Lin Zhu vs Sorana Cirstea Prediction & Betting Tips - WTA Birmingham

Prediction published on 16/06/2024, 05:43  by Daniel Ngulu | Modified on 16/06/2024 at 10:30 in Tennis Predictions

Third seed Sorana Cirstea is back at the Birmingham Classic where she will begin her campaign against unseeded Zhu Lin. They will battle in the first round with the winner facing Ajla Tomljanovic or Anna Blinkova for a place in the quarter-finals. Zhu Lin isn't at her best at the moment and is seeking to snap a seven-match losing streak. The Chinese number five did not win a match during the clay season. She has also lost the two fixtures she has so far played on grass. Zhu will hope returning to a tournament she did so well at last year, will spark a season turnaround. The 30-year-old, who starts the week ranked 54th in the WTA, made the semi-finals last year as a debutant. Her run allowed her to finish her grass campaign with a winning record, the first time she had done so since 2013.

Sorana Cirstea has also struggled to win matches in recent outings. She has lost her last three fixtures though none has been on grass. A semi-finalist in Dubai earlier in the year, the Romanian has battled with inconsistency all through the season. She has compiled a 12-13 record and since switching from hard court has found it hard to dominate. Cirstea is making her seventh appearance in Birmingham. Her best result here was a semi-final run in 2022. The 34-year-old has not lost a first-round tie here since 2012 and will hope to maintain this record. Despite her recent slump, Cirstea starts the week up one place to 29th in the WTA rankings.