacerbated by rheumatoid arthritis. But she came back with real vigour, winning two titles in the 2nd half of 2021. She then enjoyed that brilliant run earlier this year in Melbourne. This event seems to have particular emotional significance for Collins. The Florida native had her WTA breakthrough in this event, reaching the 2018 semi-final as a qualifier.
Verdict: Osaka to win in straight sets at 5/4- This will be the 2nd career meeting between the two, with Osaka absolutely demolishing Collins in their 2018 Beijing meeting. Collins is one of the few players who can match Osaka from the back of the court. But there is still an injury cloud hanging over Collins’ head. And Osaka is playing some of the best tennis she has played in recent memory. I think Osaka will blow Collins away in straight-sets.
Iga Swiatek (23/100) vs Petra Kvitova (3/1)
Iga Swiatek will replace Ashleigh Barty as World Number One this week. The Polish superstar has been absolutely brilliant in recent weeks and she will have posed a threat to Ashleigh Barty even if the Aussie hadn’t made the shock decision to retire. Swiatek’s straight-sets victory against Coco Gauff took her current winning streak to 14 matches. In fact, she is currently on a 13-set winning streak.
She won back-to-back WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Indian Wells. This week she will be aiming to win her 3rd consecutive WTA 1000 title. Her relentless hitting is truly one of the most exhilarating sights in all of tennis. Her vivacity and energy remind me of a young Rafa. Still just 20 years of age, Swiatek is poised to be at the summit of the women’s game for some time to come.
Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has been struggling for consistency over the past 12 months. The last final she reached was in Doha last year (where she would claim her 28th career title). The 32-year-old was 6-7 heading into this year’s Miami Open. That’s not too encouraging when you consider that she has never progressed past the quarterfinals in this event. She battled past Clara Burel in an unconvincing opening match. She was also broken three times in her round of 32 victory against Lauren Davis.
I wouldn’t have given her too much of a chance against the in-form Veronika Kudermetova. But the Czech took advantage of some sloppy play on the Russian’s behalf. But she is going to have to elevate her game further should she reach this year’s semi-final.
Verdict: Swiatek to win in straight-sets- I was slightly surprised to discover that this will be the first career meeting between these two. Let’s face it- Swiatek has all the momentum. There is just no other result I can envisage outside of a straight-sets win for the Pole.
