Oh, we're in for some racket-rattling action in this China Open matchup between Katerina Siniakova and Yuliia Starodubtseva.
As we look back to ascertain the future, our crystal ball of stats can't ignore their past collisons. Katerina Siniakova shows she's got the upper hand in previous fights with Starodubtseva. Seesawed a clean win back in June of '24. But past matchups are memories, and we're playing in the now, right?
Recently, our lovely Siniakova's been a game of musical chairs - up and down, win and lose. Made some faces go pale against Rodionova and Stearns, but licked the dust against Podoroska and Keys. Consistency? Seems like she misplaced it somewhere in her luggage.
On the other side, Starodubtseva, the unseeded underdog, has been stitching up wins with Siegemund, Jang, and Zhao and looking like an awards season actress on the red carpet. But to keep the balance, she didn't quite choke when it came to Kartal back in September.
Now my friends, the tournament seed might say otherwise, pegging Siniakova at 27 and Starodubtseva unseeded. But seeds are not the golden fleece, my dear listeners, sometimes they're just numbers living a lie.
So where does that pencil-us-up in this doodle of prediction? Who gets the chocolates this time? With a bit of squinting and a hefty side order of dry humor, we land at...
Albert’s Prediction: Siniakova in 3 sets.