The Stuttgart Open continues this week as Emma Navarro faces Beatriz Haddad Maia while Aryna Sabalenka goes up against Anastasia Potapova in the competition’s round of 32 and round of 16. Damien Kayat previews.
2025 WTA Tour – WTA 500
Stuttgart Open
Porsche Arena, Stuttgart, Germany (Indoor Clay)
Selected RO32 & RO16 – 15–16 April
Round of 32 – 15 April
Emma Navarro 1/4 | Beatriz Haddad Maia 28/10
World No.11 Emma Navarro enjoyed a fantastic 2024 season, making her maiden Grand Slam semifinal appearance at Flushing Meadows.
But she hasn’t set the world on fire in 2025, bringing a 13-8 record into this week’s event. Navarro enjoyed a decent start to the season, reaching a 3rd successive Grand Slam quarterfinal in Melbourne.
But she performed poorly in the WTA 1000 events, beefing up her stats with a title-winning run at the understrength Merida Open. She performed solidly in her first clay-court event of the season, losing to an in-form Amanda Anisimova in the Charleston quarters.
Navarro reached the 4th round at last year’s French Open and should theoretically be a decent fit for clay. She moves well and can generate heavy topspin on that forehand wing.
She is a strategic player who doesn’t mind engaging in protracted rallies.
Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia has overcome her fair share of obstacles during her career, surviving a doping ban and a series of career-threatening injuries.
But her hard work eventually paid off, and she would crack the top ten in the world in 2023. But she arrives in Stuttgart having not won a match since January!
Haddad Maia has lost her last eight competitive matches (including two in last week’s Billie Jean King Cup). She is 2-9 for the season and in desperate need of a pick-me-up.
Yet to reach a WTA final on clay, Haddad Maia nevertheless produced the best performance of her career on the sticky stuff, reaching the semifinals of the 2023 French Open.
An aggressive baseliner with a penchant for visiting the net, Haddad Maia should enjoy these relatively quick Stuttgart clay-court surfaces.
The Verdict: Haddad Maia to win in three 7/1
Haddad Maia leads Navarro 2-1 in their head-to-head meetings, winning both of their 2024 meetings in straight sets (both of which were played on clay).
This could be a turning point for Haddad Maia. Navarro seems to struggle with Haddad Maia’s awkward lefty serve, and this matchup could present Haddad Maia with the chance to alter her current trajectory.
Round of 16- 16 April
Aryna Sabalenka 1/8 | Anastasia Potapova 5/1
World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka returns to action after a two-week break following her Miami Open success. The huge-hitting Belarusian is 23-4 for the year, winning titles in Brisbane and Miami.
She came close to capturing her 4th Grand Slam title in Melbourne, going down to an inspired Madison Keys in an epic final. She will be starting her clay-court campaign this week, looking to build up momentum in her quest to capture that elusive French Open crown.
The hardcourt dynamo has improved immeasurably on clay these past few years, reaching seven clay-court finals since 2021 (winning two titles). She has been the 2nd best clay-court player in the world for some time (she lost to Swiatek in the Madrid and Rome finals last year).
She also has a true pedigree in this event, finishing as a runner-up from 2021 to 2023. These courts are quick by clay standards, and Sabalenka gets a decent purchase for those gargantuan groundstrokes. Could this be the year that she finally breaks through in Stuttgart?
Russian Anastaisa Potapova pulled off a bit of a surprise in her opener, overcoming the versatile Clara Tauson in three sets.
Potapova had to dig deep, saving a match-point in the 2nd set before eventually overpowering the Dane from the back of the court. An aggressive baseliner by nature, Potapova won an impressive 70% of her first-serve points in the match.
Her reward for her excellent performance: a meeting with the World No.1. Potapova has enjoyed an up-and-down season, winning her 3rd WTA title in Romania but largely underperforming in the other events.
She has some clay-court pedigree, winning her maiden WTA Tour title at the Istanbul Cup back in 2022.
She reached the 4th round at last year’s French Open (her best result in a Slam to date). She also has some tournament credentials, beating Gauff and Garcia en route to a semifinal finish back in 2023.
The Verdict: Sabalenka to win in straight sets 4/10
Sabalenka leads the head-to-head 1-0, thrashing Potapova 6-1, 6-2 on these surfaces back in 2023.
Potapova is an adept clay-court operator who, on her day, possesses the ability to wrong-foot more illustrious opponents. She will be hoping that Sabalenka takes a little time to adjust in her first clay-court match of the campaign.
Potapova hit the ball cleanly against Tauson and could catch the Belarusian out in the early stages. Still, Sabalenka is too powerful and will ultimately persevere.
