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World number two Aryna Sabalenka denied unseeded Egyptian Mayar Sherif the biggest victory of her career when the Belarusian came back from a set down to win their Madrid Open quarter-final 2-6 6-2 6-1 yesterday.
Sabalenka was not at her best and made 37 unforced errors in the match, but the Australian Open champion bounced back midway through the second set to win 10 games in a row and take control.
Sherif, who has won just one WTA 250 title in her career, was gifted the first game of the match, winning all her points through unforced errors from Sabalenka to break the Belarusian before building a 3-1 lead.
Sabalenka saved a set point at 5-1 but Sherif, playing in her first WTA 1000 quarter-final after beating three seeded players, served out to take the opening set.
The Egyptian took the lead in the second set too before Sabalenka, who was a break down, finally found her groove to break four times and force a decider.
The 2021 champion then showed no mercy in the third as she raced into a 5-0 lead before Sherif got on the board. But that only delayed the inevitable as Sabalenka sealed victory with a winner down the line.
In the men’s draw, top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz swatted aside Alexander Zverev 6-1 6-2 in the last 16 in a repeat of last year’s final which the Spaniard also won in straight sets.
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