Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka extended her winning streak to 14 matches with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Ashlyn Krueger on Monday in the third round of the China Open in Beijing.
Sabalenka, of Belarus, won 71.8 percent of her first-serve points to dispatch Krueger in 74 minutes.
“Maybe right now I’m not playing my best, best tennis,” Sabalenka said, “but I think the way I’m controlling my emotions and the way I’m holding myself sometimes is really helping me to stay in most of the matches, in those difficult situations to keep fighting and keep playing my best tennis.”
Sabalenka’s win streak is one shy of her career-best of 15, compiled between Ostrava 2020 and Abu Dhabi 2021.
The reigning Australian Open and U.S. Open champion will next face 18th-seeded Madison Keys, who secured a 6-3, 6-3 win over 13th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil.
Also on Monday, former No. 1 Naomi Osaka fired five aces to breeze to a 6-3, 6-2 win over Katie Volynets. The victory set up a round of 16 match against fourth-seeded Coco Gauff.
“It’s going to be a really cool test for me,” Osaka said of facing Gauff. “She’s played really well this year. I’m excited to play the match, and I know people are excited to watch the match.”
Russian Anna Kalinskaya held a 3-6, 6-3, 3-1 lead on Peyton Stearns before the latter retired from their match.
Fifth-seeded Qinwen Zheng of China saved five break points in the third game of her match and cruised to a 6-3, 6-2 win over Nadia Podoroska of Argentina.
“When I enter on court, I understand sometimes my form is not that good, forehand or backhand is not that good,” Zheng said. “But I think the trick is to find a way to resolve this. Of course, this is in my mind. I will try hard not to be distracted by any factors. In the past I lost because I was affected by these factors. But now when I’m on court, I’m focused on how to resolve these issues, focused on each point. I can actually execute that.”
She will face 34th-seeded Amanda Anisimova in a rematch of their U.S. Open first-round encounter. Zheng won that match in three sets.
Ninth-seeded Daria Kasatkina of Russia and 16th-seeded Donna Vekic of Croatia fell in their respective third-round matches.
Anisimova improved to 5-0 all-time versus Kasatkina with a 7-6 (1), 6-4 win.
No. 17 seed Mirra Andreeva of Russia overcame a first-set stumble to post a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Vekic.
–Field Level Media
