Ons Jabeur has suffered a shock exit from the Guadalajara Open after being edged out in three sets by Italy’s Martina Trevisan.
The world No.7 was leading the match by a set and a break before losing 6-7(4), 7-5, 6-3, in a marathon match that lasted more than three hours. Jabeur looked to be in control after breaking her rival midway through the second set before losing her advantage in the following game. Later in the same set she was two points away from victory after nudging ahead 5-4 but was unable to tame Trevisan who broke her twice in the third set en route to victory.
It is the second tournament in a row that Jabeur has failed to win back-to-back matches after losing in the second round of the San Diego Open earlier this month. It is the first time she has lost to a player outside the top 50 since the Eastbourne International in June.
Meanwhile, Trevisan has become the first player from her country to have reached the quarter-finals of multiple WTA 1000 tournaments within the same season since 2015. She also reached the quarter-finals of the Miami Open in March. In the next round, she will play America’s Caroline Dolehide.
Sakkari benefitting from going solo
There was better news for second seed Maria Sakkari who dropped just four games during her 6-2, 6-2, win over Camila Giorgi. Despite dropping serve twice, the Greek broke Giorgi six times and won 72% of her first service points. She has now won 31 matches so far this season.
“I love playing here. The love of the crowd is just very unique and very special to me. I just really enjoy my time here. There are only positives about this place for me and my tennis,” said Sakkari.
“I had to be very solid, which I was. Camila hits very strong and very powerful. I tried to make a lot of balls and make her work. I feel like day by day my game is getting better.” She added.
This week the 28-year-old has been reunited with her coach Tom Hill after it was decided that he wouldn’t be accopanying Sakkari at her previous tournament in San Diego. The decision to have some time to herself appears to have paid off for the multiple Grand Slam semi-finalist who says she has identified areas of her game to work on.
“It feels good again to have Tom back. I think that it was very important for me to have that week by myself. I just really discovered some things that I wanted to change on the court, on the practice court. Tom is on board with those.” She explained.
“I believe that it was a healthy decision and that it’s going to help me a lot in the future.”
Sakkari faces Colombia’s Emiliana Arango in the next round. She is bidding to win her first title since 2019.
Elsewhere in the tournament, Victoria Azarenka cruised past Veronika Kudermetova 6-2, 6-1, to set up a showdown with France’s Caroline Garcia. It is the 25th time in her career that she has reached the last eight of a hardcourt WTA 1000 event.
