Former world No.1 Victoria Azarenka fought off three set points to claim a tense first set in a thrilling tiebreak and then rolled through the second set to beat Ons Jabeur 7-6(9) 6-2 and move into the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open in New York.
After a slew of breaks on both sides, Jabeur earned two set points at *5-4 40-15, but got broken again. In the tiebreak that followed, the Tunisian saved three set points by winning four points in a row and got another chance to victoriously close the set. However, it was Azarenka who finally completed the 70-minute first set, converting her fifth set point. The second set was a completely different story, as Azarenka was not broken once.
Both players recorded more winners than unforced errors in today’s high-quality quarterfinal: Jabeur 24 winners to 18 unforced errors, Azarenka 21 to 11.
The 59th-ranked Azarenka will face either eighth seed Johanna Konta or 13th seed Maria Sakkari in the semifinals. (photo: Jimmie48)
