Aryna Sabalenka overcame Emma Raducanu in the third round of the Cincinnati Open on Monday in a tightly fought marathon match.
World number one Sabalenka was put to test by the British tennis star, but fell short 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(5) in 3 hours, 9 minutes of tennis.
This marked their second encounter this year following their thrilling battle in the third round of Wimbledon where the Belarusian emerged victorious in two sets.
Cincinnati Open: Aryna Sabalenka Vs Emma Raducanu
Starting the match by winning eight straight points, Raducanu was up 5-4 in the opening set but Sabalenka made a strong comeback to take the set.
Raducanu won her first career set against Sabalenka in the second, converting the lone break point of the set at 3-3 before closing the door with one of her 10 aces for the match.
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In the third set which hd no breaks, Sabalenka won her 18th tiebreak of the season – the most-ever in a single year during the Open Era.
On the other hand, Raducanu committed nine double faults, losing 1-11 for her career against top five players. However, she won more points than Sabalenka for the match, 125 to 122.
“I’m happy to get through this difficult match. I just hope tomorrow is a day off. I need time to recover from such a great battle,” Sabalenka said.
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“It was all about momentum. I took some risks at the end, went for crazy shots, went to the net”.
Sabalenka is chasing her 10th 1000 level title and second trophy this season after winning at Madrid.
The 27-year-old will next face Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the last 16. She has now won 18 WTA Tour-level tie-breaks in 2025. It is the highest Open Era tally during a single calendar year.
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It was Sabalenka 20th main-draw victory at the Cincinnati Open, only behind Jelena Jankovic (24), Serena Williams and Simona Halep (both 23) during the Open Era.
Notably, Sabalenka is also the first player to win each of her first 10 WTA main-draw matches against British opponents since Mary Joe Fernandez between 1985 and 1992.
