INDIAN WELLS – Aryna Sabalenka was not at her best but her powerful serve and groundstrokes proved too much for Emma Raducanu, as the Australian Open champion reached the Indian Wells last 16 with a 6-3, 7-5 win on March 11.
Naomi Osaka, meanwhile, fell to Elise Mertens in straight sets.
Britain’s former Grand Slam champion Raducanu is trying to find her form after multiple operations in 2023 and played well. But she was unable to seize her opportunities, converting just one of 10 break points in her first clash with Sabalenka.
The Belarusian, bedeviled by double faults in the past, had one on her first match point but blasted a cross-court forehand winner on her fourth opportunity to seal the win.
“I felt like the last game was kind of a key moment,” said Sabalenka, who is seeded second.
“If I would lose that game this would give her emotionally much more belief and confidence, and going to the tiebreak you never know. It’s like 50-50. I didn’t want that to happen. That’s why I felt a little bit of relief after I closed this match in two sets.”
Sabalenka is playing only her second event since claiming her second trophy at Melbourne Park; she has now won 13 of 15 matches this season.
Victory in 95 minutes also extended her WTA-leading total of Masters 1000 match wins to 82.
The 25-year-old will next face American Emma Navarro, who held off Elina Svitolina of Ukraine to win 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, in the last 16.
Mertens held her nerve to send Osaka packing with a gutsy 7-5, 6-4 victory over the Japanese player, who returned to the WTA Tour in January after a maternity break.
The Belgian, seeded 24th, had to fend off break points in the final game but ultimately prevailed, jumping in the air after claiming one of her biggest wins and reaching the round of 16 at the tournament for the first time.
Mertens will face a stiff test when she takes on third seed Coco Gauff. The 19-year-old American did not play her best tennis, but still managed to dispatch Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) in one hour and 49 minutes in her last singles match as a teenager.
Bronzetti made the third seed work but Gauff saved 10 of the 11 break points she faced to advance to the fourth round where she faces Mertens, who has never beaten her.
“Every time I play her is a tough match. I don’t recall any straightforward wins playing against her,” Gauff said of facing the Belgian.
“Even though the record is 3-0, it could easily have been the opposite. She’s tough, has good strokes and she can hit the ball clean, she can serve well.”
On her win over Bronzetti, she added: “She played really well. But I was much better than in my last match – I’m improving with each one.” REUTERS, AFP
