Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka prevail to reach Round of 16 in Cincinnati
Aug 17, 2023
Cincinnati [US], August 17 : Fourth-seeded Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan defeated Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-4 to make the Round of 16 at the Cincinnati Open.
Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, took two hours and 17 minutes to stage a fine comeback triumph and edge ahead 3-2 in her head-to-head with 2017 French Open titlist Ostapenko.
Rybakina will face Italian qualifier Jasmine Paolini on Thursday for a quarterfinal spot.
Ostapenko was unable to serve out the opening set at 5-4 or 6-5 as Rybakina took control of the tiebreak with booming forehands.
Ostapenko battled back from a 6-3 and triple set point down, thumping a forehand return winner to earn her own set point at 7-6. She won the first set by scoring five consecutive points.
In the second set, Rybakina took advantage of two double faults by Ostapenko to take a 3-2 lead. After a set in which Ostapenko doubled Rybakina's unforced errors 14 to seven, Rybakina tied the match.
Rybakina broke Ostapenko in the third set's first game, but Ostapenko levelled matters at 4-4 with a winning overhead. However, Rybakina broke for 5-4 with a backhand return winner down the line, then scored her second match point in the following game.
Elsewhere, the World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka was also forced to play three sets in her opener, defeating Ann Li 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in a match that lasted for two hours and 3 minutes. Sabalenka, a semifinalist last year, struggled against Li's all-court style until steeling herself in the third set to retake control of the match and win.
"It was definitely a little bit of an advantage on her side because she played a lot of matches here. For me, it takes some time to adjust to the surface. I was really happy to win this match. She played unbelievable tennis. It was really tough today," Sabalenka said.
