Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka advance after rain in Cincy

 

[August 17, 2024]  While top-seeded Iga Swiatek and No. 3 seed Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open on Friday, No. 5 seed Jasmine Paolini was eliminated in a third-round upset following morning rain.

Paolini of Italy was bounced from the tournament 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 by Mirra Andreeva of Russia, who broke Paolini's serve to take a 5-3 lead in the second set and never looked back.

Andreeva won 60 percent of her first-serve points in the opening set and then fueled her comeback by winning 94 percent in the second set. She converted 5 of 8 break points on the day, while Paolini converted 3 of 6.

Swiatek of Poland rolled into the quarters with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk, the No. 15 seed. Swiatek capitalized on Kostyuk's 27 unforced errors and won 71 percent of her first-serve points.

"Going on court without my routines was for sure a little bit tricky," Swiatek said on the Tennis Channel broadcast, in reference to the morning weather. "We didn't warm up in the morning so we went on court straightaway. I'm happy that I was able to play my kind of game.

"It was much more windy and more humid because of the rain in the morning. I was happy I was able to adjust."

Swiatek and Andreeva will meet in the quarterfinals.

Sabalenka of Belarus cruised to a 7-5, 6-2 victory over Ukraine's Elina Svitolina by converting all four her break-point chances, while also saving 4 of 5 break points against her.

Sabalenka will next face No. 10 seed Liudmila Samsonova of Russia, who was a 4-6, 6-0, 6-3 winner over Elina Avanesyan of Armenia.

Sixth-seeded Jessica Pegula of the United States worked double duty on Friday but earned two wins to reach the quarterfinals. First, Pegula rallied past the Czech Republic's Karolina Muchova 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, before she downed the United States' Taylor Townsend 6-2, 6-3.

Canada's Leylah Fernandez advanced with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Russia's Diana Shnaider, while Spain's Paula Badosa also moved on with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan.

In a pair of second-round matches, No. 7 seed Qinwen Zheng of China earned a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Magdalena Frech of Poland, while Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova earned a 7-5, 6-4 win over Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki. Pavlyuchenkova subsequently defeated Zheng 7-5, 6-1 in the third round later Friday night.

Zheng won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics with a win over Donna Vekic of Croatia in the women's final.

--Field Level Media

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