The tennis season 2024 is heating up. Besides Brisbane WTA 500, there is also the ASB Classic WTA 250. Here are our ASB Classic Predictions.
Tournament information
The ASB Classic is a WTA 250 event. It starts on the 30th of December, lasts until the 7th of January, and is held in Auckland, New Zealand.
Seeded players
- GAUFF, Coco 3
- SVITOLINA, Elina 25
- TSURENKO, Lesia 31
- NAVARRO, Emma 32
- BOUZKOVA, Marie 34
- WANG, Xinyu 36
- MARTIC, Petra 40
- GRACHEVA, Varvara 43
Prize money and points
R32 $2,890 1 pt
R16 $4,040 30 pts
QF $6,608 54 pts
SF 11,610 98 pts
F $20,830 163 pts
W $35,250 250 pts
Draw
Predictions
This tournament is not close to the WTA Brisbane 500 event in strength or prize money, but there are some interesting players to follow.
Many tennis fans are curious about Emma Raducanu‘s return to the tour after injuries. She plays a qualifier and should have a good chance to get through the first round. How will Raducanu’s season turn out? I’m keen to hear your comments.
The other match that stands out is Wozniacki, who returned briefly last year and Svitolina, who is the second seed. Svitolina has a 4-1 head-to-head record (last match played in 2018) and looks hungry for more success. I predict she will defeat Wozniacki in three sets.
Coco Gauff ended her 2023 on a high with the US Open title. She has a new coach in Brad Gilbert and is working to improve her weakness, the infamous forehand. It will be very interesting to follow her path in 2024. She should get through her first round, but will she win the tournament? Possibly.
Another player who is back in business is Amanda Anisimova, who took a break from the tour after a tough period mentally, which was initiated by her father passing away from a heart attack. Let’s hope she can get back to a good mindset and a solid start.
A young talent to watch is Linda Fruhvirtova (she has a sister called Brenda that is also very good), but she has a tough draw against 4th seed Emma Navarro.
One-handed backhand players will enjoy Diane Parry and her nice technique. Not sure how far she can go in this tournament, though.
My prediction is that Svitolina wins the tournament by defeating Gauff in the final. What do you think?
