The world number one, Aryna Sabalenka, survived a battle of nail bites to beat Emma Raducanu at the Cincinnati Open, winning a match that went to the distance with two tense tie
The world number one needed more than three hours to overcome the British in a clash full of drama, power and sand and kept his defense of the Cincinnati title alive to the claim of a 7-6 victory (3) 4-6 7-6 (5) over Raducanu in a third marathon round clash on Monday.
In another crash of the tournament, Taylor Fritz advanced with a straight victory over Lorenzo Sonago.
Just out of his third round shock in Wimbledon last month, Sabalenka and Raducanu produced another epic contest, with a game of 13 relatives in the third set, before the Belarusian sealed the victory in three hours and nine minutes.
Sabalenka trusted her powerful registered brand service to stand firm in the key moments, winning two tiebreaker to take her account to 18 for the season, most for any female single player in the professional era.
Despite the defeat, Raducanu seems to be finding his best form just in time for the US Open this month in Flushing Meadows, where he triumphed in 2021. The British surpassed Sabalenka in Total Points won, 125-123.
‘I am very happy to see her healthy. I can see what is improving, ‘said Sabalenka about Raducanu.
Happy to overcome this game. I really hope that tomorrow I have a day off.
Next, Sabalenka faces Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in Spain in the last 16.
Otherwise, Anna Kalinskaya surprised the fifth American seed Amanda Anisimova 7-5 6-4 for her third victory against a top 10 opponent in the season. He will face his Russian partner Ekaterina Alexandrova in the next round.
After a delay of one hour caused by a blackout, the fourth seed Taylor Fritz defeated the sound of Italy 7-6 (4) 7-5.
The 27 -year -old American did not face a breakdown and capitalized on his unique opportunity before the game, sealing the victory in two hours and eight minutes.
Former Champion Madison Keys booked his place in the last 16 with a 6-4 6-0 victory over Japan Aoi Ito, exceeding a first tight set before breaking into the second in just 20 minutes.
“On the first set, I put on a pretty good advantage and then I got lost a little,” said the sixth Keys seeds. “Once I had an early break in the second, I wanted to escape with him and maintain that impulse and I did.”
