Defending champion Sabalenka advances at Madrid Open with a 3
MADRID (AP) — Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka faced tough resistance in her opening match at the Madrid Open before beating Magda Linette 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 on Friday.
The second-ranked Sabalenka struggled with her serve at times, but the two-time Australian Open winner struck her 10th ace on match point at the Caja Magica in Spain’s capital.
Sabalenka got some help from the net to get a key break and go up 5-3 in the third set when Linette was unable to reach a shot by the Belarusian that clipped the top of the tape.
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek won her opening match on Thursday. Sabalenka beat Swiatek in last year’s final in Madrid and also won here in 2021.
Fourth-seeded Elena Rybakina beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-4, 6-3, while American Ashlyn Krueger downed Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3, 6-3.
Mirra Andreeva, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Carolina Garcia, and Jasmine Paolini also advanced.
Related articles
Judge upholds disqualification of challenger to judge in Trump’s Georgia election interference case
DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — A judge upheld the disqualification of a candidate who had had planned to run ag2024-04-27China to make World Cup finals ultimate goal, says new coach Ivankovic
Newly appointed Chinese men's national football team head coach Branko Ivankovic attends a press2024-04-27Judge orders psych evaluation for Illinois man charged in 4 killings
ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — A judge on Monday ordered a psychiatric evaluation for a northern Illinois man2024-04-27China's Hou breaks world record at IWF World Cup
China's Hou Zhihui set a snatch world record at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF)2024-04-27President Biden says he's 'happy to debate' Trump: Election 2024
NEW YORK (AP) — President Joe Biden said Friday that he is willing to debate his presumptive Republi2024-04-27- NEW YORK (AP) — Harrison Bader walked into a new clubhouse for the third time in 18 months and felt2024-04-27
atest comment