Quarterfinal matches take place at the WTA Silicon Valley Classic, with a variety of top players featured in San Jose. Three of the top four and five of the top eight seeds have reached the quarter-finals, including seed Elise Mertens who faces eight seed Yulia Putintseva. Second seed Elena Rybakina has also reached the quarterfinals and she faces the only remaining American, Danielle Collins, who hopes the home crowd will propel her to victory.

However, not all the favorites won. We have two surprise quarter-finals, Shuai Zhang and qualifier Ana Konjuh, battling for a place in the semi-finals. A win for either can lead their seasons in a better direction. Daria Kasatkina has played excellent tennis this week and looks like a serious contender for the title, and she’s up against Magda Linette. The four games below should set up what is sure to be an exciting semi-final, which will be finalized at the end of the day.

WTA San Jose quarter-finals predictions

Daria Kasatkina vs. Magda Linette

Face to face: 1-0 Linette

Kasatkina will look to beat Linette after losing to her at the 2018 Australian Open, as Russia has improved significantly since then. Linette had a tough start to 2021, but she had a solid last round victory over Petra Martic and a few weeks ago she beat Elina Svitolina for a Top 5 victory. Linette is still a competitive player, but she hasn’t been so strong as her 30th birthday approaches. Kasatkina is an excellent all-rounder and has already won two hard court titles this season. Kasatkina will play her solid base game and exhaust Linette, crossing her and securing her place in the semi-finals.
Prediction: Kasatkina in 2

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Ana Konjuh vs. Shuai Zhang

Head to head: 2-0 Konjuh

Konjuh will be looking to win three games in a row against Zhang, although this is the first time they’ve played since 2017. Zhang is much higher ranked, but Konjuh in terms of form appears to be the better player. She has played well on hard courts this year, highlighted by a round of 16 performance in Miami, and she has lost just one set in her four appearances here, including qualifying.

Zhang has a losing record that year, but she looked great as she beat Madison Keys in straight sets in the last round, where a combination of a solid comeback and a weak second serve from the Keys saw Zhang win. 70% of the points on the American’s second serve. . Konjuh’s service has led to mixed results. She was broken seven times in her first round match and then held up all of her second round serve games. Konjuh’s serve against Zhang’s return will be the deciding factor in the game. Konjuh will play fairly well and will be able to beat Zhang more than she is to reach the semi-finals as a qualification.
Prediction: Konjuh in 3

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Danielle Collins vs. Elena Rybakina

Face-to-face: first meeting

This quarter-final could pit the two most dangerous players in the draw against each other. Rybakina had a surprise run to the Olympic semi-final, beating Garbine Muguruza in the process. Collins won his first title a few weeks ago in Palermo and had solid wins this week against compatriots Sloane Stephens and Shelby Rogers. Rybakina had a difficult end to her Olympic run, losing to Elina Svitolina and Belinda Bencic. While Collins isn’t quite on the level of those two, the way she plays allows her to take advantage of Rybakina’s struggles against elite talent. Rybakina looked vulnerable in her opener, losing the opening set to wild card Claire Liu. Collins is in great shape right now. She will climb this form in the semi-finals in a competitive game that will come down to a few key points.
Prediction: Collins in 3

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Elise Mertens v Youlia Putintseva

One-on-one: 1-1

Mertens is looking to regain her form on hard courts where she suffered a tough Olympic defeat in the first round. But she is very dangerous on the surface, winning the Gippsland Trophy earlier in the year. Putintseva has rebounded well after retiring due to the heat at the Olympics and had two good wins here against Donna Vekic and Ajla Tomljanovic. She won a title last month in Budapest, which is on clay, her best surface. Mertens is more of a versatile player. The German moves well on hard courts and has the power to the surface, while Putintseva is much more suited to clay. Mertens will come out strong, and while Putintseva will fight and give him problems, the seed will take the win.
Prediction: Mertens in 3

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