Guangzhou final, Seoul SF: Just give Radwanska the title

Guangzhou final:

Vania King vs. Zhang Shuai

One fought all the way from qualifying to the finals, while the other one demolished her opponent in the semi-finals. There is no doubt who is the fresher player, but one has to commend on Vania King's fighting spirit. With this final appearance, she makes her reappearance in the top 100 after 2 years of lacklustre results. This is proof that hard work does pay off and it's not over until the last point. Zhang's game seems to be more aggressive now, so Vania will need to end the points earlier than Shuai. I believe all the long drawn 3 set matches have taken a toll on Vania, and Zhang will bag her first title in China.

Pick: Zhang in 2 sets

Seoul SF:

Agnieszka Radwanska vs Lara Arruabarrena

Agnieszka in 2 easy sets. Nuff'said.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs. Francesca Schiavone

Despite not performing at the big events, Pavlyuchenkova's record in the smaller events are stellar. So it's safe to say that she's the favourite in events where there are less pressure. Schiavone just had a long drawn match with Date-Krumm, and will need her wheels to counter the big hitting Russian. If Pavlyuchenkova plays to her normal level, she should be able to take this.

Pick: Pavlyuchenkova in 2 tight sets

Budapest, Palermo: Precious points for journeywomen

Budapest:

Lara Arruabarrena vs. Johanna Larsson
Annika Beck vs. Tadeja Majeric
Sandra Zahlavova vs. Agnes Bukta
Sesil Karatantcheva vs. Simona Halep
Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor vs. Nina Bratchikova

Palermo:

Mathilde Johansson vs. Silvia Soler Espinosa
Caroline Garcia vs. Corinna Dentoni
Sara Errani vs. Julia Cohen

Match focus:

Lara Arruabarrena vs. Johanna Larsson

Johanna Larsson doesn't enjoy clay so it's a surprise that she's playing here. Lara on the other hand, is predominantly a clay courter, so this should be easy pickings for her. Larsson will need to be patient and wait for the right opportunity to attack the net. If she goes into a crosscourt backhand rally with Lara, chances are she's going to lose the point 9 out of 10 times.

Pick: Arruabarrena in 2 sets

Mathilde Johansson vs. Silvia Soler Espinosa

Silvia Soler-Espinosa is the one who likes clay more but Mathilde can play on this surface as well. Both are coming off a disappointing Wimbledon but they were never favoured to advance far anyway. Johansson has more power, so she will be the one dictating the points. If Silvia is patient enough, she should be able to draw the errors from the Frenchwoman. However, maybe Johansson might be inspired by Marion and pull off a good run of her own.

Pick: Johansson in 3 sets

Sara Errani vs. Julia Cohen

Sara Errani will be eager to put her nightmare Wimbledon behind her. She will face the ultimate moonball queen, Julia Cohen. Errani is definitely of another level and it'll be interesting to see Sara take the initiative this time. Julia is quite incapable of dictating the pace, so Sara should have her ball bashing mode turned on. Errani will show Cohen a free lesson on how to hit purposeful moonball and not wait for errors.

Pick: Errani in 2 easy sets