After a stacked first day of action, the WTA Madrid Open returns. Amongst the action on Day 2, a returning Karolina Pliskova will look to make an impact on the clay court scene. Alexandra Eala, Eva Lys, and Daria Kasatkina also feature.

WTA Madrid Day 2 Predictions
Karolina Pliskova vs Sinja Kraus

Head to Head: 1-0

Pliskova has seen a return to form after a torrid end to 2025. After Wimbledon, she tallied just one match win for the rest of the season. However, after retiring early in Doha, she tallied two straight sets wins, one against World #14 Ekaterina Alexandrova–in particularly impressive fashion, 6-1 6-3. She has never been the greatest mover, which can sometimes get exposed on a clay court, but her excellent serving could prove more effective in the high-altitude conditions that Madrid brings. Her opponent, Sinja Kraus, will be high on confidence after registering a shock win against Anastasia Potapova in the final round of qualifying. Expect a tightly contested match here. However, the quick conditions should suit the big serving Czech.
Prediction: Pliskova in 3

Shuai Zhang vs Eva Lys

Head to Head: First Meeting

Lys has had an underwhelming start to the season. After an excellent performance against Iga Swiatek in the United Cup, she has failed to produce this level of tennis again, winning one game all year in front of a home crowd in Stuttgart last week. Perhaps this will be the week where Lys rediscovers the magic we know she is capable of. Either way, it’ll be the first time she faces the veteran Zhang Shaui, who is admittedly known more for her doubles acumen. Lys will take confidence from her display against Badosa and get through back-to-back first rounds.
Prediction: Lys in 2 sets

Daria Snigur vs Daria Kasatkina

Head to Head: First Meeting

It’s been a strange old time as of late for Kasatkina. The former World #8 has found wins really hard to come by and has slumped to #75 in the order of merit. 2026 has brought her little on-court joy and she will be looking to turn that around against Snigur, who has been tearing it up on the ITF circuit this season with two titles in the last month. Although Kastatkina’s on-court craft and ball placement will prove a step too far for the Ukrainian. She may be a shadow of the player she once was but she shouldn’t find too much difficulty in this Round of 128 tie.
Prediction: Kasatkina in 2

Alexandra Eala vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova

Head to Head: First Meeting

This is, without a doubt, one of the first-round matches to watch. Eala, as always, will bring a great crowd and the 20-year-old has already shown an ability to compete in the Spanish capital, taking Iga Swiatek to three sets last season. Since bursting onto the scene, she has steadied, not making as many headline results but quietly getting consistent results and reaching a rank of #44. Pavlyuchenkova, a former French Open finalist, could not own a more differing game style. The Russian is an aggressive baseliner who has strangely had her best results on clay. Some years ago, she may have been favourite for this one but in a battle of youth versus experience, it’ll be the former that comes off.
Prediction: Eala in 2

Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images