“At all times I didn’t give up. I didn’t stop believing that I can win. Reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka suffered an opening round upset at the hands of familiar foe Donna Vekic, going down 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-0 in Dubai on Tuesday. Contesting her first match since her successful title defence at Melbourne Park, Sabalenka blew a 7-6, 2-0 lead to succumb to her Croatian opponent in two hours and 22 minutes. The 31st-ranked Vekic, who now owns a 6-2 head-to-head lead in lifetime meetings against Sabalenka, was aggressive throughout the match and enters her next clash with big-hitting Romanian Sorana Cirstea searching for her first WTA 1000 quarter-final of her career. I just kept fighting,” said Vekic, who is 9-13 against top-five opposition.
Earlier on Centre Court, eighth seed Maria Sakkari snapped a three-match losing streak and claimed her first-ever Dubai main-draw victory, on her fourth attempt, with a 6-2 6-4 triumph over in-form American Emma Navarro.
The world number two leapt to a 2-0 advantage in the second set but Vekic struck back and claimed another crucial break in game eight to level the contest and force a decider. With the wind in her sails, Vekic put together a nine-game winning run, outhitting her powerful opponent, to deliver a final-set bagel and book her place in the last 16.
“To be honest, I didn’t have big expectations coming to Dubai. I can tell you I spent more time on the beach than on the court. Maybe that’s a good way going forward,” she added with a laugh. “It was very tough. No one wants to keep losing first round. Sakkari is in search of a new coach having ended her six-year partnership with Tom Hill. She is confident she will have found a new coach by the time Indian Wells commences next month. I just felt like we couldn’t really help each other, we couldn’t move forward but we remain very, very good friends, that’s never going to change.”
Because i was overthinking about it and it wasn’t easy, last night I couldn’t sleep just. The Greek world number 11 briefly worked with Sergi Bruguera during the offseason and after the Australian Open but needs to find a full-time coach given Bruguera’s commitment to ATP player Arthur Fils.
Told my coach that I’m taking this week as half holidays. But I told myself to treat it as the first match of the season. Obviously it wasn’t my best, best tennis but it was good enough to beat a top-form player,” said Sakkari, who faces Leylah Fernandez or Jasmine Paolini next. Speaking of her split with Hill, Sakkari said: “It was very tough.
