Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek have advanced to the quarterfinals of the Wuhan Open, joining Jessica Pegula in the final eight. Sabalenka's journey to the quarter-finals included some practice sessions with Novak Djokovic during her holiday in Greece.
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka extended her undefeated streak at the Wuhan Open to 19 matches by defeating Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-2. This victory marks her 30th quarter-final appearance at a WTA 1000 event. Sabalenka's impressive record in Wuhan includes titles in 2018, 2019, and 2024. After a month-long break following her US Open victory, Sabalenka displayed dominant form, winning 77% of her first-service points and losing only three points on her second serve. Sabalenka will face either Elena Rybakina or Linda Noskova in the quarter-finals.
During her time off after the US Open, Sabalenka vacationed in Greece and practiced with Novak Djokovic, who resides there. "We went for dinner. We practiced a couple times," Sabalenka said. "I hope I was a great hitting partner. So far, he's winning in Shanghai, so I guess I was". Sabalenka noted Djokovic's competitive spirit during their practice sessions. "Well, he was really competitive, and he would shout when he won a point against me," said Sabalenka. She also added, "I scored a lot of points against him, FYI. I hope he confirms that! We practiced a few times. I hope I was a good practice partner. So far, he's winning in Shanghai. So I think it was good practice".
Iga Swiatek also secured her place in the Wuhan Open quarter-finals with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Belinda Bencic. Swiatek will face Jasmine Paolini in the quarter-finals. Swiatek expressed the difficulty of her match against Bencic, saying, "It was super hard and every game was tough, that's why it was two sets and over two hours". "But I'm happy I was there in the deciding moments, to be solid and to play one more shot back," she added.
Jessica Pegula also advanced to the quarter-finals, battling past Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5, 3-6, 6-3. Pegula, who lost in the China Open semi-finals the previous week, leveled the deciding set at 2-2 and won four of the final five games to secure the win. Pegula has played six straight three-set matches, winning five of them. "I can't remember the last time I played two sets," Pegula commented. "But I've been competing really hard and I've been playing a lot of really good players. It was different conditions today with the roof closed and I think it took us a little while to get adjusted".
The Wuhan Open has seen other notable results, including Linda Noskova's upset win over Naomi Osaka. The tournament has a total prize pool of $3.65 million and offers 1,000 ranking points.
