Danielle Collins continues her fine form from the start of the season. The tough draws may have led to early exits initially, but after two consecutive titles and a ranking jump, she can make a 2nd week of big tournaments without facing a top seed. However, at Wimbledon, she bumps into a gritty grass courter in Beatriz Haddad Maia.

Currently ranked at number 20 in the world, Haddad Maia has been struggling to maintain consistency. Her early exits at the French Open and Australian Open put question marks on her capability to perform in majors. However, she now has a golden opportunity to make a deep run at Wimbledon.

Danielle Collins vs Beatriz Haddad Maia: Wimbledon Round 3 Preview

Collins earlier this season had confessed that she enjoyed playing tournaments every week. So, her decision to not play a single grass court tournament prior to Wimbledon was surprising. It almost felt like she did not fancy her chances at SW19, considering her subpar record on grass. However, after consecutive straight-set victories against Clara Tauson and Dalma Galfi, the American is looking threatening again.

Haddad Maia, meanwhile, has struggled to appear at the business end of tournaments this year. She only won one of her three grass court matches before entering Wimbledon. Her campaign started with a solid two-set victory over Magda Frech while she got a walkover in the 2nd round, after three games. For someone who has won grass court titles in the past, the form is quite discerning.

Danielle Collins vs Beatriz Haddad Maia: Head-to-Head

Collins and Haddad Maia have never crossed paths till this date on the WTA tour. They will lock horns for the first time at Wimbledon for a place in the fourth round of the tournament.

Prediction:

Despite a poor start to the grass-court season, Haddad Maia owns a solid 31-16 record on this surface, compared to 8-9 for Collins. However, in 2024, across surfaces, Collins has won 38 of her 49 matches, as opposed to 18 wins in 35 matches for the Brazilian. The dilemma between grass-court record and recent form can only be solved using statistics.

Collins’ first serve accuracy went from 49% to 56% in her first two rounds. Given her poor record of winning 2nd serve points, these numbers are quite concerning. Nonetheless, Collins always finds a way of negating poor serving numbers with her returning output, as she did in her previous encounter with whopping 57% return points won.

Haddad Maia won 79% of her second serve points while serving with 68% accuracy. Her ace and double fault count are always low but she does know how to win quick points on serve. Collins could struggle against the Brazilian’s lefty serve and that might just decide the outcome of this matchup, other than latter’s vastly superior grass-court resume.

Final Verdict: Haddad Maia to win in three sets and in less than 30 games. However, Collins will outdo her ace count in this tie.