Maria Sakkari has secured her spot in the semifinals of the WTA in Mexico, while Stefanos Tsitsipas lost out in his opening match at the ATP Finals in Italy.
No. 4 seed Sakkari defeated top seed Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7-1), 6-7 (8-6), 6-3 on Tuesday in the longest match of the tournament so far.
“It was a rollercoaster match from both of us,” said Sakkari, who had lost in her four previous meetings with the Belarusian.
“I was up a break, then she was up a break. It was just a matter of who took the chances. I think at the end I just played with my heart and fought well, just turned things around.”
Up north, Tsitsipas lost 6-4 6-4 against Russian Andrey Rublev on Monday in his third appearance at the tournament.
The world no. 4 has promised to turn things around and qualify for the semifinals.
“Despite the loss, I feel I will get more chances. I want to step it up and play better tennis next time,” Tsitsipas said after the match.
Source: Canberra Times, Reuters
