A box office matchup is coming up at the 2024 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix between two-time Stuttgart champion Iga Swiatek and former Top 10 player Emma Raducanu.
Very few players played as well as the Polish player did at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in the past. The only player coming remotely close is Aryna Sabalanka, who played in three consecutive finals, losing all of them.
Two of those happened against Swiatek, who won the WTA 500 event in 2022 and 2023, and she's hoping to win it once more. To do that, she'll have to pass through Raducanu, who is playing some amazing tennis right now.
She crushed Linda Noskova in Stuttgart after beating Angelique Kerber in the round before. However, Swiatek looked really good in her match as well.
Raducanu and Swiatek, of course, have played before. They even played in Stuttgart before, and the world no. 1 won the match. The Brit did pretty well, though, losing only 4-6, 4-6, but she lost more heavily the next time she faced the four-time major winner.
That was in 2023 at the Indian Wells Open, and the Pole won 6-3, 6-1. Swiatek is generally not a great matchup for Raducanu, but the same applies the other way around.
The best of Raducanu can give Swiatek a lot of trouble because she's just so devastating. If she brings the level she had against Noskova, I could see the match being very tough for the world number one.
| Iga Swiatek | Emma Raducanu | |
| 2 | H2H | 0 |
| 1 | Rank | 303 |
| 22 | Age | 21 |
| 23-3 | 2024 W/L | 9-5 |
| 304-69 | Career W/L | 107-54 |
That being said, the likelihood of Raducanu beating Swiatek is still pretty low. The Polish player is still the better player, especially on clay, and she has won this event two times so far. She clearly loves playing in Stuttgart, and while I do think we might see three sets, I think Swiatek is still too solid for Raducanu.
Prediction: Iga Swiatek to win in two sets.