Toray Pan Pacific Open 2nd Round Preview

Daniela Hantuchova vs. Maria Kirilenko

Head to head: First meeting

By: Jessie Lin

            Daniela was able to get through her first round match by defeating Alina Jidkova 6-1, 6-4.  The score line is even more impressive than I would have imagined.  But things only get tougher from here.  In the second round, she will meet one of the many up and coming young Russian Maria Kirilenko.  Kirilenko defeated the talented Chinese Shuai Peng in the first round.  Now in the ‘battle of the beauties’ we will see who will come up on top in terms of tennis.  Many believe that Kirilenko is the real deal.  At last year’s French Open, she was two games away from defeating Serena Williams in the second round.  With more experience and consistency, this girl will make a big name out of herself.

            Daniela should be careful with this 18 year old.  She shouldn’t think too much about playing someone younger than she is.  She should go out like she did in the first round and attack.  It’s been quite a while since we’ve seen a decent result from Daniela in any tournament, if she can win this match, things can get interesting.  She hasn’t beaten a top 10 player in a long time, and a potential set up with Kuznetsova is something to look forward to!

My prediction: Daniela in straight sets!  Good luck!