National Bank Open: Ons Jabeur stuns Bianca Andreescu; Danielle Collins exits

Upsets poured in on Thursday at the National Bank Open in Montreal. Second seed Bianca Andreescu and seventh seed Petra Kvitova lost their respective third-round matches.

Ons Jabeur, the 13th seed, ousted Andreescu 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-1 in two hours and 39 minutes to reach the quarter-finals. In terms of margin, while Andreescu’s defeat wasn’t that huge, it was significant considering that the Canadian was making a much-awaited return to her country and the event, as a defending champion of sorts.

There was a brief moment of injury concern for Andreescu in the second set after she sustained a fall. But she was able to resume play after a medical time-out.

In her post-match press conference, speaking about her game, Jabeur said, “(It was a) great match. It was a tough one. I know coming to play Bianca here in Montreal, in Canada, was going to be difficult. But I think I played good tennis. I had my opportunities in the first set. But I'm glad that I did good in the second and third set and I didn't let the rain, the injuries, stopping all the time, make me lose my focus. I'm pretty happy with the way I stayed mentally and physically very ready.”

National Bank Open: Jessica Pegula stops Danielle Collins' juggernaut

For a place in the semi-finals, Jabeur will play Jessica Pegula. The American came through in a thriller against Danielle Collins. In what was the last match of Thursday, the Collins-Pegula encounter went past midnight into the early hours of Friday. In the match, Pegula outlasted her compatriot 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 in two hours and 28 minutes. This win also ended Collins’ streak of 12 straight match wins.

Camila Giorgi, meanwhile, defeated Kvitova in their third-round clash. The Italian won 6-4, 6-4 in an hour and 36 minutes. In the quarter-finals, Giorgi will play 15th seed Coco Gauff. Gauff received a walkover into the quarters when her opponent, Johanna Konta withdrew ahead of their match with an injury to her left knee.

Eighth seed Victoria Azarenka moved into the quarters with a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2) win over 11th seed Maria Sakkari. The Belarusian will play fellow countrywoman and top seed Aryna Sabalenka next. Sabalenka defeated Rebecca Marino 6-3, 6-1 in their round-of-16 match.

Karolina Pliskova also took her place in the last eight of the National Bank Open. The Czech seeded fourth, defeated Amanda Anisimova 6-1, 7-6(8) in their third-round encounter. For a place in the semis, Pliskova will take on Sara Sorribes Tormo. Sorribes Tormo won against Katerina Siniakova 6-7(4), 6-0, 6-3 in the pre-quarter-final.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2VSdsNh