FILE PHOTO: Jan 20, 2025; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan serves during her match against Madison Keys of United States of America in the fourth round of the women's singles at the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images/File Photo
No. 1 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan survived an upset bid from Tunisia's Ons Jabeur and prevailed 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (4) in the quarterfinals of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open on Thursday.
Jabeur saved two consecutive match points in the 12th game of the third set to force a tiebreaker. There, Jabeur ran out to a 4-2 lead before Rybakina took over by winning the final five points.
Rybakina is the last seeded player standing after American Ashlyn Krueger ousted Canadian eighth seed Leylah Fernandez 7-5, 4-6, 6-2. Krueger, the 20-year-old with one previous WTA singles title, out-aced Fernandez 8-1, saved 5 of 11 break points and broke Fernandez's serve eight times.
In the semifinals, Krueger will face the Czech Republic's Linda Noskova, a 6-4, 6-3 winner over Poland's Magda Linette. Rybakina will battle Switzerland's Belinda Bencic, who beat 2023 Wimbledon champ Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic 7-5, 6-3.
Transylvania Open
Italy's Lucia Bronzetti eliminated American third seed Peyton Stearns 6-2, 7-6 (1) in a Round of 16 match in Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
Bronzetti fired eight aces without a double fault and moved on to face seventh seed and fellow Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto, a 6-3, 6-0 winner in 69 minutes over Romania's Ana Bogdan.
No. 1 seed Anastasia Potapova of Russia got past Switzerland's Viktorija Golubic 6-4, 7-5. Czech fifth seed Katerina Siniakova battled past American Caroline Dolehide 2-6, 6-1, 6-4, and Germany's Ella Seidel beat Russia's Anna Blinkova 6-2, 7-6 (5).
--Field Level Media
