Up-and-coming Chinese talent Wang Xinyu will be riding high after a frankly unbelievable week in Berlin. The 23-year-old went through Berlin qualifying and made it all the way to the final, losing to former Wimbledon champ Marketa Vondrousova in a titanic clash (played in sweltering conditions).
2025 WTA Tour
WTA 500
Bad Homburg Open
TC Bad Homburg, Bad Homburg, Germany (Outdoor Hardcourt)
Selected Round of 32 and Round of 16 Matches- 24th June
Round of 32
Wang Xinyu 0.84 vs Beatriz Haddad Maia 0.94
Moreover, she thrashed reigning French Open champ Coco Gauff en route to her maiden WTA Tour final. That run improved her humdrum 2025 record to 14-15 (she reached the semifinals in Singapore and quarterfinals in the quarterfinals in Parma). It feels like grass-courts are a great natural fit for the tall Chinese star. She shone at last year’s Wimbledon Championships, taking down 5th seed Jessica Pegula to register her first win against a top ten player (she would ultimately go down to Svitolina in the 4th round). She is a hard-hitting baseliner who loves creating unconventional angles. She has improved immeasurably in the forecourt and is shaping up to be a lovely Wimbledon dark horse contender.
Brazilian lefty Beatriz Haddad Maia enjoyed mixed blessings at last week’s Nottingham Open, eliminated in the first round of singles action while going on to claim the doubles title playing alongside Laura Siegemund. To be fair, she lost to surprise champ McCartney Kessler in her Nottingham opener (and she pushed the American to three sets). The Brazilian enjoyed a solid end to her 2024 campaign, finishing runner-up in Cleveland before claiming her maiden WTA 500 title in Korea. She has struggled somewhat during this campaign, battling with the dual responsibilities of singles and doubles action. Haddad Maia has proven to be an astute grass-court exponent in the past, winning back-to-back titles in Nottingham and Birmingham back in 2022. She is a strong server who likes to set up cheap forehand winners. Her doubles experience has contributed to deft touch around the net. The Brazilian will be looking to get her season back on track as we approach the biggest tournament of the season.
The Verdict: Haddad Maia to win in straight sets at 2– Haddad Maia leads the head-to-head 4-1, winning their most recent meeting at last year’s Italian Open. This will be their first grass-court meeting. I think that the Brazilian could ease to victory here. She has dominated their head-to-head rivalry and is a proven grass-court entity. The Chinese star may feel a bit jaded after an emotionally exhausting maiden WTA Tour final appearance.
