Ons Jabeur hugs Aryna Sabalenka after their Women’s Singles Group Stage match in WTA Finals.© AFP
World number seven Aryna Sabalenka rallied from a set down to beat second-ranked Ons Jabeur on Monday as round-robin play began at the season-ending WTA Finals. Sabalenka shook off an error-strewn start to beat the Tunisian, a finalist at both Wimbledon and the US Open this year, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-5 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. “I think it’s the biggest win of the season for me,” said Sabalenka, who was a semi-finalist in the WTA’s season finale last year but has endured a disappointing 2022 campaign.
“She played unbelievable and somehow another miracle happened for me and I was able to win this match.”
Sabalenka had to dig deep to improve her record against Jabeur to 3-1.
Jabeur, making her WTA Finals debut, was two points away from victory at 5-3 in the second set tiebreaker, and she had two chances to break for a 5-2 lead in the third.
But Sabalenka held on, breaking Jabeur at love to level the set at 4-4 and capturing the victory when Jabeur netted a forehand on the first match point.
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“I didn’t feel welcome on this court,” Sabalenka said of her early struggles. “I couldn’t understand what was happening, the ball was bouncing too slow for me.
“Then in the second set I kind of calmed down and tried to think what I had to do to win this match.”
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