On November 5, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff will face off in their match at the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia. Here’s my well-reasoned prediction for this event.
Iga Swiatek
The Polish player is having a relatively quiet season by her standards, though with five tournament wins, including a major, it’s far from disappointing. Swiatek took a two-month break leading up to this tournament, during which she lost her World No. 1 ranking. However, at just 23 years old, she has plenty of time to regain the top spot.
Her first match at this tournament was expected to be straightforward against Barbora Krejcikova, who did not pose a serious threat on paper. However, Swiatek came dangerously close to an upset, trailing 4-6, 0-3 before rallying back to take the second set 7-5 and the third 6-2.
Coco Gauff
This season hasn’t been the brightest for the American, though she captured titles in Auckland and Wuhan. While she didn’t claim a Grand Slam, she showed solid performances at these events. Gauff is in excellent form now, having won 10 of her last 11 matches, with her only loss in this stretch coming against Aryna Sabalenka.
In her opening match, Gauff faced her tricky compatriot Jessica Pegula and managed a convincing 6-3, 6-2 win. At 20 years old and ranked third in the world, Gauff is peaking at the right time.
Match Facts
Swiatek has won 30 of her 35 hard-court matches this season.Gauff has secured 32 victories in 41 hard-court matches.The odds for this match are as follows: Swiatek at 1.5, Gauff at 2.65.
Head-to-Head
Swiatek dominates their head-to-head encounters with an 11-1 record. They’ve met twice this season, both on clay, with Swiatek winning comfortably each time.
Prediction
Swiatek enters as a slight favorite in this matchup, but it’s unlikely to be as straightforward as their past encounters. Gauff’s current form is impressive, while there are some lingering doubts about Swiatek. I’ll take a bet on Gauff with a +3.5 game handicap, as it seems promising.
