WTA Lexington: Cori Gauff tops Aryna Sabalenka. Jabeur, Bouzkova and Brady advance

Jennifer Brady will play in the third quarter-final of the season, beating Magda Linette 6-2, 6-3 in Lexington. It was the fourth encounter between the two and the third straight victory for the American, spending only 68 minutes on the court and marching into the last eight. Brady hit seven aces and lost 16 points in nine service games, suffering one break and earning half of the return points for four breaks from as many chances. Jennifer was the only player on the court in the opening six games, leaving the 6th seed far behind and opening a 5-1 gap with breaks in games two and six. Linette pulled one of those back to prolong the set, only to suffer another break at 2-5 to hand the set to her opponent. Brady was rock solid behind the initial shot again in set number two, mounting the pressure on the Pole and breaking her at love at 2-1 to forge the lead. That was all she needed to seal the deal, moving over the top with a hold at 30 in game nine to secure the place in the quarter-final.

The 8th seed Ons Jabeur took down Olga Govortsova 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 in an hour and 49 minutes, bouncing back after the opener to remain on the title course. There were 12 breaks of serve in total and Jabeur grabbed seven of those, six in sets two and three that carried her over the top. Govortsova kicked off the action with a 4-0 lead, clinching the set at 5-3 and hoping for more of the same in set number two. Instead of that, Ons rattled off four straight games at 2-2, gathering momentum and starting all over after losing serve in the third game of the final set. Opening a 5-2 advantage, the Tunisian was close to the finish line when Govortsova broke back to reduce the deficit, serving to level the score at 4-5. Making one last push, Jabeur grabbed another break to finish the job before the eventual tie break. Marie Bouzkova toppled Anna Blinkova 6-4, 6-2 in an hour and 42 minutes after a solid performance on both serve and return.

Cori Gauff took down the 2nd seed Aryna Sabalenka in a thriller.

The Czech got broken only once, securing four breaks against the rival who landed only 42% of the first serve in, playing better as the match progressed for the second consecutive WTA quarter-final. In the encounter of the day, the 16-year-old Cori Gauff took down the 2nd seed Aryna Sabalenka 7-6, 4-6, 6-4 in grueling two hours and 48 minutes. It is the second WTA quarter-final for the youngest player in the draw, earned despite winning three points less than the Belarusian. They hit 24 double faults and struggled to find the rhythm behind the initial shot, with 14 breaks from 28 opportunities, as the result went back and forth all the time. The opening set lasted for an hour and brought six breaks, although it didn't look that would be the case in the beginning. Cori got broken in the third game after a terrible volley at the net, pulling it back a few minutes later thanks to a double fault from world no. 11.

From 30-0 down, the youngster claimed four straight points on the return in game six to grab another break when Sabalenka's backhand touched the net, opening a 5-2 gap with a service winner. Aryna held at love in game eight and broke back in the last moment when the American sprayed a forehand error to prolong the set. Gauff was struggling in those moments, suffering another break at 5-5 and erasing the deficit when Aryna netted an easy forehand while serving for the set, introducing a tie break. Cori raced into a 5-0 lead there, winning it 7-4 with a forehand crosscourt winner for a massive boost.

The second set was more fluid and it was Sabalenka who had the upper hand, breaking Gauff at love in game four following a backhand error from the youngster. The 2nd seed went 5-2 in front with a service winner before Cori pulled the break back in game nine when Aryna's volley landed long. Instead of keeping on that pace, Gauff experienced a break at love to hand the set to her opponent, having to start all over in the decider. There, they traded early breaks to stay locked at 2-2, with two more successful return in games five and six. The less experienced player made a crucial move at 4-4, breaking Sabalenka with a forehand down the line winner and firing another forehand winner in game ten to move over the top and reach the quarters.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3iC1Xj0